About Xian

Overview

Xi'an is a museum city dotted with the historic relics of past dynasties, from the restored city walls to the majesty of the Terracotta Warriors. Xi'an will delight travelers today, as it did centuries ago as the staring point of the famed Silk Road.

 

As the capital of Shaanxi province, Xi'an has over 3,000 years of recorded history, with human habitation present here as early as the Neolithic times, as discovered at the Banpo Village. Xi'an has been the capital of 12 dynasties, though it has been known as various names, most notably as Chang'an. It was also the starting point of the Silk Road, where camels were loaded for their long and perilous journey to Central Asia. Xi'an's links to Central Asia goes beyond trade as Islam continues to have an influence on the local flavor through the Muslim Hui minority.

 

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As dynasty after dynasty added their own mark to Xi'an, the relics of old palaces, temples and tombs abound throughout the city and surrounding countryside. The tyrannical Qin dynasty emperor Qin Shihuang, with his capital at Xianyang, close to present day Xi'an, left his indelible mark through the famed Terracotta Warriors.

 

The Tang dynasty is considered one of China's golden ages for its unmatched cultural achievements. Trade reached Central Asia and Europe, thousands of students from Japan and Korea arrived in Xi'an to study in acknowledgement of Tang cultural pre-eminence and Chinese monks traveled to India to copy Buddhist sutras. At its zenith during the Tang dynasty, Xi'an was the world's largest and more cosmopolitan city, measuring 84.1 square kilometers with over one millin residents.

 

Though Xi'an was large, it was not affected by the incomprehensible twisting and turning lanes of similar cities of the era. As the first planned city in China, it was organized into a neat grid layout, highly symbolic in geomancy. Xi'an's city layout would influence other cities such as Beijing and Kyoto.

 

With the infjux of foreign traders and students, and the self-confidence of the /powerful and cosmopolitan Tang dynasty, Xi'an became more than a trading center, but also a nexus of cultures, religions, artistic endeavor and learning.

 

Today the city's charm lies in its historic atmosphere, there's a palpable sense of past glories, vestiges of its history are ever present. One can easily imagine the sights and sounds of Xi'an at the height of its glory when wandering along the city walls or strolling through the old Muslim quarter.

 

Must see

Xi'an's gray City Walls are imposing and built ot keep out bandits and barbrians. The massive walls measure 12m high and 16m side at the base, tapering to 12m to 14m and is 13.74km in corcumference. The surviving walls, built on Tang dynasty foundations, date to the Ming dynasty and were built during the 14 century. You can get up on the walls at any gate at the compass points. The scenery at the south gate is the best.

 

South of the city walls is the brick Big Wild Goose Pagoda in the Temple of Great Maternal Grace complex. The temple was built in AD 648 by Tang emperor Gaozong as an act of filial piety to honor his mother. The big Wild Goose Pagoda is regarded by many as a symbol of the city.

 

The Terracotta Warriors: In 221 B.C, for the first time in its history, China was united under one emperor, Qinshihuang of the Qin dynasty. The Qin emperor;s influence far out lived his short dynasty. Like many autocrats, Qin

Shihuang had an early start on his own mausoleum; construction began when he was only 14 and continued for 36 years. the Terracotta Warriors is only a part of the Qin emperor's tomb complex. They may have remained forgotten had it not been for the fortuitours discovery by local peasants drilling a well in 1974. What they found would excite the archelogy world.

 

The Great Moaque: Located in Muslim district along Hujue Lane, the Great Mosque is short walk from the Drum Tower and the Bell Tower at the center of town. The mosque, which is still an active place of worship and was established by the Tang dynasty in AD 742 for Muslim traders from Central Asia who settled in Xi'an.

 

The Huang Hot Springs, 30km east of Xi'an, was once the playground of Tang dynasty emperors, though there have been buildings there as early as the Western Zhou, with later additions built during the Qin and Sui dynasties. It is famous because of Yang Guifei, a regular guest and the central character in one of China's most enduing legends of ill-fated love.

 

The Bell Tower, In the downtown area of Xi'an at the intersection where the North, South, East and West Streets meet, stands a magnificent classical building, with carved beams and painted rafters. It is known as the Bell Tower. It has gained its name from the function it used to perform, to tell the time in the morning.