I have added another album: Hua Shan, one of the five holy Taoist mountains in China. This was the all-night hike that I did at the beginning of May. Since my pictures were on the stolen camera, my friend, Jean, has given me copies of hers. Hers are from the year before. You can see the chain railings that you have to use to pull yourself up in various places, and the men carrying supplies jog with their heavy loads. The red banners are for luck and success on the mountain. People buy locks, get them inscribed, and place the lock on a chain railing with the wish that they will forever be together with a particular person or persons. The key is then thrown away.
Xi’an City Wall
The city wall around Xi’an is impressive. It took its present day form, faced with brick in 1568, but one was built in 1370 of earth on top of a Tang Dynasty foundation. It is 12 meters high, and the perimeter is 14 kilometers. There are watchtowers in each of the corners, four main gates, and a moat around the city wall, and once there was a suspension bridge that could be lifted to control who entered the city. There is a beautiful park all the way around and next to the city wall with trees and flowers, sidewalks, exercise equipment, concrete tables for games, ping-pong tables, and many benches. I spent a Sunday morning biking on top of the wall exploring the city from above. It is wide, 12-14 meters, along the top.
Silk Road Statue
I also went to see the Silk Road statue since Xi’an, or Chang’an, as it was called then, was the beginning of the Silk Road. Initially it was used to purchase horses for military purposes. By 100 BC the Silk Road was well underway when dozens of huge caravans headed from Xi'an west into the desert. Later many trade items were transported, from the West, cucumbers, figs, chives, sesame, walnuts, grapes, wool, linen and ivory. From China there was jade porcelain, oranges, peaches, roses, chrysanthemums, the crossbow, gunpowder, paper and printing, and most important, silk.
Not only was it a trade and culture route, but also new ideas of art and religion were introduced to China when Buddhism was brought from India in the first century AD. The Silk Road was a dangerous route not only because of physical elements, but also because of warring tribes to the north. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD) great wealth was brought to China.
Wedding
I attended another wedding this weekend (my third) of an English teacher. The wedding ceremony was held at a reception hall in Xi’an. It was in a lovely banquet room with about 200 guests present. The wedding was held on Sunday at noon. (All weddings start at noon). First there was a power point presentation of pictures of the bride and groom in their youth and then beautiful romantic wedding portraits. There were bubbles and exploding confetti, but no flashing lights. Speeches were made and the marriage certificate read. Meanwhile the people sitting at the tables, drank, smoked, chatted, and ate peanuts and sunflower seeds - nothing solemn about these ceremonies. ). The bride wore a white wedding dress at first, and later, when the couple came around to the tables to toast with the guests, she had changed to a typical Chinese red dress. Later we ate the usual array of dishes – noodles, meat, fish, tofu, greens, mushrooms; I lost count after fourteen. We all passed on the chicken feet. At one point a whole chicken and then a whole fish on platters were placed on the table. There was a sweet soup, and then later sweet glutinous rice. I thought that was the last of the dishes, but then vegetables and mushrooms were brought; white rice was also served at the end, followed by cookies, watermelon and small tomatoes for the final dessert. It was a lovely party and I felt honored to be included.
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