Over the long weekend break between the two sessions we went to Xi’an. It was a really cool experience to travel in China with 23 of my fellow Northwestern students. We set out on a Wednesday right after finals ended and traveled there by an overnight sleeper train. When we got to Xi’an we were met by our tour guide, a local named Jackie who was very knowledgeable and funny. He also had some serious singing talent, which he demonstrated for us on the bus.
While in Xi’an we got to visit many tourist destinations, like the Terracotta Army, Huaqing Hot Springs, and the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. Xi’an was similar to Beijing in that it was a city filled with ancient history and culture. It’s amazing to think that these sites are relics left from centuries ago.
One of my favorite parts of the trip was riding a bike on the city wall of Xi’an. We headed out to the wall in the morning after breakfast to avoid the midday heat. After getting to the wall, we climbed the stairs to the top, where we could rent either single or tandem bikes. The wall surrounded the inner part of Xi’an and was around 15 meters wide, which Jackie told us was to avoid traffic jams back in the days when they had to rush around the wall to protect the cities from invaders. In the present day, the width allowed us to pass pedestrians as we pedaled along. Being on top of the wall gave a great view of the whole city as we biked along, as well as some great selfie opportunities. The entire ride was only around an hour long, but even then I could barely hobble down the stairs after. All in all, it was a unique experience and something I’m glad we had the opportunity to do.
