Xi'an adventures

(written Sunday, May 27, 2007)
Greetings from Xi'an (pronounced she-an). I'm excited that I have finally figured out how to pronounce all these Chinese words that begin with an Xi - it is like our Sh. The morning we left Beijing, the sky was clouded over but not with clouds, but instead sand. The news indicated that there was a sandstorm from Mongolia that had blown over much of China- at least the more northern parts. Apparently this is normal in the winter and spring, but unusual for summer, which is what the Chinese consider this time of year to be. The air had an unusual look and feel to it and I was glad we were flying away to Xi'an to hopefully avoid it, but alas, it was even worse once we arrived here. The skies were so thick, the mountain tops were not visible. Coincidentally, I lost my voice by the first full day we were here and it has not returned as of yet. I feel fine but I'm thinking that the pollutants must be the cause. The air is clearer today and I have been taking some Chinese herbs for the throat (there is a Chinese student in our group so she wrote out the Chinese characters for me to get some medicine - very helpful - I am drinking this herbal concoction three times a day and drinking lots of water). Today there is a very slight hint of phonation in my cough so I am hoping my voice will re-emerge within the next week. In the meantime, I am doing what I have heard my voice teacher friends recommend - not to whisper too much, get plenty of rest (I skipped one day of our excursions to sleep), gargle with salt water and drink lots of water in general. Anyone with any other ideas is welcome to email me! The most impressive sites we have visited was that of the Terra-Cotta Warriors - an amazing place not far from Xi'an that was unearthed by a farmer in 1974. There are three vaults that contain around 7,000 life-size warriors and horses made of terra-cotta by the first emperor of China, Qin Shihuang (221BC) so he would have lots of company in the afterlife! He started building a huge tomb for himself along with all these figures, but died before it was completed. Nonetheless, he was buried along with these amazing figures and it was not discovered until 30 some years ago. Archeologists have had a lot of work to do (and they are still doing it) but the site is quite impressive (some have called it the Eighth Wonder of the World!). It takes your breath away to see the magnitude of it all and imagine what kind of character this emperor must have been! While in Xi'an, we also met with the youth of an open house church (fairly unusual in China). There were a couple hundred (college age or older) there on a weeknight evening. Words are inadequate to describe the magnitude of the Father's work in China. More can be said at a later time. Last night we attended a Tang Dynasty "show." It had a variety of traditional music and dance performances, characteristic of the Shaanxi Province, where we are located. I got the entire show captured on videotape - so I have some new material for World Music class in the fall! (I expect to get some more when I am out west). This afternoon some of us meandered through the Muslim market in Xi'an. What a fascinating place and a good place to bargain. Even without a voice, I did pretty well in my bargaining, occasionally assisted by some with more voice and expertise at the skill of the bargain. Then tonight, I had Chinese foot massage #2 - a vast improvement over the one in Nanchang - not so painful and still that wonderful feeling in the end. These will definitely keep me going through my trip! We have one more day in Xi'an - visiting the mosque and another museum and then will fly back to Beijing on Tuesday.