Xi’an Bike Tour on City Wall

Welcome to Xi’an! As one of the most famous capitals in China, Xi’an was the ancient capital of thirteen dynasties. I don’t know if you have ever thought that there have been many dynasties in China for thousands of years, but who was the first emperor? And where did he establish his dynasty? In fact, China's first emperor, Qin Shihuang, established his dynasty near Xi’an. For thousands of years, various stories of Qin Shihuang have been circulated by people, but the most mysterious is the Terracotta Warriors and Horses in his mausoleum. After picking you up from the hotel, our guide will take you to visit this famous mausoleum.

The Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum is 40 kilometers north of Xi’an, and it takes about 40 minutes by car. In March 1974, a farmer in Xi’an found several life-size pottery figurines while drilling a well. Later, after exploration and trial excavation by the Shaanxi (The province where Xi’an is located) Provincial Archaeological Team, this is the cemetery of Qin Shihuang. In the earliest excavation Pit No. 1, there were more than 8,000 Terra Cotta Warriors. Among these pottery figurines, there are people, chariots, and various weapons. And they are all made according to the proportions of real things. Besides, Terra Cotta Warriors are distinguished from their identities. They are mainly divided into two categories: soldiers and military officials. And there are also low-level, intermediate, and high-level military officials. General soldiers don’t wear crowns, while military officials wear crowns. In addition, the crown of an ordinary officer is different from that of a general, and even their armors are different. The discovery of the Terracotta Warriors also provides us with a basis for understanding the empire thousands of years ago. Today, it has become a museum. I am sure that when you see these terracotta warriors in person, you will be impressed by the exquisite skills of the artisans over 2,000 years ago.

After visiting the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum, we will head to the Old City wall, where you can have an experience of biking on the Old City Wall. The wall is the largest and best-preserved ancient city wall in China. The wall, 13.7 kilometers long, was built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The general width of the city wall may only accommodate a few people standing side by side, but the city wall in Xi’an is different. The thickness of this city wall is larger than its height. And the wall is 12 meters high, with a top width of 12-14 meters. Even cars can be driven on it. Therefore, it is a good place for people to walk, jog and ride a bike. And the most popular thing is to ride a bike on the wall. Imagine you are riding a bicycle on a city wall more than ten meters high: in the distance is an endless modern city, and underneath is the ancient city wall built a thousand years ago. Isn’t that interesting? In addition, during the cycling, you can not only overlook the nearby scenery but also pass by countless city gate towers (ancient defensive buildings) built on the city wall. And this is like an adventure, adding fun to your China Bike Tour.

Finally, we will visit the landmark of Xi’an, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. The tower was built under the lead of Xuanzang (a prominent monk in the Tang Dynasty) to preserve the Buddhist scriptures brought back to Xi’an from India. And it is also the earliest and largest existing quartet-style brick tower of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Among the relics preserved in the Goose Pagoda, the most worth mentioning is the Palm-leaf manuscript, which is written on the leaves of Bedoro. Since there was no paper in ancient India, people often wrote on the Palm-leaf. Inside the four-story tower of the pagoda, there are two Palm-leaf manuscripts about 40 centimeters long and 7 centimeters wide, where were inscribed in Sanskrit. It is said that there are less than 10 scholars in the world who can read the word. In addition, there are treasures such as Buddha statues, Śarīra (the remains of an eminent monk), and calligraphy in the tower. If you are interested, you might as well come here to see for yourself! After visiting the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, our trip to Xi’an will come to an end. Our tour guide will send you back to the hotel. Hope you like this city!

Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses Museum

Big Wild Goose Pagoda

Author: Zhang Ziyang