Arrival at Xian

After twenty four hours of travelling I finally arrive at Xian airport.  The flight from South Korea was amazing as it was low enough that I had a perfect view of the changing landscape as I flew over Beijing and towards Xian.
 Mr Peter Wang was waiting for me at arrivals, a very smiley chap who apologised and explained that I would now have to sit and wait for an hour as another volunteer was due to arrive.  I sat with my suit case and a bottle of water, I had now been awake for over twenty four hours but I was happy to finally be in China.  I soon realised that I was getting some very strange looks and the locals were not afraid to stare.  In Xian they are still getting used to white faces and my blonde hair made me stand out even more.
I stayed for two nights in Xian in one of the many apartment blocks that are being built everywhere in the city.  The noise of the city never stops, constant horn blowing as cars and bikes beep their horns every time they pass someone and fire crackers are let off at all times sounding like a blast of gun fire. At the apartment I met the other volunteers, there were seven of us .

Sunday morning there were locals around the apartment doing there stretching exercises some still in pyjamas  .  I spotted this man outside our apartment dipping his calligraphy brush into the pond and writing on the pavement .

The apartment from the outside looks very modern but Chinese plumbing is very basic but we were lucky that here we had hot water for the shower. No toilet paper can be put down the toilet as this would cause everything to block up!  The basin in the bathroom was very ornate even if it could of done with a scrub and some Cif.

Sunday we were given an orientation talk by the Chinese contact for our trip.  We had to sign various bits of paper to say we would behave in a certain way, and be advised on what photos we could share etc.

We took a taxi to the Southgate of the City Wall, it was best not to look at what the driver was doing and look at the views as they dive across lanes and mopeds jump in front of the cars.  Although a nice temperature you could not see the sun due to the smog that hangs above Xian, it permanently looked misty as the photos show.   We visited the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower and walked around the Muslim quarter. We also discovered a street selling calligraphy items, this was my time to have a go at haggling and once in the swing of it I found this both fun and easy.  It was difficult if you started converting the money back to pounds as your realised what a good deal you were getting and sometimes I would of been happy to pay the first price they suggested as everything was so reasonably priced.

The Bell Tower

To get from the Bell Tower to the Drum Tower you had to negotiate the busy roads that surrounded them along with the underground walkways .

You can see the Drum Tower in the distance taken from the Bell Tower

Even the bins were drum shaped

The Muslim Quarter was quite dark and noisy, mopeds kept beeping as they squeezed down the tiny streets.  Food stalls everywhere, a real community with everyone sitting outside there shops and stalls.

In one street we were stopped by a very smart lady who wanted a picture taken with me on her i phone, this was to be the first of many, some were less obvious and just tried to take pictures without you knowing.

We had to get back to the apartment for dinner and rush hour in Xian is between 4 -6.  We must of taken half an hour to wave a taxi down as its a race to grab the door and no one queues you just run.  The pedicab drivers kept circling us and offering to take us but they wanted five times as much and I imagine it would of taken a long time.

 Here is Rita trying to negotiate a good price with one of the drivers.

So it was back to the apartment for dinner and one more nights attempted sleep before heading down to Louguan tai and the Pandas.