Xi'an, historically known as Chang'an, is the capital of the Shananxi province. As one of the oldest cities in Chinese history, Xi'an is one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China because it has been the capital of many important dynasties, including the Zhou, Qin, Han, Sui and Tang dynasties.
Although in the city have many areas that are easily accessible on foot. The metro, taxi, train, expressway composed the city's convenience transportation system. Xi'an is the synthesis of ancient and modern.
Xi'an has a rich and culturally significant history. The Terracotta Army, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Ancient City Wall and Huaqing Spring etc are the symbol of history, at the same time they become the hot destinations for travelers. On the literature and art, Xi'an also takes an indispensable role. Qinqiang - oldest and most extensive of the four major types of Chinese opera, Chang'an School - important modern Chinese school of traditional arts, textile town – an art district, all of these are the achievement of Xi'an.
Big Wild Goose Pagoda
This famous Buddhist pagoda is situated inside Da Ci'en (Thanksgiving) Temple, which is four kilometers south of Xi'an City. Tang Emperor Gaozong (628-683) commissioned the building of this temple in 652 during the Tang Dynasty as a tribute to his mother who suffered an early death. Its purpose was to house the translations of the Buddhist scriptures. The pagoda experienced many alterations in the past centuries. First built to a height of 197 feet at five stories, it is now 211.6 feet with an additional two stories. The pagoda's square conical structure is simple but very sturdy and regarded as a masterpiece of Buddhist architecture.
It is called Big Wild Goose Pagoda because of an old legend. One day, the monks ran out of meat and thus, they asked Bodhisattva to give them some. Suddenly, a goose which was the leading of a flock of geese flying overhead breaks its wing and drops to the ground in front of the monks. The monks took this to be a sign that they would be more pious and thus, they stopped eating meat. This pagoda was built where the goose fell.
Now the pagoda and the temple is surrounded by beautiful fountains that light up at night to create a breathtaking night scene that can not be missed. Come see this grand sight and witness the history of Chinese Buddhism!
Bell Tower
The Bell Tower, located at the crossing of the East, West, South, and North avenues in the city center, was built in 1348 and is the present day symbol of Xi' an.
The tower as originally built on another site and moved to the present site in 1552. It was then rebuilt and enlarged during the Qing dynasty. The Bell Tower is a classic ancient Chinese structure made out of wood covered in dark green tiles. The Bell Tower used to hold a huge bell which struck every hour. But that bell fell and its replacement now hangs in the northwest co of the base. At night, the tower is beautifully lit.
From the top, you can get a bird's eye view of the surroundings areas.
Drum Tower
The Drum Tower, across the Bell Tower and Drum Tower Square, is this structure similar to the Bell Tower. Built in 1380 during the Ming Dynasty, the drum tower was named after the drum inside it that is beat at sunset to indicate the end of the day.
On the first floor, there are many drums each decorated with beautiful Chinese calligraphy symbolizing good fortune. Unfortunately, these drums are only for show and not for visitors to beat. But for a small fee, you can beat the small drum at the entrance or pose next to it for a picutre.
Inside the tower, there is a drum museum where a selection of drums, some over a thousand years old, is displayed. There is a drum show performed here daily and you can go to the top for a panoramic view of the city.
Shuyuan (Academy of Classical Learning) Gate
The Shuyuan Gate, located on the easte side of the South Gate, is a cultural street restored to retain its original architectures from the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. It runs about 570 meters (about 623 yards) long and is 10 meters (about 11 yards) wide.
Shuyuan Gate won its name because the Guanzhong Shuyuan (central Shaanxi academy, established during the Ming Dynasty), one of the leading academies in ancient China, was located here.
