Great Family China Trip
New York, NY
Xi’an, Shaanxi
Friday, August 7, 2015
There are many delicious lunch options in the Muslim quarter, and we had a nice lunch although a bit spicy. So far, China over stimulates all our senses – very noisy, very spicy, intense smells, many people everywhere. Where ever we go, we are in a crowd.
We also visited the bell tower in the heart of the old city. The ringing from its bells used to mark dawn. The tower dates from the 14th century.
Xi’an, Shaanxi - Terracotta Warriors
Saturday, August 8, 2015
Today we visited the extraordinary army of terracotta warriors. This is one of the most famous archeological finds in the world, discovered accidentally when farmers drilled a well. There are thousands of life-size terracotta soldiers, archers, cavalry, horses, generals, and everything else an emperor might need in his afterlife. It is remarkable that no two soldiers are alike. This 2,000 old site gives an insight into ancientLuoyang, Henan – Kung Fu
Sunday, August 9, 2015
In the morning, we visited the Shaolin temple, the place where Buddhist monks created Kung Fu as a counterbalance to meditation, and for self-defense. We saw an amazing Kung Fu show with elastic children, animal inspired fighting styles (fighters making movements like a monkey, a snake or a tiger). They demonstrated breaking a sword against a head and popping a balloon through a glass without a needle, etc. We saw a temple whose floor is depressed by monks practicing jumps over many years and trees with holes made by punches. My girls were thrilled by the temple and Kung Fu, even while none is practicing any martial arts.
Luoyang, Henan – Longmen caves
Sunday, August 9, 2015
Looking for zen.
We took an overnight sleeper train that took us all the way from Luoyang to Nanjing, and then continued the next day with high-speed train to Huangshan.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)