Xi'an

The countryside ranges from mountains to terraced plots carved out with tombstones honoring ancestors overlooking the crops. Most of the cultivation seems done by hand here- no animals other than a few goats. houses are small, brick and grouped together.
Xi'an is a city of 8 million with an intact city wall. We are staying st the Xi'an Garden Hotel in a room overlooking a lagoon with a bridge and pagoda patrolled by 2 gorgeous peacocks who call out intermittently during the night. The Wild Goose Pagoda is an area of parks with temples and drum towers dedicated to a monk who went to India and brought back the concepts of Buddhism.
The main attraction here are the terra Cotta Warriors. These were discovered in 1974 by a local farmer who now sits in the gift shop charging 20 yuan per picture. The soldiers stand in 3 different pits, row upon row, nearly 6000 strong with their horses and chariots. All are different. They serve as an army in the afterlife to the Emperor of the Qin dynasty of 200BC. There are a few generals as well as archers, cavalrymen,etc. Everyone is unique. Fabulous! Was a highlight of the tour marred only by the fact that it's pouring and rather cold. The Chinese turn off the heat on March 15 by law so we're out of luck. No heat even on the bus. The sad thing about the warriors is that when they are found- and this is ongoingg, they are beautifully painted in many colors. The air oxydizes the paint and in a short time it fades away. They should find a way to preserve them