Xian Normal School and its subsidiary primary school are now sitting at the original site of Guanzhong Shuyuan. From the Bell Tower, walk along the South Avenue until traditional archway on the east side of the road appear. That is Shuyuan Gate which is what is carved on the gate. There is a green flagstone street extending beyond it with two story stores along both sides. These stores sell various curios for the student or intellectual such as calligraphies, paintings, copybooks and handcrafted keepsakes. You may also find authentic works of some famous writers or artists. Such as Liu Wenxi, a Xi'an artist who drew images on the RMB 100 bill. Typical handicrafts of the Shaanxi area are paper cutouts, face painting and shadow-play figures.
Walking along this street you many hear the sound of storekeeper playing the bamboo flutes or even see an old folk artist giving a traditional Chinese painting or calligraphy presentation in front of Guanzhong Shuyuan.
At the easte end of Shuyuan Gate is the famous Forest of Stone Steles Museum.
Famen Temple
Famen Temple, located in Famen Town 120 kilometers northwest of Xi'an, is a fascinating place with an intriguing history. Legend says that in 147 AD, King Asoka of India traveled throughout Asia, distributing Buddhist relics to make up for his sins. He built this temple here and left the fingers of Buddha enshrined here.
The Tang dynasty Emperors would hold processions to show off and worship the fingers. The Tang Emperors offered elaborate gifts to the fingers, each out doing the last emperor in hopes of receiving blessing. However, slowly, belief in this myth dwindled until 1981 when heavy rains revealed the underground shrine by accident. This legend was actually dismissed until 1981 when heavy rains revealed the crypt containing Buddha's fingers and gifts from the Emperors. Today, this place is a popular attraction for Buddhists from all over the world.
There is a museum at the temple showing the gifts from the Tang Emperors including the ivory 40.3 millimeters long section said to be part of Sakyamuni's middle finger.
The ancient City Wall
This will be the first attraction that you are greeted with when you go to Xi'an. The ancient city wall, located just outside the railway station, divides the inner city from the outer city. It is tall, thick and long with two main entrances at the South and North Gates. It was first built during the 14th century under the reign of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming dynasty. Before the emperor established the Ming dynasty and became emperor, he had captured Huizhou. Zhu Sheng, a hermit, waed him to build high walls and wait before declaring himself emperor which is exactly with he did. He became emperor only after he unified the country and had the large wall built so that 'out of all the mountains and rivers in the world, the central Qin is the most strongly fortified and strategically impregnable.'
The city wall of Xi'an is based off of old Tang Dynasty architecture and measures 12-14 meters across the top, 15-18 meters thick at bottom and 13.7 kilometers in length. There are towers every 120 meters that juts out from the wall but is the same height as the wall. They were built to allow soldiers to see enemies who might be climbing the walls. Distance between each tower is just within shooting range for arrows from either side. There are a total of 98 such towers on the wall.
Since the city gates are the only way to get in and out of town, they were strategic points that needed to be well-defended. For Xi'an, there were four gates, one in each direction. Each gate has three fate towers with the main tower called Zhenglou. Zhalou is the tower with the suspension bridge and Jianlou is the narrow one in the middle. It's front and sides have windows from which to shoot arrows from. The Zhenglou tower is the main entrance into the city and is connected to Jianlou by tunnels, called Wengcheng.
Its front and the two outer sides have square windows to shoot arrows from. The Zhenglou tower is the inner one. It is the main entrance to the city. Jianlou and Zhenglou are connected by tunnels, called Wengcheng. From here, there are gradual steps for horses to walk through to get to the top of the wall. There are all together 11 horse passages around the city and a watch tower located on each of the four coers of the wall. The one at the southweste coer is round while the other three are square. The watch towers are taller than the wall and juts out more than the other towers along the wall. This reflects the strategic importance of the coers in war times.
The first city wall was built of layers and layers of earth mixed with glutinous rice extract which made the wall extremely strong and firm. Later, the wall was covered in bricks. On one part of the wall, there is a brick water trough every 40-60 meters used for drainage. They have helped keep the wall in good shape. A moat, wide and deep, that runs around the city. In order to get in or out of the city, you would have to walk through the suspension bridges that are usually raised to protect the city.
