Exploring Suzhou - Field trip to Tiger Hill

Suzhou is one of the most beautiful cities in China - in spite of its growing urban population, it still has a very strong historical heritage. The classical gardens of Suzhou have been named as UNESCO World Heritage sites, and its numerous waterways and ancient stone bridges have earned it the moniker of 'Venice of China'! It's been almost 10 months since we've moved here, and I'm almost ashamed to admit that so far, I haven't really tried to explore this wondrous city!

So when Manasi's class announced a field trip to Tiger Hill, I jumped at the opportunity to volunteer! I have always enjoyed volunteering in Manasi's school - be it helping with the Guided Reading, or working as Parent Librarian, or going on field trips - it's a wonderful opportunity to see Manasi interact with her peers and observe the class dynamic as a whole! Of course, it doesn't hurt that Manasi thinks it's really cool to have her mom volunteer! And every time I come back from one of these things, it is with a new found respect for teachers - to make a career out of spending all your time with kids - this is something I could never, ever manage!

Tiger Hill and the YunYan Pagoda on top are one of the most recognizable sights in Suzhou. The hill is so named because it (apparently) resembles a crouching tiger - I for one did not get it! Another legend behind the name is that a white tiger appeared to guard the hill after a powerful emperor was buried here. Whatever you choose to believe, Tiger Hill is a must-see in Suzhou - it has been a popular tourist destination for hundreds of years!

South entrance to the park with the Pagoda in the background

 

The field trip started early - buses started from the school at 8:30 am, and it was a ride of about 25 minutes. All adults had been assigned 3-4 kids - I had Manasi and 2 of her classmates. The kids had been given a worksheet to fill out as they walked past all the sites. Of course, I didn't make a very auspicious start - as I was getting out of the bus, I slipped and fell really hard - I'm sure the teachers were all wondering if they would be better off without me! Anyway, no permanent damage done, so off we went! 

There are plenty of scenic spots to be seen as you walk up to the Pagoda - the Sword Testing Rock, the Spring of Simplicity and Honesty, the Thousand People Rock, the Lu Yu well, the Zhen Niang tomb, the Verdure Embracing Mountain Villa - beautiful names, but all, I repeat, all the information signs were in Chinese. So none of us really knew what we're looking at! A guide would have been really helpful, but that wasn't an option with the size of our group. The only sign I could read was the one in this picture - though it made me laugh, I wish they would put up some of these in India!

 The Sword Pond is one of the more intrigiung sights on Tiger Hill. It is a deep rectangular pool, crossed by an imposing arching bridge. It is believed that the tomb of King Helu along with a cache of more than 3000 swords is buried in its depths. The mystery remains unsolved, as the site cannot be excavated - there is danger of disturbing the foundation of the Pagoda! Try as I might, I have been unable to gather any more information on this - there is nothing more exciting to me than a historical mystery! Again, a guide would have probably been able to explain further - I guess I just have to go back one more time!

Bridge over Sword Pond

Gardener working on a bonsai

Tiger Hill is also home to one of the largest collections of Suzhou style bonsai - the bonsai garden is located around the picturesque Mountain Villa. This was a perfect place for the kids to rest a bit, and have a snack. The blue sky, the sea of green all around, and the imposing Mountain Villa nestling against the hill - very peaceful, very soothing! Except that bonsai - Suzhou style or otherwise - really, really sets me on edge. I know it is considered to be a fine art - but I think it is a perversion against nature! Twisting off bits of root and stem with wire to physically stunt what could potentially be a magnificent, soaring giant! I am simply unable to see any beauty in these poor plants! Anyway, deep breath, moving on...

Mountain Villa & Bonsai Garden

With the kids straggling by now, we finally made it up to the Yunyan Temple Pagoda. Really surprised to find that this structure actually is tilted, and believe it or not, is known as 'Second Leaning Tower' - I'm guessing this is in reference to Pisa, which is really weird considering that this tower most certainly existed before the one in Pisa! The Tiger Hill Pagoda is ocatgonal, and not very tall - only about 7 stories, less than 50 m. It exists today as a symbol of ancient Suzhou. It is fenced off, so no climbing up - but the foot of the pagoda is a good place to sit and catch your breath before heading back down.

We were now headed to the North Entrance where our buses were waiting. The walk back was also very pleasant, plenty of shady trees, a light breeze - and just as I turned a corner, to my absolute delight, a smallish tea plantation. Close my eyes, and I could have been in Munnar or even Darjeeling! The name of this garden was sheer poetry - Cloud over Lingering Tea Fragrance - what I would do to just float away on that cloud! The green, green tea bushes, the sunshine dappling through the tall willows - a place to sit and dream!

'Cloud over Lingering Tea Fragrance' garden

We ended the field trip with a picnic lunch in a neighboring park - back in school at 2pm. It had been a really hot day - even though all the walkways are shaded by trees, it still is a long way to walk in the sun! There are some incredible views of Suzhou from the top of the hill, but we stayed away from these lookouts - kids and balconies at a height don't really mix well! I'm totally convinced that Tiger Hill merits another visit - without so many kids, and most certainly, with a guide! Of the 2 main festivals held at Tiger Hill, I've missed the Spring Flower Show - but Autumn Temple Fair, here I come!

