My student (her English name is Tracy) picked me up at 9am, and our first stop was the Bank of China. I wanted to change some money, and I suspected I'd need a Chinese speaker. I did. We were at the bank for 45 minutes because of the long lines, but we were successful eventually. The bank teller didn't seem to like the feel of my US dollars: I have a feeling that running them through the washer made them a tiny bit stiffer than usual. Happily, she exchanged them anyway.
We caught a cab and we were off to our first destination, Xi'an's old Bell Tower. The tower was originally built in 1348 and was used to ring the time, but it was moved in 1552. Then in 1664, it was rebuilt and made bigger. How much of it now dates back to 1348, I don't know. Still, it's an impressive building. We bought tickets so that we could go inside, and I'm glad we did. The ceiling is beautiful--so colorfully painted. There was a performance while we were there, too. Lots of unusual musical instruments and bells. Very cool. Here are some photos from inside and outside of the Bell Tower.
You can rent costumes to be photographed in, like the one below. As you can see above, I chose the scrubby American look.
Our next stop was just across a very big street: the Drum Tower. This tower was built in 1380, and, like it's "sister building," it was also used to announce the time. We went inside this one, too, and it's filled with interesting antique furniture, pottery, and paintings. Outside, there are lots of drums. Here's a picture of it taken from the Bell Tower.
I think my favorite part of the day came next. We wandered through the Muslim Quarter and Muslim Market that runs near the towers. There's a long covered alleyway filled with vendors selling every kind of souvenir: silk scarves, Chinese masks, fans, decorative chopsticks, teapots, Mahjong sets. I loved it. Tracy helped me haggle. This is expected at places like this, but I have no experience with it. Since things already seemed quite inexpensive, I relied on Tracy to tell me if she thought the prices they were asking seemed fair. She talked them down every time, and I walked out with a number of great souvenirs. This covered alley opens up onto the Muslim Quarter, a pedestrian area filled with interesting shops, restaurants, tea vendors, and street food booths. It was so interesting. The area was packed today, so it was hard to navigate our way, but I enjoyed that we had to move slowly. I saw dozens of kinds of kabobs, vendors selling a Xi'an treat called Eight Treasure Sweet Porridge, gilded bird cages hanging from trees with something like parakeets inside them, giant vats of roasting walnuts in shells, and so many interesting people. Here are a few shots of the area. I wasn't permitted to take pictures in that covered alleyway: it upsets the vendors for some reason.
I was thoroughly warned by the health clinic where I got my inoculations that eating street food was a no-no, but I have to say, it was seriously tempting. Instead, we went to a nice restaurant for lunch. I asked Tracy to order for both of us, and she did a great job. We had fish, some kind of veggies, a fantastic tofu and shrimp dish, and something she called porridge, but I would have to call soup. We also had this fabulous chrysanthemum tea. Tracy didn't seem embarrassed that I photographed the meal. Check out the fish, shaped like a dragon!
See the flowers floating in the teapot?
Our last stop for the day was the ancient city wall. I had been thinking of renting a bike up there to ride around on top, but it was a seriously chilly day, with lots of on again-off again rain, so we just walked a ways. Some parts of the wall date back to 618, but the majority of it was built in the Ming Dynasty, beginning in 1368. It is the most complete ancient city wall surviving in China, and it was a wonderful refuge from the crowds we left on the streets below. I think the wind and rain kept sensible tourists away, but we enjoyed our walk.
Check out how wide the wall is at the top. I like that you can see the modern skyscrapers off in the distance, too.
I have to say that my first May Day was a good one. Thanks to Tracy, I feel like I've now seen nearly all of the most famous sites in Xi'an. Here's an adorable photo of my student and tour guide for the day.
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