Travel Tips: Xian, China

Here are some information for those who will be travelling to Xi'an, China.  I hope they could be of use to you.

About Xi'an:

Xi'an is the capital of Shaanxi province. It was the capital of 13 dynasties in the past and as such, was the center of culture. It is now one of the tourist destinations in China. 

Arrival:

Visitors can fly directly to Xi'an Xianyang International Airport. International flights are all in the T3.  Those who arrive in Beijing may take the train between Beijing and Xian, which will take about 12 hours.  

Taxis and shuttles are available at the airport. Taxis from Xianyang Airport to the downtown hotels will take about an hour and costs around 140RMB (China's currency).  Shuttles cost around 25RMB per person. 

Currency Exchange: 

Currency in China is Yuan (RMB). 

At Xianyang Airport, currency exchange is located at Gate 324, 2/F of Terminal 3
Operating hours: 07:30-21:30
Service fee: RMB58 per transaction

Currency exchange is available in most banks in Xian.  Credit cards such as Visa, Federal Card and Mastercard are also accepted in many establishments.

Language:

In Xi'an, Mandarin Chinese is the main language and only a few people speak English. If you will be travelling by taxi, it is advised that you ask your friends or hotel staffs to write down your destination and hotel address in Chinese, so you can show them to the taxi driver.

Time Zone:

GMT + 8

Electric system

220 volts, 50Hz 

Hotels

• Gloria Plaza Hotel  - 0086 29 87868855 (4 star)
• Hyatt Hotel- 0086 29 87691234 (5 star)
• Bell Towel Hotel- 0086 29 87600000 (4 star)
• Xi’an Royal Hotel- 0086 29 87690000
• The Bell & Drum Tower Hotel - 0086 29 87278276
• Xi’an City Hotel - 0086 29 87219988
• Grand New World Hotel - 0086 29 87218686
• Citadines Central Xian - 0086 29 85761186

Working Time 

• Government offices : 8:00a.m to 18:00p.m (Monday to Friday)
• Banks: 9:00a.m to 17:00p.m (Monday to Friday) and 9:30 a.m to 15:00 p.m (Saturday and Sunday)
• Shops: 10:00a.m to 21:00 p.m (Monday to Sunday)

Holidays:

• International Labour Day:  first three days in May 
• National Day: first week in October
• New Year: January 1 
• Chinese New Year or the Spring Festival: usually late January-early February, depending on the lunar calendar

Tip practices:

Tipping is not common except in star hotels and luxurious restaurants

Places to visit:

• Terracotta Warriors (1 hour away from airport)
• Ancient Xian city wall (within walking distance from downtown)
• Big Goose Pagoda
• The Bell  and Drum Tower
• Shaanxi History Museum
• Forest of Stone Steles
• Hanyang Tombs

Xi'an's Terracota Army: Protector of the First Emperor

The first Qin emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, has not only unified China during his rule from 221-207 BC. He also left behind a treasure, which can aptly be considered as another wonder of the world.  He built a mausoleum for himself- and thousands of life-size terracotta army, horses and chariots.  These terracotta army, arranged in battle formation near the Emperor's tomb, is believed to protect the Emperor in the life after.  Emperor Qin died in 209 BC and was buried with his terracotta army. They remained buried for 2,200 years, until the accidental discovery of the terracotta army in 1974, by some farmers digging a well. The mausoleum of Emperor Qin remained buried and not excavated to this day. 

Since it was opened to public in 1979, the Terracotta Army has attracted millions of visitors per year.  It is considered as one of the must-see in China, along with the Great Wall.  And I was not going to miss it for anything!

Our colleague has arranged for the taxi driver to take me and my colleague Shanta from Xi'an airport to the Terracotta Army museum, upon our arrival from YuLin. It's an hour drive from the airport.  We first had lunch then met with the tour guide which the driver has arranged for us. The tour guide showed us where to buy the admission tickets, we queued, bought our tickets,  and started with the tour. It was a bit of a walk through a nice garden, from the gate to the exhibitions.  

Ticket booths

Everybody off to see the tarracotta army

And here we go.....

The mausoleum and the terracotta army museum is in a 20 square mile compound. There are 3 exhibitions, showcasing the 3 pits of terracotta warriors.  We entered the biggest building, the 1st exhibition. It is where 6,000 terracotta solders were found. The tour guide shared that the figures used to have colors when they were first unearthed.  However due to exposure to air and light, the colors faded.  

The life-size terracotta soldiers (archers, cavalry, infantry and officers) are arranged  in battle formation along with chariots and horses. There were also 40,000 bronze weapons (spears, axes, crossbows and arrowheads) found in the pits.

Looking closely, each of the members of the army has distinct facial features and facial expression, height, and hair style.  Our guide shared that the artists then, copied the features of the of the Emperor's favorites among his soldiers.  

Our guide also shared that a number of laborers and artists, who helped in the construction of the tomb and of the terracotta warriors, were killed in order to preserve its secrecy.  

The 2nd pit or the 2nd exhibition has cavalry and infantry units.

The 3rd pit contains high ranking officers and chariots.

We headed to the souvenir shop. Our guide pointed to a man signing souvenir books by the entrance of the store.  He's one of the farmers who accidentally discovered the terracotta soldiers.  

I bought myself a replica of the kneeling archer, made from the terracotta soil.

The sales person said the kneeling archer is a symbol of luck.  I hope the kneeling archer will indeed bring me lots of luck, so that I will be able to see all of the world's wonders.

Xi'an

There are news again of Chinese vessels intruding the Philippine territory.  As if their taking over of one of the islands in the Spratly's is not enough. These news scares me.  So when I was told that I was to do a review of our office in China, I was scared. I wanted to see China, but not at that time when our dispute over the islands was on all time high. 

I was anxious all throughout my flight to Xi'an.  I have heard about the propaganda the Chinese government has spread against the Philippines, Vietnam, and other Southeast Asian countries whose islands, they have interest on.  I was prepared to be harassed at the immigration, and be treated badly as what some Filipinos have experienced in Beijing.

To my surprise, I did not experience any of that in Xi'an.  I guess they are far from Beijing so they are not that aware of the issues between our countries.  The immigration officer looked so young, and he was very nice and even welcomed me to China.

And I was doubly surprised that many people thought I was Chinese! (How come?). And I did experience a lot of kindness. The people in our office (both in Xian and Jiaxian) were very nice (and many looked fashionable :). They were very open in sharing their processes and procedures, important information I needed to be able to do my review and be able to provide with feedback later.  

Also, our partners from the government , were very cooperative during the interview.  Not to mention that they prepared delicious Chinese dishes for me.  

I totally did not expect it- those were pleasant surprises.  

But  there was one unpleasant surprise: when I tried to open Facebook, I was not able to. And I just found that their government has banned Facebook in China.  Same thing as Google and YouTube.  What??

View of the mall from my room in Xian...

The fancy hotel next door....