A Night at the Aquarium

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear 'Girl Scouts'? Hands down, the answer has to be those delicious cookies that they sell every spring - their shortbread is absolutely divine, not to mention the lemon cookies!  Here in Suzhou, I had Manasi join the Girl Scouts mainly because a friend of mine was Troop Leader - too bad we don't get the cookies here, but they still do tons of different activities, like the Daddy-Daughter dance just last month! Being part of something like this is such a fun way to learn about being responsible and helping people!

Shanghai Aquarium

The biggest and I think, the best Girl Scout event this year was last weekend - spend a night at the aquarium in Shanghai! Of course, Manasi wanted to go - and when the organizers were short of parent chaperons, I signed up to go as well! Now, normally I stay far away from anything that sounds like camping - I don't mind hiking or trekking or doing any other out door things all day long, but come bed time, I need a comfortable bed, and the assurance of running water and reasonably clean toilets the morning after. I know, I know - I'm a wimp! I didn't really think it through before I agreed to go - and this was kind of indoor camping, might not be too bad?!

So there I was, Saturday morning, sorting out sleeping bags and pillow - hey, I might sleep on the floor, but I have to have my down pillow! I had a suitcase all ready for my things, but Ajey 'convinced' me to take a backpack instead! Didn't have too many things to pack - a change of clothes, toiletries and food. Funny story about the food. The sleepover package at the aquarium included dinner and breakfast the next day. The chicken burgers that we were supposed to have for dinner were cancelled because of the Bird Flu scare, so we were to have a choice of fish or shrimp. The irony of eating fish in an aquarium would have been lost on most people (including me), but Manasi was totally freaked out! She just could not get over it! So, finally I decided to pack dinner for us - and maybe a little breakfast too!

A Dulwich school bus had been arranged to take us to the aquarium and back, and shortly before 3pm we were on our way. I was surprised at how big the group was - 32 girls, from ages 7 to 14, and 8 moms! The girls were all in high spirits, chattering away - thankfully, there was no singing! At the aquarium, we were taken straight to the cafeteria to have dinner - I was expecting a concession stand where they would hand out food, but this was a regular cafeteria with a regular menu. We, of course, had a set menu - which, to be honest, wasn't all that bad! French fries, soda, an egg tart (hmm, no chicken - but eggs are ok?) and the fish sandwich - It did look like a Filet-o-Fish from McDonald's, only here the fillet had bits of grey scales and skin still on it - we are in China, people! The girls were persuaded to eat the sandwich bun without the fish, and along with the packed food that most of us had brought, we did just fine!

The aquarium usually closes at 6pm, so by the time we finished eating, we had the place to ourselves! After dropping off our bags in the Information Room, we were free to explore! The girls were given a little quiz to answer about the fish that they were about to see - and they fairly tore through the exhibits searching for the answers. Kind of beat the purpose, I thought - they weren't looking at the fish, just reading the signs! The Shanghai Aquarium is not that huge - about an hour should suffice to walk through at a leisurely pace, maybe a little more if you took time to really look at all the fish! There's a really amazing jellyfish gallery - strange how something so beautiful can be so dangerous! The main attraction, of course, is the shark tunnel - again, so sleek, yet, so deadly!

In the shark tunnel...

The girls went absolutely crazy, of course! They were running back and forth, talking loudly, posing for pictures - the poor fish must have been scared out of their wits! I really enjoyed the absence of crowds - it was so nice to get right up to the displays, and not have to compete with jostling hordes to get a look, let alone a picture! The aquarium also has spotted seals - how adorable are these animals? They were swimming furiously in their tank, occasionally getting close to the glass to look at us - they have the softest, brownest eyes I have ever seen! I was really disappointed that I couldn't get a good picture of them! And the penguins - I think this is the first time I have ever seen live penguins! They can be so still, it took me a minute to realize they were real, and not just models! And this is absolutely my imagination, but I did think that the penguins were staring a bit wistfully at the painted ice mountain backdrop in their enclosure!

Posing with the penguins!

After we had our fill of fish - sorry, couldn't resist that one - we headed back to the information room. A very nice, soft spoken Aquarium lady gave us a presentation about sharks, and of course, the answers to the quiz! Then the high point of the evening - the girls actually got to pet the sharks, White Spotted Bamboo Sharks, to be very precise! With much squealing and giggling, the girls really enjoyed this - the sharks not so much! One of them was so startled that it actually leaped in the air, splashing wildly back - I think it was trying to get away from our gaggle of girls!

Petting the sharks...

