Halfway through China...
And it's a bit up and down. Definite cultureshock at first, and the language barrier is the starkest I've ever encountered (should've expected that in all honesty) - but things have been steadily improving. I was delighted when I checked in to my hostel in Xi'an, again stereotypically named Han Tang Inn, and found it was a bit more lively - what I was used to from the decent hostels I've stayed in previously. Common activities on each night, plenty of backpackers around, and best of all - a rooftop chill out area, equipped with a table tennis table. We're in business:
I dropped off my things and asked for the best thing to do nearby for the afternoon, and was duly told to check out the bell tower in the centre of town, and afterwards the muslim quarter (though was warned to avoid the "street meat" food stalls throughout, which I of course ignored):
I wasn't brave enough for the squid on a stick, instead opting for the local "hamburger", which was kinda of like something resembling a doner kebab, with a meat that will remain a mystery to me until my dying day (think it was lamb to be fair. Hope it was). I carried on with my walk and reached the edge of the town centre, realising that Xi'an is a walled city:
As I walked along the south wall, I stumbled across (by chance, honestly) the aptly named Near Wall Pub, a brewpub by Xi'an Brewery, which turned out to be an amazing little spot. Happy hour until 8:30, so €4 for a pint of this 7.3% coffee stout which turned out to be the best beer I've had so far on this trip was nothing to shake a stick at - and I got chatting to an English couple who recommended a few things for the rest of my China trip, as they had already visited my last couple of destinations.
Day two, and I'd signed up for the hostel tour of the Terracotta Army, the site which Xi'an is most famous for. The weather finally seemed to be picking up a bit, so it made for a nice day to visit, and was good to finally have a big group of backpackers tagging along to the same thing. However, I found the site itself a little disappointing in all honesty. Just wasn't my thing. A lot of Chinese tourist/cultural sites are restored/redeveloped (note: LED lights), so you're not always looking at the bona fide point of interest - it could be a replica/restoration. There is only one warrior that was found in perfect condition, the rest are broken, so a lot of it is just a massive archaeological site where they're gluing bits of terracotta warriors back to each other. Maybe it was just lost on me, and other people would love it, but it wasn't my favourite.
The price of the tour did however include an hour of free beer in the hostel afterwards, and it was games night, so the group of us tried (and massively failed) to learn the rules of Mahjong - don't do it, it's impossible.
A few sore heads the next morning were sorted out by an unreal breakfast of 8 pork baozi dumplings for €1 - best thing about Chinese cuisine is the the little side plate they give you to make your own dipping sauce of Soy/Vinegar/Chili to your own liking:
And a group of four of us from the tour ventured on to cycle the city walls, on what turned out to be the last day in Xi'an for all of us.
A great way to clear the head and see all around Xi'an city - a couple of laps and I said goodbye to Victor, Saskia, and Katrine who all had to leave earlier than I did. With my last evening I decided to head over to where the Big Goose Pagoda was, but decided against paying in, as there's only so many pagodas you can look at before they all just become incredibly boring and samey. So instead wandered around the surrounding area, embracing the infatuation with LED lights, and watching the fountain show at the base of the walk up to the pagoda - nice way to round off an enjoyable stop in Xi'an.
Stu.
Currently listening to:
And it's a bit up and down. Definite cultureshock at first, and the language barrier is the starkest I've ever encountered (should've expected that in all honesty) - but things have been steadily improving. I was delighted when I checked in to my hostel in Xi'an, again stereotypically named Han Tang Inn, and found it was a bit more lively - what I was used to from the decent hostels I've stayed in previously. Common activities on each night, plenty of backpackers around, and best of all - a rooftop chill out area, equipped with a table tennis table. We're in business:
I dropped off my things and asked for the best thing to do nearby for the afternoon, and was duly told to check out the bell tower in the centre of town, and afterwards the muslim quarter (though was warned to avoid the "street meat" food stalls throughout, which I of course ignored):
I wasn't brave enough for the squid on a stick, instead opting for the local "hamburger", which was kinda of like something resembling a doner kebab, with a meat that will remain a mystery to me until my dying day (think it was lamb to be fair. Hope it was). I carried on with my walk and reached the edge of the town centre, realising that Xi'an is a walled city:
As I walked along the south wall, I stumbled across (by chance, honestly) the aptly named Near Wall Pub, a brewpub by Xi'an Brewery, which turned out to be an amazing little spot. Happy hour until 8:30, so €4 for a pint of this 7.3% coffee stout which turned out to be the best beer I've had so far on this trip was nothing to shake a stick at - and I got chatting to an English couple who recommended a few things for the rest of my China trip, as they had already visited my last couple of destinations.
After another pint just in time before the price doubled, I headed back to the hostel in the dark. More so what's left of the dark, as the Chinese infatuation with LED lights leads to a never ending brightness:
Day two, and I'd signed up for the hostel tour of the Terracotta Army, the site which Xi'an is most famous for. The weather finally seemed to be picking up a bit, so it made for a nice day to visit, and was good to finally have a big group of backpackers tagging along to the same thing. However, I found the site itself a little disappointing in all honesty. Just wasn't my thing. A lot of Chinese tourist/cultural sites are restored/redeveloped (note: LED lights), so you're not always looking at the bona fide point of interest - it could be a replica/restoration. There is only one warrior that was found in perfect condition, the rest are broken, so a lot of it is just a massive archaeological site where they're gluing bits of terracotta warriors back to each other. Maybe it was just lost on me, and other people would love it, but it wasn't my favourite.
The price of the tour did however include an hour of free beer in the hostel afterwards, and it was games night, so the group of us tried (and massively failed) to learn the rules of Mahjong - don't do it, it's impossible.
A few sore heads the next morning were sorted out by an unreal breakfast of 8 pork baozi dumplings for €1 - best thing about Chinese cuisine is the the little side plate they give you to make your own dipping sauce of Soy/Vinegar/Chili to your own liking:
And a group of four of us from the tour ventured on to cycle the city walls, on what turned out to be the last day in Xi'an for all of us.
A great way to clear the head and see all around Xi'an city - a couple of laps and I said goodbye to Victor, Saskia, and Katrine who all had to leave earlier than I did. With my last evening I decided to head over to where the Big Goose Pagoda was, but decided against paying in, as there's only so many pagodas you can look at before they all just become incredibly boring and samey. So instead wandered around the surrounding area, embracing the infatuation with LED lights, and watching the fountain show at the base of the walk up to the pagoda - nice way to round off an enjoyable stop in Xi'an.
The Chinese and their LEDs. Can't get enough of them, it appears. I headed back to get ready for my longest train of the trip, finally making my way to the capital, Beijing. Very much looking forward to this stop. One more dumpling breakfast and I'm on my way.
Big love,
Stu.
Currently listening to:
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