Small Wild Goose Pagoda
The pagoda, located south of Youyi Road in Xi'an, was originally Jianfu Temple in Chang'an city. It was built in 707 during the Tang dynasty. Just like the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, it was an important landmark in Chang'an, capital of the Tang Dynasty. Since it was smaller and built after the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, it was named the Small Wild Goose Pagoda. It was built in 707 during the Tang Dynasty with its architecture representing Tang style architecture.
This square, brick structure is fifteen stories and 46 meters tall at the time it was built but it is now a bit shorter after its steeple was destroyed. Its first story is larger at 11.38 meters length and wide with the north and south doors framed in black stone carved expertly with images of enlightened Buddhists and nature. These carvings were made in the classic artistic style of the early Tang Dynasty. The pagoda's other stories are a lot shorter with small windows on the north and south sides.
From the outside, the pagoda tapers slowly from the bottom and then tapers more visibily after the fifth floor. Inside the pagoda is a winding flight of wooden steps that are very narrow. The Pagoda does not have a viewing platform at the top so there is not much reason to go to the top.
The pagoda was made quite early and is not very structurally stable. Because of the small windows all being on the same side, the pagoda is weak on these sides and cracked down the middle during an earthquake in 1487 during the Chenghua period of the Ming dynasty. After this, pagodas were built with windows on alteating sides to avoid this structural problem. This pagoda's crack miraculously repaired itself during another earthquake in 1521 during the Zhengde period of the Ming dynasty.
However, the pagoda was still very weak structurally and became more damaged as time went on. In 1965, the people's govement repaired the pagoda and enhanced the strength of the structure. They also set up an office in the pagoda to hold artifacts in the pagoda.
Banpo Museum
The Banpo Museum, located three miles east of Xi'an, was built in 1958. It is located on the north side of Banpo village on a site that dates to the matrilineal period of the Neolithic period over 6,000 years ago. This site was just recently discovered and thus, it lay waiting for thousands of years.
The Neolithic village was well-organized with a 160-square meter room at the center surrounded by many smaller rooms. The doors of the smaller rooms all faced the large room in the center reflecting the structure of the society. A 300-meter long ditch surrounded the village and kept away wild animals. There is a ceramic crafting area in the east and a cemetery to the north. The 46 houses inside the town were square, round, half-underground or fully above-ground. Some were square, some round, some half-submerged in the ground, some on the surface. These houses had many of the characteristics of later Chinese homes made of earth.
A reconstruction of the Banpo rooms shows exhibited production tools and daily utensils used by the Banpo people. Animal skins hangs on the walls and a mat rests beside the hearth on the floor. The room also displays the people going about their daily lives such as a man making a fire for his grandmother who is the head of the family. You can see hunters firing their arrows or throwing flying balls to catch a frightened deer. By the river, you can see fishermen fishing or women and children gathering fruit in the forest. Later you can see women roasting meat for dinner or sewing up clothes.
In the cemetery, there are 174 graves lined up neatly. The Banpo people usually died around the age of 30. In the easte end, there are 6 kilns for making pottery. People marked their pottery with strokes that are seen in Chinese characters today. Even though writing did not exist at the time, these marks served the same purpose for the people. There are also many Banpo artifacts that you can see at this museum.
Museum of Qin Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses
One day in 1974, near Xi'an, some farmers accidentally stumbled upon this site of the terracotta soldier built to guard the Mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shi Huang. They are over 2,200 years old and still stand just as proudly today.
These life-sized figures are located in Jiangzhai xichang village. It is around one mile from Emperor Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum. There are about 6,000 of these warriors covering a massive area. Later, a second and third pit was discovered also full of soldiers and horses. Each of the pits are called #1, #2 and #3 in order of when they were discovered. Together, there are 20,000 sq meters covered with around 8,000 figures.