Too soon, it was time to turn in! We trooped back to the shark tunnel to lay out our sleeping bags - about half the girls chose to sleep in the actual tunnel, and the rest of us were in a big area right next to a stingray display. The girls wee still in no mood to sleep, even after the lights were turned off - there was much whispering and giggling, until finally, at 11pm our troop leader asked them to stop talking! The lights on our side of the aquarium were off, but the lights in the aquarium were just dimmed - it was almost ethereal - the serene blue tank, and the fish that kept swimming, glowing a pearly white against the water! I woke up a couple of times, and it was just so breathtakingly beautiful! I had never thought of fish as being diurnal or nocturnal, and I had read that most fish need to keep swimming all the time - so it was a little surprising to see so many of them, including some of the sharks, laying down on the floors of the tanks for a snooze!

Craziness at bed time...

An early wakeup call next morning - we had to be out of there before the aquarium opened its doors at 9am! Breakfast was orange juice and a ham and egg sandwich - again, with the egg? - most of these were uneaten! Thankfully, there was coffee for the adults - caffeine badly needed! The girls were all such troopers - rolling up their sleeping bags, getting dressed, and then carrying all their stuff without a word of complaint! We were on the bus, and back in Suzhou before 10am! Sure, I was tired - but nothing that a nap wouldn't take care of, and sleeping on the floor wasn't as uncomfortable as I thought it would be! Most of the other moms that came along, I met for the first time, and it's always interesting to meet new people! Bottom line, I had a really good time! Can't wait to sign up for the next excursion!!

International Day

Did you know that there are expats from over 25 different countries living in Suzhou? Even in our school in Chennai, the number of countries represented was astounding! To celebrate this unique and rich diversity, most international schools have an International Day - not only is it really good advertising for the school, but it is also a great opportunity for all of us to literally take a trip around the world in few short hours!

In the American International School Chennai, we did UN Day every year - same concept, different name! Beginning with an assembly in the morning - the children did a Parade of Nations - different nationalities walking in with their flags while their national anthem played in the background. Incredibly moving, guaranteed to bring a tear to the eye! The solemn assembly was followed by - what else? - lunch!! Every country had a booth where they would serve national specialities - the children and then the school staff walked around this prodigious buffet, helping themselves - it was all free of charge, of course! What a wonderful event!

I was quite excited when emails for International Day in Dulwich started going around. Since Manasi has a US passport, I'm on the mailing list for both US and India - however since there are far more Americans than Indians here in Suzhou, I was obviously going to be on the India team! So there we were, about 10 Indian women - well, let me correct that - for some reason, India and Bangladesh were to share a stall, so 8 Indian women, and  2 Bangladeshi women - we had a couple of meetings, collected the money for expenses, kind of assigned tasks, so far so good! Then we hit our first snag - our country rep had to go back for India for a medical emergency! Well, I kind of volunteered to take the lead - I know, it's my first year here, I should have just done the 'wait and watch' - but my national pride bursts forth in the weirdest places - and before I knew it I was writing emails and setting up meetings and what not!

Anyone who has ever tried to organize any event with volunteers know how oddly difficult it is! The leader cannot assign tasks - you have to either wait for people to step up, or else very politely try to convince someone to take responsibility. Everyone has a suggestion to make, a better way to do things - and no matter how farfetched the ideas may be, they have to be given serious consideration. Being in charge does not mean that you get to make decisions - it just means that you just became the agony aunt for the entire group, fielding questions about ingredients that go in a particular recipe, or even the weather forecast on the day of the event! Not to mention the demands - being in charge also means that you're everyone's go-to person to request particularly hard to find stuff which, of course, is absolutely critical! All the success, of course, belongs to the group - the failures if any, as always, are totally the fault of the leader! What a thankless job - why do it then, right? For the sheer thrill of watching things fall into place as planned! Forget the credit - who needs that? - all the frustration is totally worth the sigh of relief at the end of the day for a job well done!

Long story short, I was in charge - and definitely not finding it easy going! Then the Bird Flu scare started - so no poultry could be served! The menu we had planned was really chicken heavy - chicken tikka, chicken kebabs, chicken curry - you name it! So we were back to square one - scrambling to come up with a vegetarian menu which would appeal to the crowds! For unlike UN Day in Chennai, International Day at Dulwich was a charity fundraiser - not only did we have to make the food, we also had to sell it! The final menu that everyone agreed to - paneer frankies, idli-chutney, veg spring rolls, gulab jamun and mint lemonade - quite impressive, even if I say it myself! Besides the food stall, we also had to make a 'country basket' - a basket of local handicrafts and foods, which would be auctioned off - again for charity! We were initially planning to put on a dance for the cultural show, but since our erstwhile leader was also our choreographer, that had to scrapped - although, she did promise that her daughter would perform a solo!

International Day dawned bright and sunny - since it had rained non-stop pretty much the entire week before, that was a relief! Our India/Bangladesh stall was colorfully decorated with flags, posters, and ethnic bedspreads! I had managed to wangle a few 'Incredible India' posters from the Indian consulate in Shanghai, so those went up as well! This year, for the first time, Dulwich College had decided to do a parade - not just for the kids, but for everyone! A Chinese dragon would lead the parade - followed by the countries in alphabetical order! This led to a few (unintentionally) funny emails - a couple of parents were vehemently opposed to marching behind the dragon, apparently because the dragon is a pagan image! Really, people? Get over it - sometimes a dragon is just a dragon, and not a symbol of anything at all! The parade was a bit uneven, and it really should have ended with a finale having everyone on the field at the same time, with all different flags and costumes! That would have been quite the sight! As it was, we walked in at one end, and then just walked across waving our little flags, feeling just a tiny bit silly!

