Today was a busy day as we said goodbye to Xi’an and hello to Chengdu (pronounced chung-doo). After breakfast, we had the opportunity to visit the underground mausoleum of Western Han Emperor Liu Qi (Hanyangling)—something Dr. Spangler, Jo, and I decided to add since we had time before our flight. The Hanyangling Museum has been built into a large-scale tour core for probing cultures of Han Dynasty. Situated 20 kilometers north of Xi'an (on our way to the airport), the museum is a key cultural relics protection unit of the county. One word describes this tomb—spectacular! We could see many of the relics that were buried with the emperor including pots, chariots, and warriors (the warriors looked like dolls, especially compared to the Terra Cotta Warriors) along with the man-made “mountains” where the Emperor and Empress were buried within. We also saw a film on the history of the Emperor, which was created by using holograms (so cool!). A few video clips of it are uploaded to our Snapfish site. Below is a group shot of us in front of the Emperor’s “mountain” and also one of us in front of his tombstone. It was another beautiful, clear day—again, unusual to have clear skies.
On our bus ride to the tomb, Jo gave us a mini lesson on Chinese characters. It was interesting to see that there actually was a methodology to the creation of the characters.
Our flight was about 1 ¼ hours to Chengdu, and upon arrival we were met by our local guide, Jonathan. Jo will continue to stay with us through Shanghai, but we will also have local guides since they are from this area and know the history better. We arrived at our hotel at about 5 PM and it is VERY nice. We only had a few minutes to drop off our luggage and head to dinner and a show. We first went to a restaurant that specializes in “snacks”; however it is not the same translation as it is in English. This means that they are small portions. So, we ordered many “snacks” including dumplings, wonton soup, rice, kung pao chicken, and other items of which I don’t remember the names. Smaller portions is a little misleading, but it seems to me that it has to do with how it is served. Where we have been eating family style the entire trip (where the full portions are placed on a lazy Susan in the center of the table and we all help ourselves), many of the snacks were served individually to each of us. Since we are now in the Sichuan province, everything will become spicier. The guide had to tell the chef not to make it too spicy—it was still spicy for some of us, but many want it spicier!
After dinner, we went to the Shufengyayun Tea House to watch a traditional Sichuan Opera. Opera in China is not what we imagine. It is more like a variety show with some opera acts, but also music, acting, hand shadows (definitely watch the videos of this—it is unbelievable!), stick puppets, and the famous face changing act as well. Everyone enjoyed it and liked it as much as the show the previous night.
I hope you’re enjoying the blog. I still cannot view or edit it. J We’re already half-way through our trip. Time flies when you’re having fun. Tomorrow we’re off to visit the Giant Buddha in Leshan. I think the students will be excited to see the similarities that Leshan has with Pittsburgh.
Visit our Snapfish site at http://www2.Snapfish.com/Snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=3400894009/a=32703808_32703808/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=Snapfish.
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