Touristic view of Xi'an

As I told you Saturday was the day for a small sightseeing in Xi'an. I was very anxious to get out of the hotel to see more of the town. This is actually what I really like the best when visiting new places, new cultures - go out and explore!


For those of you who are not familiar with this part of China (including myself - but I am doing my best to learn) Xi'an actually has the most complete city wall that has survived in China, as well as being one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world.
It is truly amazing to walk on top of the city wall, trying to picture what it must have been like as a soldier defensing the city from the enemies.
Read more here http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/shaanxi/xian/citywall.htm

From the left: James, Donna, Cecilia, Marianne, Wagner, Lugia, Irena, Vince, Junpeng, Abhay

Big Wild Goose Pagoda was first built in the year 652 in the Tang Dynasty. Xuanzang, a prominent Buddhist scholar of the time, planned to have a huge stone pagoda built to house the Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures he had brought back from India. 
The Da Ci'en temple in front of the Pagoda is a holy place and still used by monks. We were lucky enough to witness a meditation session there.

One of the Buddahs from the temple

 My name written in Chinese calligraphic. The artist asked my how I am pronouncing my name and from the sound of it he drew a horse, a leaf and a female sign. I also learned that my Chinese zodiac is the dragon - a very powerful animal in traditional Chinese history.

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