The India contingent!

The rest of the day, was quite literally, a blur! In our booth - selling food, collecting coupons, stamping 'passports' with India and Bangladesh stamps! We had a lot of disappointed customers who came looking for 'curry' - but nonetheless, we sold out pretty quickly! By the time I could leave to take a walk around the other stalls, most of the food was gone! Don't know if it was just too many people this year, or if everyone just had less food! Our sole representative at the cultural show, a little girl of 8, performed an amazing Bollywood number! It would have been so much if we had been able to put on a bigger show! Just like 'curry', Bollywood, too is extremely popular!

Went home after clean up - totally exhausted! It had been a good event - actually, much better than what I was expecting! Lots of lessons learned for next year - and to be honest, I would really like to be country lead for next year, too - and I would most definitely like to head start on a lot of things instead of waiting for next year! For now, I'm just happy that we didn't run into any serious issues, and that we did our bit in contributing to the astounding 200,000RMB raised that day! As for next year, que sera sera...

A weekend of firsts

What an incredibly busy weekend we have had! Usually, weekends are pretty quiet around here - Ajey's working hours are absolutely crazy, and he wants to do nothing more than chill at home - or maybe go have dinner with a few friends! But then once in a while, there comes along a weekend which moves along at a frenetic pace - every minute crammed with a different activity...

It all began Friday night with Quiz Night at Dulwich! I don't remember the last time I was in a quiz contest - it has to be way back when I was in St. Helena's school - so I'm going to count this quiz as a 'first'! It was pretty exciting - teams of 6, bring your own food and drinks, and answer questions about what seemed like everything under the sun! The categories were a mixed bag - movie trailers, famous faces, sports, geography, paintings, music, books - and the most of the questions were real head-scratchers! A really diverse team would be needed to do well - diverse in age, background and interests too! We finished 11th of 21 teams - not bad considering we had named ourselves 'Dead Last'!

Saturday was a big day for Manasi! Another first - she was going to participate in an Inter-school swim meet in Shanghai! It was hard to tell who was more anxious - after all, it was my very first swim meet too! Not to mention that a couple of days before the event, I discovered that Manasi had been accidentally entered in the wrong age-group for her events - she would be swimming with kids a couple of years older than her. Goes without saying that I over-reacted completely and hysterically - my nerves refusing to calm down even after the problem had been sorted! It didn't help that our school coach was totally unsympathetic - I expected better support from the staff at one of the most prestigious schools here!

The swim meet took place at the Shanghai American School (SAS), a good 3 hour drive from Suzhou. The school bus left at 5:30 am to make it in time for the first event - luckily, Manasi's first race was at 11am, so we could leave a little later! The SAS campus made me surprisingly homesick for Peoria - the school is set in a gated enclosure along with a golf course and an expat neighborhood. The houses were totally American in style - down to the siding and the picket fences! I could almost imagine I was in Weaver Ridge!!! The school is huge, a lot like the American school in Chennai! That was really weird - imagine AISCH relocated to a fancy neighborhood in Peoria - best of both worlds?? The meet too, was a much bigger deal than what I was expecting - over 700 students from about a dozen International schools were participating - not helping my nerves here!!

Although, after the initial furor had faded, what followed was an profoundly boring day! Manasi was to swim in 4 events - the actual race lasted barely a minute in each case - but the wait between events was interminable! Swimmers, parents and coaches had all been corralled into the gym - about half hour before the actual event, the swimmers were led down to the pool and assigned lanes. Manasi's name was printed in the wrong place in the program, which led to a confused discussion every single time her event was called! To her credit, she handled herself beautifully - it must have been quite intimidating for her! The huge pool, the lanes, the whistle start, the diving in - just so much to process! Ajey and I are so proud of her!

So Friday was for me, Saturday was all about Manasi - Sunday was totally Ajey's day!! A first - not for him, but for Manasi and me - we actually went to see a F1 race!!! Now, apologies to all racing enthusiasts, but I just don't get F1 racing. Grown men driving around in souped-up cars for an eternity - can there be anything more monotonous?? So why did I agree to go - I admit my motive was purely to check it off the list - F1 race, been there, done that! Besides, it was right here in Shanghai, the tickets - albeit expensive - were available, and we had friends who were ready to go with us!

How was the experience? In one word, LOUD!!! The drivers - are they called athletes, I wonder - took a couple of test drives around the circuit, but it was only when the race actually started that the force of the sound was felt! Our stand reverberated as the cars surged past, the roar of the engines completely drowning out the cheering spectators! And then they were gone - reappearing a few minutes later for the next lap! It was odd, seeing the race in split seconds like this - and with all the pit stops and other things, it was also really hard to keep track of who's leading! Few laps later, I sat down, earplugs firmly in place - cheering desultorily when what I thought was a Ferrari passed by.

