A Day Truly to Look Forward To

Besides climbing the Great Wall and seeing the Olympic Venue, I really looked forward to visiting the Terracotta Soldiers in Xi'an. The experience certainly didn't disappoint!
Here is our guide, Henry, who taught the kids a Chinese rap. They loved doing it with him. He lived there in Xi'an and was so knowledgeable about the soldiers. You could tell he loved talking about them!
We first went into a big warehouse where the kids could make their own miniature Terracotta soldier out of clay.

Tyson sitting in front of the life-sized Terracotta Soldier that his dad bought. This soldier will soon be part of the Wilde household!

We then went to visit the three pits that are open to the public. (The fourth has no soldiers in it.) Current estimates are that the three pits contain 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots, 520 horses, and 150 cavalry horses. The majority of the warriors and horses are still buried in the pits. It was seriously breathtaking to see all the soldiers and horse statues that have been unburied! They date back to 210 B.C. and were made by 7,000 workers for the purpose of helping Quin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, to rule another empire in the afterlife.

It is amazing that these were only discovered in 1974 when some local farmers were drilling a water well. Had they dug even a foot further, they would never have found them!

The statues range in height from 6' to 6'5", the tallest being the generals. Heads, arms, legs, and torsos were created separately and then assembled. Each soldier was constructed to be unique. None of them look exactly alike. The terracotta figures were placed in the pits in precise military formation according to rank and duty.

This is the skinniest soldier they have found.

The remains of the craftsmen working in the tomb have been found within its confines, and it is believed the workers were sealed inside alive to prevent them from divulging anything about the tombs.

The actual tomb where the emperor is buried is near an earthen pyramid. It remains unopened in the hope it will remain intact.

The original soldiers had colored lacquer finish with real weapons and armor on them. However, the original weapons were stolen about five years after the emperor's death by an army led by a general. They looted the tomb and set fire to it. This is how the remains were found, but with the help of laser imaging, the careful artisans are able to put them back together with so many little pieces.

Only one statute survived intact--a statute of a kneeling archer.

Pollution from coal burning plants in the area has brought soot on the surface of the statutes which is causing arms to fall off and noses and hairstyles to disappear. In addition, the excavators still haven't figured out a way to keep the vibrant colors on them which they so readily have when unearthed. It quickly fades. So recently officials have begun to bury sections of the pits to preserve the figures.

It was an exhausting day, but one we will all never forget. We got a ride back to the entrance on a little golf cart. Taylor got to ride in the front with the cute Asian girl.

Most Educational Experiences in China

I guess it's the teacher inside of me, but I wanted all of us to have learning experiences while we were in China--as well as have a great time together. It was so rewarding that both were accomplished. But here are some of the great lessons we learned:

Pearl Factory. We learned how they make freshwater cultured pearls by inserting pieces of a foreign object inside the tissues of a huge oyster shell, putting it back in the water, and then waiting for about six months. When the lady opened it, there must have been at least 20 pearls inside. They were beautiful! She then showed what they looked like all strung together. They were very expensive, so no one bought any of the strands, but we loved looking at them!

Silk Factory. We, also, went to a silk factory and saw how they boiled the silk worms and then started the single string which unwound the cocoon which is around the silk worm until all that was left was the actual little bug inside. Tyson in front of a whole case of silk cocoons.
Boiling the silk cocoons and then the left-over bug that is inside.

We then saw how they stretched the silk . . .

and finally how they pulled the silk into a wonderful silk comforter. They let us try, but we weren't nearly as good as the young girls who do it daily. This was a young lady making a silk rug.

Jade Factory. The jade factory was very interesting, too. Jade is a special stone which is found in China. It is considered a royal gem and is found in the emperors' tombs, as well as their palaces. The Chinese regard it as we do gold and diamonds here in America. We saw the workers painstakingly grinding it into many beautiful objects. Some of the objects were huge and worth a great deal of money. Here a woman is carving a many layered ball, each one rolling inside of the other. This was made out of one stone with the carving taking place inside! It is amazing.

Chop Sticks. The kids all had a great time learning how to use chop sticks. John and Alison's kids are very good at it, as well as their Uncle Jerry who spent two years in Taiwan on a Mormon mission.
Grinding Rice. The kids thought it was great fun to use the old-fashioned grinder to grind rice.

Buddha Temple. It was absolutely fascinating to go to the Buddha Temple and learn of the Chinese way of worshipping Buddha. We watched as they burned their incense and turned each way to the east, south, west, and north as they were bowing. Each Buddha symbolizes something that they pray for that is important to them.

We saw the "Laughing Buddha" many places we went--here Connor and I saw one at a restaurant. Although not part of the Buddha religion, the folklore is that if you rub his tummy, you will have wealth, good luck, and prosperity.

Other Learning Ideas. In a little canal city called Zhouzhang, we saw the people who still make their living doing what their ancestors many years before them have done. Here some women are spinning and weaving.

Here a man is making shoes and a woman is making combs behind him. Walking along the streets, there out in the open air, we saw some big racks for their noodles to dry out.

In Summary. Actually, when I started this "Most Educational Experiences," I thought I would just put a few. Who am I kidding? The whole China experience was educational!!! I will put other ideas in another section. This one is getting too long!

Most Peaceful Moment

The most peaceful time of our entire China trip came on the day we went down the Sacred Way of the Animals.

As the sun was just about to set, we arrived at this Sacred Way or "Divine Road" as the Chinese called it. We loved being the only ones on the road and just enjoying the stroll through stone statues constructed in 1540 along a road which was used for the funeral processions of the emperors. The road is lined with 24 animals and 18 human statues. They are in pairs and after the pair across from each other that are standing, the next pair is resting for the changing of the guard.

Just prior to going down the Sacred Way, we had actually been able to go into the Ming Tomb which is only one of two that are open to the public. Although he was buried in 1620, archeologists didn't know where the tomb's entrance was until 1956 when they found a stone slab telling where the diamond wall was located. This wall was composed of 56 layers of brick which sealed off the tomb.

This was a pavilion which separated the emperor's tomb from the Sacred Way. Inside was a dragon-headed turtle with a Chinese tablet on its back telling all of the achievements of the emperor and poetry. As we got back on the bus, the kids saw a little lady who was gathering plastic bottles to make a little money for her family, I'm sure. The kids all hurriedly gathered all the left-over water bottles on the bus and put them in her basket. She just smiled and smiled! (I wish Kent could have helped her with her teeth, too!)