To protect and preserve this historical treasure, a building with a bow-shaped steel framework was constructed over the #1 pit forming a vast exhibition hall. The building is 230 meters long, 72 meters wide, and 22 meters high, larger than two football fields. The Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum was officially opened to the public in 1979.
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Maoling Mausoleum
Maoling, located 45 kilometers from Xi'an, is the Mausoleum of Emperor Wudi (140 B.C. - 87 B.C.) the fifth emperor of the Weste Han dynasty.
In 112 B.C., to strengthen feudal centralization, he revoked the titles of 106 feudal lords and established the Imperial College to train qualified officials. He also strength the govement control over the economy by only allowing coins mintey by the centeral govement to circulate. Govement business enjoyed exclusive privileges while heavy taxes were imposed on industrialists and businessmen. Thus, Weste Han govement became extremely rich and powerful.
Emperor Han Wudi fought against the barbarian invaders on the northe border. In 138 B.C., he appointed Zhang Qian as Chinese ambassador to jouey westward into Central Asia opening up the historic Silk Road and initiating the first cross-cultural exchanges between East and West.
During his reign, he also made advances in culture by setting up a conservatory called Yuefu to collect folk songs and poems. Emperor Han Wudi ended the period of 'contention among one hundred schools of thought' by rejecting all other school of thought and only accepting Confucism. This is how Confucianism became a popular theory in China and worldwide.
At age 71, Emperor Wudi died and was buried in Maoling Mausoleum with an area of over 54,000 sq meters. This is the largest and granded of the Weste Han Mausoleums costing one third of the yearly income of the state. Over 20 other Mausoleums of officials and nobles were built around it. This is how they showed respect. There were also houses built around the Mausoleum for the keepers.
A trip to Maolin Mausoleum will open your eyes to all the wonders and exquisite object the Emperor took to him to his grave.
Huaqing Hot Spring
Huaqing Hot Spring (huaqing chi), located 30 kilometers east of Xi'an at the foot of the Lishan Hills, is a popular retreat for Emperors more than 2500 years ago because of the clear, mineral water. Today, this site, offering a unique and diverse history, is enjoyed by many Chinese tourists.
There is a very romantic story that takes place here; one that is the Chinese equivalent of Romeo and Juliet. It is the story of the Emperor Xuan Zong and his concubine Yang Guifei, who was a poor girl whom the Emperor took a fancy to and promoted to the position of 'lady'. Legend has it that he was so entranced by her beauty that he could not do his job as Emperor. The Empire was endangered and the court threatened to kill the concubine, blaming her for the Emperor's incompetence. In order to sacrifice for her love, Yang hung herself to save the country and her lover's name. The springs were renamed the Huaqing ('The Fair') to honor Yang Guifei and her beauty.
The buildings at the springs resemble classic Chinese architecture with many frescoes adoing the walls. It is usually flowing full of tourists drawn here by the romantic story. You can bath in the 43 degree C water. There is a 'Hot Springs Bathhouse' which is rather like a private bathroom in a five star hotel as well as a cheaper community bathhouse.
To get there: The easiest way to reach the Huaqing pool is to take bus No.306, 307 at the east of the railway station (30 minutes is enough); or an 'Easte Tour' from Xian or the Green Bus from the Bell Tower which operates every 10 minutes and can get you to Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleums and The Terracotta Warriors.
Xianyang Museum
The Xianyang Museum, located on Zhongshan Street in Xianyang, is a famous local history museum in China that was originally a Confucian Temple. It was opened to the public after being renovated and expanded in 1962.
Xianyang, which lives about 28 km (17 miles) from Xi'an, was the capital of Qin dynasty (221BC - 206BC) as well as the center of the Han Dynasty (206BC-220) Mausoleums. Thus, the museum's artifacts are focused on these two glorious dynasties. The museum consists of nine exhibition halls and corridor of steles. The nine exhibition halls are divided into four parts as follows:
Exhibition halls one, two and three floors focus on historical pieces from the Qin Dynasty. The fourth exhibition hall displays the paintings and calligraphies of contemporary famous persons.