In Ajey's words, F1 racing is the ultimate combination of the best in man and machine. Sadly, I remain untouched by this exalted sentiment. I still don't get it. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I went! Now I know that a live F1 race is just as - hmm, well, it's just like watching it on TV at home - and at home, you can actually have a conversation, and maybe even change the channel! OK, I'm going to stop talking now! Oh, by the way, Alonso won the Shanghai F1 - see, I wasn't completely tuned out! At the end of the day, I did get what I wanted - F1 race, been there, done that!!! And if Ajey wants to go next year - which I'm sure he will - he can go with my blessing and without me!!!

What a weekend! Exhilarating, but equally exhausting! Looking forward to some quiet times ahead - the adrenalin rush from this weekend of firsts is sure to last for a while to come!!

The Emperor's Terracotta Army

The first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, was obsessed with immortality. It is said that he spend the last few years of his life in the elusive quest for the magical elixir of everlasting life! He was also very concerned about the after-life - and to protect himself and his capital, Xi'an, even after his death - he commissioned this gigantic army made of terracotta warriors and horses!

About 700,000 artisans labored for over 37 years to create this army of life-sized terracotta figures. In the tradition of many a despotic monarch, the First Emperor had most of these artisans put to death - to protect the secret of his immortal army! And a secret it remained for over 2000 years!!! Generations passed, farming their lands, burying their dead - totally unaware of this wonder that lay buried deep under! Until 1974, when a farmer digging a water well unearthed some pieces of terracotta pottery - further investigations revealed this astounding creation!

Buried almost 5 meters under the ground, the terracotta army has been found in 4 main pits, about 2kms away from the emperor's tomb - which was discovered in the 1950s, but has not been excavated to date due to fear of damage to the contents because of oxidation, and also the possible risk of mercury contamination. Archaeologists now estimate the army to consist of 8000 warriors, 160 chariots and 600 horses - majority of which still remain buried! The warriors have been found in less than pristine conditions - shattered to pieces in some cases - probably because of a massive earthquake which hit Xi'an area in the 16th century. What can be seen today is the result of an elaborate piecing together of the fragments - a giant clay jigsaw puzzle! Work still continues on the site, and there doesn't really seem to be an end in sight!

OK, that's my history lesson for the day! Back to present day Xi'an - the Terracotta Army is now located about 40 miles from the city. City buses are available to make it to the site - but after our earlier experiences, we decided to opt for a private van and tour guide - about 700 RMB for both together. The ride takes about an hour- have I mentioned that traffic in Xi'an is horrendous? From the entrance gates where you buy the tickets to the actual pits - you can walk, or take a little shuttle for 5RMB. It is actually quite a pleasant walk, and it gave the guide a chance to tell us a little bit more about the history of Xi'an and the Army! The first stop on the tour was a bit of a gimmick, in my opinion! Our guide took us into a shop, ostensibly to meet one of the original farmers who discovered the site! For a mere 200 RMB, get a picture with this discoverer and also an autographed book about Xi'an! Now, I don't know this person from Adam - I would most certainly like to give him the benefit of doubt - but when the attendant said, 'No buy book, no picture' - I really wasn't interested anymore!

One more thing that makes this place so unique - the museum has actually been built on the original site! The first glimpse inside Pit 1 - totally taken aback by the sheer size! Gaze upon the warriors in the pit - China at its best 2000 years ago, and then lift your eyes to the dome above - modern China, all in one place! All the figures are incredibly life-like - from the expressions on the faces to the lines on open palms! The dress and hairstyles indicate rank and also, age - our guide said that the warriors range from 16 to 60 years of age! They are taller than the average Chinese man in those days, and proud moustaches are meant to demonstrate aggressive masculinity! At the rear of Pit 1, work still continues to reconstruct these figures - too bad, it was a holiday! It would have been something else to actually see the archaeology team on site!

Kneeling archer

Martial arts expert

A general!

Cavalry officer with his horse

Pit 2 and Pit 3 are a lot smaller, and have not been excavated as much. The bronze chariots, armor, weapons along some of the warriors are located in a separate museum. Up close, the attention to detail is astounding! These figures were all lacquered and colored originally - some remnants of the color is still visible, it must have been breathtaking in the glory days! The chariot made for the emperor is bronze, and so is the armor and the weapons. The horses drawing the chariot fascinated me - the horse is a noble animal to begin with, and it has been so lovingly crafted here - you can almost imagine its hot breath and shuffling hooves!



The tour is dotted with stops at various shops where you can buy souvenirs - these are the original souvenirs, of course! But don't buy anything here - way too highly priced, plus, they won't bargain! There's plenty of opportunity to shop as you make your way to the exit! No shuttle on the way out, there's no escape from all the souvenir stalls! It is a surprisingly long walk back to the parking lot - especially after the 3 odd hours already spent on the site! There's a Subway at the very start of this 'Magnificent Mile', or for the more adventurous, there are plenty of local food stalls, where you can try the hand made noodles and soup!

