10/22/02: Xian: North Gate, Big Goose Pagoda, Tang dynasty music and dance performance and the famous Dumpling banquet. Hotel: Xian Sheraton. Guide: Ellen Zhou Li.

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Our morning call was at 4:30 am. We were given some breakfast in a box and headed for the airport. Of course, our flight was delayed! Arlene and I wondered around for a bit and she bought 2 pieces of fruits. I am still waiting to hear the taste report from Arlene :D

When we got to Xian, it was noontime already. The group was split into two at the Xian Airport. The younger group (30-somethings and under) took a group picture.

Description of Xi'an:
Xian city was called Chang'an in ancient time. Historians acclaim Chang'an together with Athens of Greece, Rome of Italy and Istanbul of Turkey as the four capitals of ancient civilization of the world. Chang'an served as the capital of 11 dynasties in history. From here 73 emperors ruled over China for an aggregate time of 1,100 years. It also is a starting point of the famous "Silk Road". The world known Zhang Qian envoy on a diplomatic mission to the west area (139 B.C.), Tang Monk's gaining scriptures from west, and Jian Zhen's sailing west to Japan all started here.

Since we all had breakfast on the plane, our local guide Ellen suggested that we go to the North Gate or Ming Wall first, then had lunch. The North Gate was an interesting structure because the pathway was build with a courtyard in the middle. The purpose was to provide double security to the city. Once the enemy entered the outer gate, they would have to enter the inner gate. While the invaders were in the courtyard between the two gates, Chinese army could attack them with rocks and arrows and spears. Ingenious design, I must say.

About the North Gate or The Ming Walls
During the Ming dynasty (1368 A.D.-1644 A.D.), Xi'an was refurbished and returned to prominence as a center of politics and trade. The Ming emperors rebuilt the walls, incorporating one corner left over from the Yuan dynasty in their design. While the architecture of the Ming is steadfastly angular, the curved rampart of Hun design adds grace to the overall effect. The walls are flat and straight, tempting one to a 15K jog.

When we arrived at our restaurant, I saw the first beggar since arriving in China. On the way to the restaurant from the sidewalk, I saw a lady who was holding a baby in her left hand approached one guy from our tour group. I don't know if she said anything but I only saw her extending her right hand and followed him from the sidewalk to the entrance of the restaurant. Since we were the last to get off the bus, many street vendors surrounded us by the time we got out of the bus. Ellen later told us not to give these beggars any money and explained to us that China has policies that aim to assist family and people in need. These beggars are basically lazy people who did not want to find work.

After lunch we visited The Big Goose Pagoda. The entire structure is impressive but since I learned that many parts were rebuilt, it lost a lot of its historical value to me. We didn't go into the Pagoda because Ellen said that the building was empty since all the scriptures were taken away.

Description of the Big Goose Pagoda
Situated about four kilometers south of the city proper, it was built in 629 A. D. to keep the 657 volumes of Buddhist scripture brought back by the famous monk Xuan Zang from India. The monk stayed in the temple for 11 years studying and translating the Buddhist scripture. The pagoda is also a safe for keeping invaluable ancient works of paintings, calligraphy and sculpture.

We then visited the museum of Tang culture next to the Pagoda. Our museum guide walked us through some Tang dynasty arts, including wall painting, style of clothing, and women's hairstyles. Because of the ruling of Empress Wu, the only female emperor in China, Tang women had more freedom. They could hunt and play sports, and hold offices like men. The Tang women's style of clothing reflects this freedom.

One more thing I learned was that, Tang dynasty concubines usually wore some sort of decoration on their forehead. These decorations were used to attract the Emperor's attention. Since the Emperors had very many concubines to choose from, it was hard for them to select one with whom they'd like to spend the night on any given day. The decoration could be a red dot, a green dot, a flower, or other designs. Ellen explained that red and green dots were both signals to the Emperor that this particular concubine wasn't available (menstruation or headache.) The other decorations, such as flowers, were used to draw the Emperor's attention. Obviously the more outstanding the decoration was, the easier it was for the Emperor to notice the concubine. For the concubine, mating with the Emperor was a way to get ahead. There were many different levels of concubines. If the Emperor favored a particular concubine, the more power and luxury the concubine would have. If the concubine was fortunate enough to bear a child, her status was immediately elevated. In the worse case scenario, a concubine could live in an ignored and lonely state to the end of her life. On a side note, even though the Emperor couldn't possibly satisfy all these women at all times, he worried that affairs could take place between the concubines and male servants. To prevent becoming a turtle (Chinese's terminology for men whose wives commit adulteries behind their backs), the concept of eunuch was born.

I don't know what to feel for these concubines, but I know I am definitely glad that I live in the modern world.

We also learned that, in Tang dynasty, the more chins a girl had, the more beautiful she was. So, how many do you have?

To learn more about Women in Tang dynasty: http://www.chinavoc.com/history/tang/women.htm

I got a chance to play around with Chinese brush at our last stop in the Museum. and I wrote Chinese names for Todd, his family, Marie, and myself. Oh, and Mr. Chou. I haven't used a Chinese brush to write for many many years. It was a bit awkward at first but I eventually got comfortable. My writing isn't good, but it is legible. Our museum guide also use the museum chop and stamped on all the writings. We left happily with our own "original" art. Hahaha.

At night, we watched a recreation of Tang dynasty music and dance performance. It's amazing how scholars can recreate based on text records. It's quite enjoyable. I used to do Chinese folk dance, and watching a performance like this brought back sweet memories. The show was followed by the famous dumpling banquet. I was really excited but was equally disappointed. Towards the end, all the dumplings tasted the same. Although I did get 3 pearl dumplings :D.

The Tang Dynasty Dinner Show
It is a performance of Chang'an music and dance originated in China's Tang Dynasty over a thousand years ago. It has been recreated in accordance with various historical records as well as ancient art and relics discovered in Xi'an, the capital of the empire during the Tang Dynasty. To learn more about the dances: http://www.warriortours.com/cityguides/xian/dinner_show.htm.

To learn more about Tang dynasty: http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Tang/tang.htm#rulers

Mr. Chen

Mrs. Chen

Mrs. In-law(Rene)

Tonight we learned about the dispute between Mr. Chen and the Politician. While we were waiting for the performance to start, we saw the Politician coming to take Mr. Chen away a few times. Out of curiosity, we asked what was going on. Mr. Chen is traveling with his wife and his in-law, Rene. As a courtesy, Mrs. Chen and Rene paired up to share a room, so Mr. Chen and the Politician were paired together to share a room for this entire trip. Mr. & Mrs. Chen were bag/luggage importer, originally from Taiwan.

The first night, the politician locked Mr. Chen out of the room, assuming he has his own room. The morning of the 2nd day, the Politician demanded that Mr. Chen apologized to him because Mr. Chen's snoring disturbed his rest. Mr. Chen said he was embarrassed about his snoring, but didn't see the need to apologize for it. We all agreed. However, the Politician also demanded that Mr. Chen paid for the expense of another room for the Politician. We all thought this was over-doing it.

Mr. Chen told us some of the other behaviors of the Politician that just completely shocked us. For example, the Politician would cursed at Mr. Chen, left the bathtub filled with water after showering, and spreading his personal belongs all over the room. We could not believe a 60-year-old neurologist would behave like this.

The last time the Politician came over to get Mr. Chen, Earvin told the Politician to just leave Mr. Chen alone, and called the Politician a crazy person. The Politician got upset and told Earvin to stay out of it. However, since the show was starting, it didn't continue.