PINGYAO ANCIENT CITY DAY TWO: CITY WALLS.

I Get up at about 8am and have a relaxing walk to the South Gate where I try to find out how to visit the City Walls. 

I pass another procession, which I guess to be an old ritual. They occur regularly.(I gather it's called a Gong procession)

There is a ticket office (you have to buy a ticket for all the attractions in Pingyao for RMB130) but it's closed, so I go and have a leisurely Western breakfast at Sakura cafe which does a reasonable English Breakfast. I decide to walk around aimlessly for a bit, then return to the South Gate to buy a ticket for the attractions, temples, museums etc. Not all of these appeal to me but I may as well make the most of my visit. I find to my delight I can walk the length of the wall in a circuit like Xian so I set off: it takes about an hour and 40 minutes to complete the walk, and I actually get tired of photographing watchtowers and pagodas.

South Gate of the Wall.

Old Rickshaw by the turret.

Medieval cannon used in battle.

 The view from the wall is charming.This is South Street seen from the top.

Watchtowers along the Wall

Gate of the Confucius Temple.

There is a real flavour of the old Silk Road.( a network of trading routes between Europe and Asia, of which Xian was the last stop)

This sculpture of the watchmen smoking together  gives a feel for the age.

An old house in the hutong.

This is North Street from the North Gate; I'm half-way around by now.

Round window of a house nearby.

Watchtowers as I draw near the South Gate again:  I walked the opposite way around to my walk in Xian, this is anticlockwise. last time I did it clockwise.

Rooftops in  the hutong.

I complete the walk and fetch up in the western cafe and bar where I have a burger and fries. I decide to relax for the remainder of the day and sample some local hotpot later.

Many Chinese people come up to me and say “Hello” as I walk around. Clearly I'm a sight they're not used to. (I keep seeing lots of Chinese on the trains and buses always carrying bags of milk and yoghurt cartons: seemingly they exchange these as gifts during Chinese New Year, how bizarre!)

I feel very tired so go and have a sleep in the afternoon. Cursing my own foolishness in not having brought ear plugs as I can always hear the fans from the showers working around me, and the Chinese love to shower! I get the feeling there are whole families in some of the rooms.

I try the hotpot and it's not only expensive but vegetarian and not very appetising . After two helpings of dumplings and one hotpot I give up on local food and decide to be a Philistine eating Western food as I did in Xian. I can get plenty of half-decent Chinese food in Beijing.

PINGYAO ANCIENT CITY DAY ONE: XIAN TO PINGYAO AND LANTERNS

Pingyao is China's best preserved ancient walled city. Here you almost feel you have gone back in time to Imperial days. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/812

I have a good vegetarian breakfast at the hostel of fruit, muesli, yoghurt and toast. There is so much fruit though that I decide to take it onto the train for lunch. The prospect of braving Xian's crowds to make the trip to Pingyao fills me with trepidation. However the subway journey to the railway station passes off without undue inconvenience. When I get there I have to ask directions to the railway station entrance as it's not altogether clear. I don't feel so tired now although I'm not sure how to get to the hotel I've booked, as traffic inside the old city is restricted. However this is soon solved as I get a message from the hotel offering me a pick up from the railway station for RMB 30 (Around £3).

While travelling around China by rail I'm reminded of the episode in the film Gandhi when Gandhi travels around India by rail with his family to experience the land and find out about the people. I feel fascinated and privileged too.

On board the train I go to the toilet and notice a little knot of railway police around a suitcase. They are talking with some Chinese ladies who gesture excitedly, they're also laughing and taking photos. This is a curious scene, but I think little of it as I pass by. However on exiting the toilet I notice with alarm that the policemen have produced a large, thick black sheet which they lay on the floor and which has the words printed on it in English, in large bold white, “BOMB SUPPRESSION BLANKET.” I wonder whether to take this seriously, and on going back to my seat manage with some success to divest myself of the idea that the train is about to be derailed by an explosion. 

Another thing you experience on Chinese trains is the presence of Logan's Run/Total Recall-esque announcements couched in pleasant and relaxing voices and expressions wishing you a pleasant journey but issuing a series of instructions (no smoking, please mind the gaps when getting off the train, don't annoy other travellers etc.) and warning gently of dire consequences if any of these are infringed. However most of this is just common sense. The fruit I've got sees me through lunchtime and I realise I haven't brought any tissue paper for my fingers. Fortunately the Chinese lady next to me kindly provides some!

On arrival at the station there is a driver waiting for me with a sign which has my name on it, so I'm driven to the hotel. For what seems an age, (probably about 25-30 minutes) we pass through mile after mile of dreary modern town. At last I glimpse the city wall ahead, we pass through an arched entrance. The driver parks up and we have to walk to the hotel as the roads here are completely pedestrianised with barriers to stop cars from trying to drive through. 

I'm shown to my room, although it's very small it's very charming and has a special old-world feeling to it. It's right on South Street, ( the main street of the old town). It's a conversion of an old courtyard house, so has a Chinese kang bed which is built into the room. It's a raised platform with a futon-style mattress. Actually I had the foresight to bring my inflatable mattress with me so I can be assured of a comfortable night. I've decided to just relax and enjoy the old town.

This is the courtyard of the hotel.

The corridor to the reception area.