The taxi brought us back to the hotel at about 4pm - money well spent I would say! I really wanted to go to the Shaanxi Cultural show - or Tang Dynasty show, as it is known - but it was too late to get tickets. Probably for the best - the kids would have been hard to handle after the long day! Instead, we made an amazing discovery - about 5 minutes walk away from the Crowne Plaza is the Cade Plaza, a newish mall. The amazing part is the restaurants it has - we went there looking for a Mexican place, but there was atleast 5 other restaurants we could have eaten at, including a really nice Indian restaurant! 5 minutes away! Why didn't this come up yesterday?!

We still had to visit the Muslim Quarter behind the Drum tower - another good place to sample the local fare, and to get the best bargains! It is a very picturesque location, little alleys with the usual souvenirs, with the Drum Tower as a backdrop! Mountains of dates were available, and so was jade! What treasure did I find? A travel mahjong set in a pretty wooden box!! I admit I'm addicted - sadly, Ajey wouldn't let me buy it - one is enough, he said! Is it really enough, Ajey, is it???

Xi'an - what treasures to be found here! I came here with the Terracotta Army as the main attraction, but I was amazed at the sense of history this place has! True, it is not as clean or shiny as Suzhou or Shanghai, the taxi drivers not as polite, the roads not as good, the metro not as well connected - but still, it has an unique charm! I look at the preservation work, the integration of history with the quotidian - how true it is that unless you understand your past, you cannot look to the future! I also have a twinge of regret - my homeland has a history that stretches back further than even ancient Xi'an, and yet, India has somewhat lost her connection to her glorious past. We have let invaders and conquerors rewrite our illustrious history, forgotten our heritage and rich traditions...

It is said that you have not been to China unless you've been to Xi'an. Whatever truth that statement might have, Xi'an should definitely be on everyone's bucket list. The Emperor's immortal Terracotta Army is waiting for you, and what you will bring back with you is certainly more than just mere souvenirs! Xi'an the ancient, Xi'an the first, Xi'an where it all began...

Xi'an...

Xi'an the ancient, Xi'an the first - Xi'an where it all began! 3000 years ago, Xi'an - or Chang'an, as it was known then, was the capital of the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. The modern name for the Middle Kingdom - 'China' - is derived from this very Qin dynasty! The two characters 'xi' and 'an' literally translate as 'west' and 'prosperity' - Xi'an is indeed the western capital of prosperity!

We reached Xi'an on a Friday morning - the train station is right outside its famous city wall. The first sight you see as you walk out - apart from the crowds, of course, is the magnificent ramparts and towers! Our hotel, Crowne Plaza Xi'an, was about 15 minutes away from the station. First impression of Xi'an - common to many cities in China - construction, construction everywhere! Huge malls with name brand stores, and giving evidence to the number of tourists, all the familiar chain restaurants - McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Starbucks! The Crowne Plaza website says that it is the tallest building in Xi'an - it certainly is impressive, a gleaming tower of chrome and glass! No time to admire the decor, though - after quick showers we set off once again - first lunch, then the City Wall!

South gate of the City Wall

This is one of China's oldest and best preserved City Walls! The original date backs to the 14th century, built by the Ming dynasty - but now, has been extensively restored! I'm guessing the top of the wall is almost 25 feet broad, and tourists can rent a bicycle to ride along the entire perimeter of 13 or so kms! The rent for the bikes was a little high - besides how can you enjoy the view from the wall when you're trying to keep your balance?! We contented ourselves with a leisurely stroll - it was quite interesting to see the contrast between the old city with its grey-shingled roofs and narrow lanes on one side, and the busy streets and construction on the other!  

We didn't spend too much time on the wall - our next destination was beckoning - the Dayan or Big Goose Pagoda! This time, we decided to take the bus - at 0.5RMB per adult, and children free, it is certainly the most economical way to travel here! In Suzhou, we often take the bus - so it didn't seem like that big of a deal! The buses in Xi'an, however, are more similar to the PMT or BEST buses in India rather than our clean Suzhou buses! Incredibly grimy, and apparently, as ancient as the city, the buses were also crowded to the gills! We managed to squeeze in - only to have the driver hit the brakes really, really hard a few minutes later - it seemed that our bus had narrowly avoided hitting a pedestrian! The bus halted, the driver got down, and slowly one by one all the passengers got off too! Luckily, the girl was unhurt, just badly shaken! I was surprised at how calm everyone remained - in India, this would have definitely caused a mob to descend on the bus, and the driver would have been most certainly beaten up!