The fifth and sixth exhibition halls are dedicated to the world famous Painted Terra - Cotta Warriors and Horses from the Weste Han Dynasty. The seventh, eighth and ninth contain the biggest sitting bronze Buddha of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in China as well as other artifacts related to religion.
Shaanxi History Museum
The Shaanxi History Museum, located on Yan Ta Road in Xi'an, is in a 60,000 sq meter building. This newly built mode building is modeled after Tang dynasty architecture and is home to many great historial art pieces. Exhibited in the main exhibition hall are 2,700 works of art, with a 2,300 meter long exhibition line.
The Museum's permanent exhibition primarily displays representative pieces from all periods in Shaanxi history showing its development of civilization. The display is divided into seven parts of Shaanxi from 150,000 years ago to 1840 AD; Pre-history, Zhou, Qin, Han, Wei-Jin-North and South dynasties, Sui-Tang, and Song-Yuan-Ming-Qing.
Since several historical periods all based their capitals in Shaanxi territory, such as Zhou, Qin, Weste Han, Sui and Tang, the exhibits emphasize these periods.
The temporary exhibition hall, on the east side, has had a variety of exhibitions including Tang dynasty tomb murals. They are superb works of art all intricately drawn to display scenes.
The 2,600 sq meters special exhibition hall is located to the west has a Shaanxi bronze exhibit (260 items on display) and an exhibit of Shaanxi-through-the-dynasties terracotta masterpieces (341 objects).
There are a total of over 115,000 objects on display at the Shaanxi History Museum. Since Shaanxi area was a crucial in China's history, you can lea a lot about ancient China from visition this museum.
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Forest of Stone Steles Museum
Steles, dating back to ancient times, are huge stone slabs that display important calligraphy work from thousands of years ago. They are highly regarded and studied by the Chinese.
The Forest of Steles (Xi'an beilin), located in the Confucian Temple on Sanxue Jie in Xi'an, was first built to preserve the Thirteen Classics of Filial Piety from the Tang Dynasty.
The large collection of Steles was gathered here by the Qing dynasty and made the building the current Forest of Stone Steles.
Today, this building containing many ancient Steles and stone sculptures are open to the public so if you are interested in Chinese art and calligraphy or just want to see this significant part of Chinese history, you should stop by!
Great Mosque
The Great Mosque of Xian, located just northwest of the Drum Tower (Gu Lou) on Huajue Lane, is one of largest and best preserved Islamic mosques in China. It was built in 742 during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) as a result of Islam being introduced into Northwest China by Arab merchants and travelers from Persia and Afghanistan during the mid-7th century. Many of them settled down and married Han women. Their descendents are today's Chinese Muslims. Because the Muslims helped unify China during the Yuan and Ming dynasties, this mosque was built to commemorate them.
The Great Mosque is worth seeing not only for its long history but also for its mixed Muslim and Chinese style architecture. The mosque covers an area of over 12,000 square meters, 250 meters long and 47 meters wide, divided into four courtyards. It is made even more beautiful and serene by the many gardens on its grounds.
You will find an elaborate wooden arch, from the 17th century, covered with glazed tiles in the first courtyard. In the center of the second courtyard, a stone arch stands with two steles on both sides with calligraphy written by famous calligraphers of the Ming dynasty.
In the third courtyard, you will find even more steles. There is the Xingxin Tower, where Muslims come for prayer services. Finally in the fourth courtyard, you will see a Phoenix as well as a Prayer Hall decorated with colorful designs on the walls. The Prayer Hall can hold 1,000 people for services that are held five times a day at dawn, noon, afteoon, dusk and night.