I spend the afternoon and evening around South Street where my hotel is. I'm a bit sad really, as I rely on Lonely Planet (LP) to guide me around as Pingyao can be a bit tricky for the first time visitor as there are very few English signs. LP is very good though as an introduction to somewhere you've never visited before.

Fascinatingly, there are a number of costumed processions through the centre of the town. I'm not sure what these are, I gather they are a re-enactment of an ancient custom.

I find the nearest bars through Lonely Planet:

There are fascinating markets and souvenir shops everywhere along here. There is a real feeling of ancient history and adventure in Pingyao!

The whole area is magical at night. I walk around and soon find the nearest local bars. I also have dumplings for a late afternoon snack and supper later.

Street lanterns are everywhere especially around North and South Street.

This restaurant sells Pingyao hotpot. There are a number of local dishes like Pingyao Beef, (cold boiled beef) local noodles that look a bit like canneloni, and hotpot.

There is a special atmosphere at night.

This is the hotel at night. It feels very romantic.

I make up the bed.

THE END OF CHINESE NEW YEAR

The area around the university is slowly coming back to life, as  the great migration happens in reverse, so little clusters of students can be seen trundling wheeled suitcases everywhere, coming back from the railway station. The stalls and shops are slowly opening up again and the area, once deserted as if evacuated in war or disaster, now begins to bustle with life again. Along Mad Max Road as some call it, dozens of locals go about their daily business just as before.

XIAN DAY THREE: ARMY OF TERRACOTTA WARRIORS

I ask at the reception desk and am directed to the 103 bus from a nearby hospital to the railway station. From there I avoid the queues for the 306 public bus and get on board one of the Terracotta Warrior buses (RMB 8, 1 hour) running constantly. This makes for an easy journey. Oddly enough, most people who get on board turn out not to be going to the site: they're Chinese who use it as a shuttle bus for shopping trips! Marshals direct me onto the bus which is a comfortable ride though some attractive countryside. It feels quite exciting, I have a sense of anticipation building although I do wish Sarah were here with me! It passes though a number of shopping areas to pick up more passengers who then get off at a later stage. Eventually we arrive at a car park in front of a row of dingy looking shops. I feel dubious this is the right place, but I get off with all the others and follow the signs saying “Ticket Office.” It takes me abut 10 minutes to get there and there are no more signs except EXIT signs, so I just follow all the Chinese thinking I can't go wrong. Eventually I arrive at a plaza and in looking for the ticket office try to find the nearest big crowd. In fact there is not much of a queue at all and I get my ticket right away. At RMB 120 it's the most expensive attraction so far.

I start at Pit 3, the smallest one, following the advice in Lonely Planet. There is a dizzying feel as you approach, as the pits are much deeper than I expected,, something like 30 or 40 feet: the experience reminds me of the Grand Canyon in a way.

  

Unfortunately photography is very difficult unless you have expensive equipment owing to the low light in the pavilions, and flash photography is discouraged: it also doesn't work anyway. This is because the of the damage this can cause to the exhibits.

Pit 2 is only partially excavated so there isn't much to see, but there are glass-encased specimens to see. Unfortunately I have to negotiate the crowds while taking photos.

Pit 3 is the most impressive,it contains 6000 soldiers although only 2000 can be seen at present.

On coming out I walk along a street of tacky souvenir shops before getting back to the bus. The journey back takes about 1 ½ hours owing to the bus staying around for a seeming age in a town called Lintong trying to fill up with passengers.

For more information follow this link:

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/shaanxi/xian/terra_cotta_army/

The journey back takes about 1 ½ hours owing to the bus staying around for a seeming age in a town called Lintong trying to fill up with passengers. On returning to Xian I need lunch but the whole area around the railway station is so chaotic with traffic that I decide to walk as far as I can until I can get a bus. This turns out to be impossible so I end up walking all the way back to the hostel. From there I get the metro to the South Gate, but make a mistake and end up getting off at the Bell Tower, a good 15 or 20 minutes from the Gate. Cursing my own stupidity I finally fetch up in the bar where I sit outside and have a beer and pizza which is actually not bad! I'm not keen on the local food in Xian, too much of it is offal, noodles and dumplings, or unidentifiable matter which I don't want to risk!

After this I go back to the hostel to try and have a doze. I'm exhausted so I try and get a taxi, but after 2 attempts I give up as they won't take me! I'm not sure why. I try the metro and its impossibly overcrowded. I like Xian very much but it's just too crowded! Dog tired I slowly trudge back to the hostel, shower and slip into an uneasy doze.

Waking up at 7pm I abandon the idea of going out for the evening as I'm absolutely exhausted. I've been walking all day. I have some draught beers in the hostel bar and order a meal of soup, steak and chips and salad which is great value at RMB 78 or about £8. Sadly it all arrives at the same time, so I eat the steak first, then the soup as it's hotter, and finish off with the salad. A Chinese guy I befriended wants a game of pool but I'm so fatigued that I just go back to the room at about 8.30, open the window to cool down the room as it's quite warm, and listen to the traffic noise hoping it will soothe me to sleep. I find it hard to sleep as I keep dozing and waking: it's always like this when I'm really tired, and it's very fitful. A noisy car alarm wakes me up so I have to use improvised earplugs made form tissue paper for a while to stop up my ears. (Car alarms are useless: all they do is make a hell of a racket and nobody ever checks them out!)