Dayan Pagoda - water show

The Dayan Pagoda is located at the intersection of 2 busy streets - it was really hard to walk, especially as part of the road has been closed off for construction. The pedestrian walkways have been all but taken over by peddlers and hawkers. The park we walked into was beautiful - we could see the pagoda in the background, and the musical fountains were dancing! The show was strictly ok - but still, I always enjoy watching fountains like these! We walked slowly toward the pagoda, looking for an entrance - we hit a high wall finally, and walking along the wall, we came to a market area - souvenirs of course, and food! We kept walking, by now convinced that there was no way to get a closer look at the pagoda, and trying to find an exit!

It was when we were on the other side of the street waiting for a taxi, that we finally noticed the entrance! It was getting late, but we decided to go in any way - and we were not disappointed! The pagoda is part of a Buddhist temple complex - but this is no ordinary Buddhist temple! This temple is built by the monk Xuanzang who traveled to India from China in the 1st century. He lived in India for 17 years, and came back with Buddhist scriptures. The pagoda was actually built to store all his manuscripts and the relics he brought back! Being in this temple was like finding a tiny part of India in the heartland of China! The temple guide was a student at the university, and very well-versed in the history of the temple! The pagoda itself is 7 stories high - no elevator, of course! I don't think any of us had the energy to climb all those steps - no matter how great the view from the top!

Back at the hotel, we met up with our friends from Suzhou, who were also in Xi'an on vacation.Refreshed after a short rest, we decided to go to the Bell Tower - located exactly in the center of Xi'an. The bus we took this time didn't quite take us to where we were headed - but the Bell Tower was only a couple of blocks away - so we walked! Just inside the city walls, on a walkway, we saw a curious sight - a man had setup a giant telescope, a green laser beam shooting out from the top of the scope, disappearing far into the clouds. 'Jupiter', the man said, 'Jupiter and 3 of its moons'. Now who can pass that up! We all lined up, even bargained with him, and paid 20RMB per person for a look at mighty Jupiter! In retrospect, all of us had an uneasy suspicion that something was not quite right - sure enough, it was a hoax! There's even a warning on wikitravel about it! I can't believe we fell for that! Laughed our heads off about this!!!

We did make it to the Bell Tower, only to find that we couldn't go in - visiting hours were over! I had to be content with a photo from across the street! Then we headed to our main destination for the night - where else, dinner at an Indian restaurant - which was right where we were a few hours ago - near the Dayan Pagoda. A metro ride, and what seemed like hours of walking later, we stumbled onto this amazing street - restaurants serving all kinds of cuisine, bars and nightclubs! Quite the happening place! Delhi Darbar, the restaurant where we ate, had been recommended highly by many people - and it did live up to the praise....initially! The food was delicious, and moderately priced, the seating was comfortable, the place was bustling like a good restaurant should be! What went wrong? Just a little thing - a roach turned up in one of our dinner plates!!!! We were almost at the end of our meal, so there was nothing much to be done! The manager made matters worse by claiming it wasn't their fault, these things happen - and he still charged us for the entire meal! What can I say? Just one of those days! Took a taxi back to the hotel - we were pretty much dead on our feet by the time we got back! Next day was the main attraction - the Terracotta Army of Xi'an! 

I had thought that I would finish writing about Xi'an in one post - but I think I'm going need one more post to do justice to the Warriors! So, a third post coming up shortly about our weekend in Xi'an! I promise, the wait won't be long!

Riding the Z train in China

Last month, my passport ran out of pages - I had to apply for a new one at the Indian consulate here in Shanghai. Surprisingly, I was told that it would take at least 45 days - isn't that absolutely crazy?? Almost anywhere these days, a week is more than enough to get a new passport! Anyway, since I was passport-less, our plans for Spring Break were suddenly on shaky ground! But, Ajey had 4 days off too, and it seemed a shame to just stay here in Suzhou...

I had had a really good experience with the CRH high-speed trains when I went to Beijing. So I started looking at trains to go to Xi'an. Unfortunately, there is no direct CRH train from Suzhou to Xi'an. The only option is the overnight sleeper train - the Z category - which even though not high-speed, still runs at a good clip of almost 160kmph! I have traveled by train tons of time when in India - both the 2 tier and 3 tier A/C compartments, and it always has been so much fun! How much worse can the trains in China be? So we decided to go ahead and make the bookings!

There were plenty of options for the tickets - hard seats, soft seats, hard sleeper or soft sleeper! Well, I definitely do not want to be sitting up all night, and the hard sleeper sounds so uncomfortable - so the soft sleeper it was! That turned out to be a pretty good choice - I don't think we could have managed in any of the other compartments! The tickets are pretty pricey too - 400RMB one way per person! Goes without saying that the hard seats are dirt cheap! Actually buying tickets is slightly more complicated than just going online and booking - the admin in Ajey's office helped us find the right trains - she then texted this information to our driver, who headed to the railway station with our passports to buy the tickets. Wait, did I say passport? Yes, you do need passports to buy train tickets in China - fortunately they are willing to accept a photo copy, so we didn't run into a problem!

