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1997

Route in China (CHINA - Xi'an)

Bec
2004-09-19 16:57:28

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years old.

The gate and the gardens of the Great Mosque are definitely Chinese but this site has been a place of worship used actively by the Muslim minority almost without interruption for eleven centuries.

Visitors can roam the grounds but only Muslims may enter the Prayer Hall. It does look different than a Chinese temple and more like a mosque.

The Bell tower marks the center of Xi'an where North street, East street, South street and West street meet. The original Bell Tower built by the Ming was rebuilt here by the Qing in the 18th century and was heavily restored a decade ago.

The best known of the many sights of this historic region is probably the stupendous "Terracotta Army" buried in the 3rd century BC to guard over the mausoleum of the Qin Emperor Shihuang. It had lain undisturbed for more than 22 centuries until farmers digging a well discovered it by accident in 1974. The mausoleum which is said to have taken 700 000 workers 36 years to complete has yet to be opened!

I usually don't care much for organized tours but I did join one for it was the most convenient way to visit the Terracotta Army and the Bampo neolithic village which are both some distance out of town. Both sites are impressive and well worth visiting but photography was forbidden everywhere and the herd of tourists of which I was a member was so closely watched that I did not manage to sneak a single shot. I did of course buy a pile of post cards (which was intended), but you will have to do without for I can't bring myself to scan someone else's photos for my site.

On the way back I got off the bus early to take this shot of what I think to be Xi'an's East Gate. If some one out there is sure of what this is, please let me know...

After three days visiting Xi'an on my own, I finally met my internet friends Hua Feng and Liu Chunming who had been intensely busy with ...