Tang Paradise
Tang Paradise, located in Qujiang Resort near the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, was just opened to the public in April, 2005. Tang Paradise is the largest cultural theme park in northwest China with a total area of 1000 mu (about 165 acres). This park is unique because it gives a full view of the Tang Dynasty's (618-907) culture with exhibitions showing its grandness and prosperity.
Most of the buildings at Tang Paradise are characteristic of the Tang dynasty. There are also places to relax and enjoy song and dance shows about the Tang Dynasty. Strolling in Tang Paradise, you will feel as if you were walking in a garden during the Tang dynasty.
The park boats the first and largest scale of Tang style buildings. Tang Paradise is praised as 'Garden of History', 'Garden of Spirit', 'Garden of Nature', 'Garden of Human Culture' and 'Garden of Art' with many displays to experience with all your five senses including smell and touch!
For the authentic small, there are incense buers that look like lamps every few meters on both sides of the paths in Tang Paradise. They emit a fragrance that fill this place and creates a mysterious feeling.
Another advancement at Tang Paradise is movie screen made from a film of water creating a special optical effect that makes the frame feel three dimensional. You would really have to experience this as well as the rest of the park to believe it!
Ba Xian An Monastery
The Baxian Temple (Temple of Eight Immortals), located at the Changle lane in Xi'an, is a famous Taoist architecture. Ba Xian An Monastery (Temple of the Eight Immortals), was named in honore of the legendary Eight Immortals Han Zhongli, Zhang Guolao, Han Xiangzi, Tieguai Li, Cao Guojiu, Lv Dongbin, Lan Caihe and He Xiangu. These eight immortals are believe to be good-doers and well-respected by the people.
The monastery was built during the Song Dynasty (960-1279), and then was renovated and expanded numerous times in succeeding dynasties. What you see at the temple today was mostly constructed during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The Baxian Temple covers over 73,000 square meters divided into three parts from the Temple Gate to the Back Hall. The first section includes five halls, all built to honor the Taoist god of Protection, Wang Lingguan. The second section has two halls with painted statues of the Eight Immortals in the back hall. The third section contains the Main Hall with a tablet hung overhead on which is an inscription of the four characters 'Dong Tian Yun Ji' made by Empress Dowager Cixi. Inside the hall, sacrifices were made to the Taoist gods. East of the Main hall lies the Lvzu (Lv Dongbin) Hall and Yaowang (King of Chinese medicine) Hall while accommodations for Taoists lie on the west side.
The Baxian An Monastery is a gathering place for Taoist celebrations and festivals. So it attracts Taoists as well as tourists from all over the world.
After praying and buing some incense in the monastery, you can take a walk in the surrounding area. There are many craft shops selling all kinds of curios like bronze mirrors, folding screen, four treasures of study, gallipots, porcelain and folding fans.
Qian Mausoleum
This is the mausoleum of Emperor Gaozong and his wife Empress Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history The Qianling Mausoleum, located inside Liangshan Hill 6km away from Qian County, is the most unique and well-preserved of the Tang dynasty mausoleums.
The mausoleum was built in 684 B.C. with its construction lasting 23 years. According to historical records there were inner and outer walls with four gates in each direction as well as countless halls, pavilions and marvelous stone carvings around the mausoleum. Now only the ancient stone carvings still remain around the mausoleum. There are 114 statues of horses, lions, ostriches, servants and even foreign ambassadors as well as steles and oamental columns in the mausoleum showing the splendor and prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. Qianling Mausoleum is so well preserved also because it was never broken into by grave robbers. To the southeast of the mausoleum, there are many other mausoleums. Historical records state that 17 people were buried by the near the Qianling Mausoleum. Five of them have been excavated, including the tombs of Crown Prince Zhanghuai, Crown Prince Yide and Princess Yongtai. Many treasures such as colorful murals and Tang San Cai (tri-color pottery) were discovered in the tombs. These treasures are all on dispay at the Qianling Mausoleum.