So, we finally had a plan! Leave Suzhou Thursday night by the 7:45pm train, reach Xi'an Friday morning by 9:30am - stay in Xi'an 2 nights - and then on Sunday, take the 5pm train back, which would bring us to Suzhou Monday morning at 6am, in plenty of time for Ajey to still make it to a full day of work! Since we didn't have to leave for the station until almost 6:30pm, Thursday was very relaxed! There is a pantry car on the train, but I wasn't sure if we would would something suitable for us to eat - so ended up carrying a picnic hamper - everything from beer and chiwda to sandwiches and yogurt rice!

On the platform

Most stations in China have 1 big waiting area, and you can go onto the platforms only about 10 minutes before the train arrives. Platforms are for ticket-holders only, so there is none of the chaos and rabble associated with Indian platforms! There are no vendors on the platform either, so if you need to buy water or snacks, get it before you leave the waiting area! On the train, we were in for a pleasant surprise! The sleeper car had little cabins each with 4 berths. Floor was carpeted, and the sheets and pillowcases were laundry white! The berths had lacy hangings, and the little table at one end had a table cloth, with a vase and a kettle for hot water!

In the train

Our little cabin

Once the train got going, we set out our snacks, and got our party going! It was such a relief to sit down with legs stretched out, rather than being cramped into a tiny airline seat! Trains are awesome! It was already dark by the time the train left, so we couldn't see much out of the huge window except passing lights. There were plenty of food and drink carts passing by - all kinds of soft drinks, beer, fruit, instant noodles or even a hot dinner was available. For those who do eat meat, there should be no problem. For vegetarians - carry your own food, and plenty of it!

The toilets are always a little dicey on trains! In the Z-train, both western and Indian style toilets are available. They were clean enough when the train left Suzhou, but totally unusable in the morning. There is a little area with just sinks, so you can brush your teeth, but hold off on using the bathroom till you reach your hotel! It wasn't too bad though - we went to the bathroom right before we turned in, and we reached our hotel by 10am - we just stayed in bed as long as we could! The berths are comfortable, and the rocking motion of the train is restful - totally satisfactory for 1 night!

Xi'an station was somewhat of a shock - living in modern Suzhou has insulated us from real China! There was a huge crowd of people outside - touts for hotels, taxis, tourist guides and the like! Strangest were the people who wanted our used train tickets in exchange for a city map! I can't imagine what they would do with them, but certainly, not a good idea to hand over your tickets to a stranger - especially since each ticket has the passenger's passport number on it! Ignore all offers for taxi - head straight to the official taxi stand. It takes a little longer because you have to wait in line, but the police in charge were very helpful - making sure that the taxi driver knew where we had to go, even calling our hotel to confirm the address!! Xi'an is a relatively small town, and the ride from Xi'an station to most hotels should not cost more than 15-20RMB.

One important thing to keep in mind when traveling by train in China - most cities have at least 2 railway stations, if not more. One is a dedicated station for the G-category CRH high-speed trains - this is usually a little farther away from the city. The others would be stations within the city - these are for all other trains, the Z, T and K categories ( for more information on different types of trains in China - go to, where else - wikipedia.org! ). A CRH train may arrive at a regular station, but the other trains will never go to a CRH station. The tickets state very clearly which station your train departs from - so make sure you know which station you need to get to!

No prizes for guessing why I'm writing these words of caution! On the way back, our concierge at the hotel directed our taxi to the Xi'an Bei station - yes, that is the CRH station. We showed our tickets to the taxi driver, and he should have known that Xi'an Bei is not where we had to go - he just decided to ignore that in favor of getting a larger fare! About 25 minutes later, we finally yelled loud enough for him to stop, and turn back to the Xi'an main station. It didn't help matters that he drove like a maniac, swerving and cutting through traffic at a very high speed! Long story short - we missed our train! The entrance hall in the Xi'an station is completely confusing - wouldn't be out of place in any station in India! We had no clue where to go, or what to do next!

Fortunately, Ajey was able to track down a railway official who not only spoke English, but was also able to help us get tickets for a later train. Surprisingly, even though our train had left, the full amount for the ticket was refunded - the downside was that the new tickets we had to buy were twice as expensive as our originals - so we still ended up shelling out a significant amount of money! Another good piece of information was that all railway stations have a special waiting room for soft-sleeper passengers. It wouldn't matter much in places like Suzhou, but anywhere else, it makes a huge difference! This waiting room even has a special entrance to go out to the platforms, so you don't have to shove your way though the crowds outside!

The person who helped us told Ajey that he tickets we had were VVIP - but we didn't know what he meant until we got on the train! This time, our compartment had cabins with just 2 berths - there was also a very comfortable armchair, a small coat closet, and wait for it - a personal toilet! VVIP alright! This little cabin was a huge boost to our by-now flagging spirits! Of course, all 3 of us could not be together for the night, but we could still sit and eat together and chat! All's well that ends well, I guess!!

Overall, the Z-train was a wonderful experience! It seemed a little daunting initially, but compared to the hassles of taking a flight - taking the train seems to be the better option! The trains run on time in China, and the rail network is very good! I'm already trying to think of the next place we can take the train to! I'll be back with an update on our time in Xi'an soon, so watch this space! Until next time!