Seeing the Terracotta Warriors in person was a highlight of my trip in China. They are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and any many Chinese say a visit to China is incomplete without a visit to the warriors. The figures date back to 210 BC, but they were not discovered until 1974 when three local farmers were digging a well. When you visit the third pavilion with the warriors in it you can see the spot where the original well was. If it had been just a few feet in another direction the warriors may have continued to remain a secret. The warriors were created by Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. The warriors were created to protect him in his afterlife. His tomb is nearby, but remains closed because it is surrounded by an underground river of mercury and scientists have yet to discover how to safely get inside it. The majority of the Terracotta that has been excavated are soldiers, but there are also acrobats, exotic animals, chariots and more that are being excavated now. When the warriors were originally found they were painted in bright colors, but the paint oxidized and all the color was lost after two weeks. The excavation of the warriors has now stopped temporarily until a method can be found to preserve the color. The Terracotta Army is a little over an hour out of the city and most hotels can arrange for a car to take you or there is an inexpensive bus that you can take from the bus station. There are official guides employed by the site who you can hire to show you around and explain the history of the warriors.

After Beijing I headed to Xi’an, a city in the northern Shaanxi province of China. I just had two days in the city before heading to the Shaanxi Wildlife Center about an hour outside of the city. The city is most famous for the Terra Cotta Army that was discovered in the 70’s by three farmers on the outskirts of the city, which I will post about tomorrow. There are plenty of things to do in the city itself- plenty of shopping, restaurants, and ancient pagodas to visit. My favorite of which was the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. It was built about 1300 years ago as a Buddhist temple. Every night there is a fountain show in front of the pagoda. The area is surrounded by fun restaurants and little shops- they even have a Baskin Robbins! The show is free and lasts about half and hour.

China is really up and coming on the art scene and it is definitely worth a day of your time to check out the art districts in Shanghai and Beijing. Unfortunately I was too sick in Shanghai, but I got to devote an entire day to the 798 Art Zone in Beijing. The area is comprised of decommissioned military factories giving the area a unique vibe. The galleries and stores and restaurants that have popped up around them are comparable to the art scene in the Village in New York, Silver Lake in Los Angeles, or the Left Bank in Paris. I took a cab out there (and actually had no trouble finding one to agree to take me back on the meter) and was dropped off by the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art (UCCA). This is right in the center of the area and from there you can get your bearings. The UCCA has interesting temporary exhibits and is worth a walk through. The gallery is quirky and well laid out. I particularly liked the hand written placards for the photo show going on while I was there. The store inside the building has cutting edge designs and fashions from all around the world.




Nearby is the bookstore Timezone 8 which is split into two rooms: one for Chinese art and one for Western art. The store is amazing and I could have spent all day pursuing their selection. This is also a good place to pick up a map of the area with information about all the galleries and exhibits.



There is the Pace Gallery, which is worth a visit and is interesting to compare to the famous New York branch. I would also suggest visiting the 798 Photo Gallery, which was the first gallery dedicated solely to photography in China.



Around the area are many little shops selling quirky objects and interesting fashions. There are also many restaurants both Chinese and Western to grab a bite to eat. I would suggest just spending the day wandering in and out of the shops and galleries and enjoying the area itself, which is full of interesting outdoor sculptures and graffiti art.