Welcome Spring

I will be the gladdest thing
Under the sun!
I will touch a hundred flowers
And not pick one.
~Edna St. Vincent Millay, "Afternoon on a Hill"

Xian 4 – City Wall of Xi’an

I read that there are only two cities, with intact surrounding walls in China, and Xi’an is one of them. Xi’an’s has been wonderfully restored and you can either choose to pedal or foot it around the wall. Walking the wall in its entirety would take approximately three hours. With only an hour to spare before heading to the airport, we rented ourselves a bicycle and enjoyed what was left of our time in this historic city.

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Xi’an 3 – Army of Terracotta Warriors

If you've traveled in China at all you know that, as a rule, you can’t go on a tour without being whisked off to some sort of ‘market’ a.k.a tourist trap. However once in a while you are pleasantly surprised. Before heading to the main attraction, we were taken to a studio where they make miniature to full-sized versions of the warriors (among other things) that you can purchase. Most of my favorite photos of the day were snapped there. Of course the Army itself was definitely worth the trek.

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And here we have the real deal. Hopefully you can get a fairly good idea of just how large the site is. Displayed are 8,000 life-like warriors. They were discovered by a local farmer back in 1974. He currently spends most of his days at the museum, signing books….and smoking his pipe.

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Xi’an 2 – ‘The Mystery City’

I’ve searched high and low for my ticket stubs, scanned the web, asked all parties involved, and nobody seems to remember the name of this place. Oh well, the show must go on. This city reminded me of the Forbidden City in Beijing; only much smaller. We came across only a handful of other visitors. In such a populated country it was a little eerie to have almost the entire place to ourselves. It felt a bit like stumbling across a secret garden; without the flowers.


Klynt said I can just make stuff up “because it’s China and nobody back home will know.” So here we have the Emperor’s dining room. :)

A pair of pagodas.

A lonely red ribbon adds a dash of color.

I like this little old man. He paused for a photo and I snapped his picture.

The traditional red Chinese lantern is one of my favorite subjects to photograph. I could bore you with many pictures like this one.

While I am obsessed with lanterns, Klynt tends to migrate towards architecture, as you will see in the next several photos.

We walked around part of the old wall that enclosed the city. Large pagodas were stationed on all four corners.

Looking over the outside of the wall upon a green field and distant street.

From up here you can get a better overview of the size of our ‘undiscovered’ city.

You get quite another view on the opposite side of the wall. These long-standing buildings and broken rooftops have definitely seen better days.

We have a ‘thing’ for old doors.

Such a colorful contrast in comparison to what sits just across the way, on the other side of the fence.

The ancient city wall looks much bigger from down here.

Many dusty streets like these surrounded the outside edges of the city.

Like I said, we've got a 'thing' for old doors.

Xi’an 1 – Hua Shan (Mount Hua)

I’ve been meaning to share some photos of our weekend in Xi’an. Klynt and I really enjoyed our much-needed time away. It’s amazing what a few familiar faces and a change of scenery can do. It would’ve been nice to have an extra day to take in more of the city, but I can’t complain.

Even at the foot of the mountain the views were fantastic. Our journey began by bus as we weaved our way further up and further in.

This shopkeeper was enjoying her bowl of rice in the warm spring sun. There were many shops selling their goods.

This part of the trip made me a little uneasy. I wouldn’t say that I’m really afraid of heights, but my stomach and legs seem to tell a different story.

Stairs, stairs and more stairs; we did our share of climbing that afternoon.

Up top you see numerous chains covered with locks. Many Chinese people purchase these locks, attaching them to the chains, believing this will bring them good luck.

Locks, locks…

...and more locks.

A photo op. up top.

From here you can see the West Peak. We sat here for some time, taking in all that surrounded us.

And here we have a Chinese poem. Actually I have no idea what it says.

In a few short months the mountain will be crowded with tourists. I’m happy we made the trip when we did!

The steps were very steep and very small. I was hanging on for dear life!

This way you say? Xiexie (thank-you)!