Xi’an, China {Terracotta Warriors & Muslim Street}
We just wrapped up a couple weeks exploring other areas of China. When planning our trip, I looked to the personal recommendations of others – mainly blog posts I found via Pinterest. Those posts were invaluable to us as we planned and one of the topics I get most excited to post on myself is travel. The next several posts are going to be recaps from the places we visited – written for my own personal records and also with those that might want to visit the same places in mind.
I’m going to first share about each place and then I’ll do a recap post with things we recommend when planning and things we would have changed. I’ll also write a post on how we traveled on a very limited budget and my thoughts regarding staying in hostels as a family.
Today, I am going to kick off from the beginning of our trip – jumping on the subway in Beijing and headed to the train station for an overnight train to Xi’an.
Xi’an wasn’t on my list of places I wanted to visit, but a couple of our boys have had seeing the Terracotta Army on their lifetime bucket list. Since we were only an overnight train away, Chris and I wanted to make this trip happen for them.
With backpacks packed for a 2 week journey, we walked to the bus station and took a bus to the subway….where the girls always dance and sing, “I’m dancing on the subway.” (a song they made up)
The train station in Beijing….
There are several seating options for overnight trains in China. There are ‘soft sleepers’ which are private 4 bed bunk rooms. These are the most expensive options. Next there is the ‘hard sleeper’ option which consists of 6 bunkbeds facing each other. There is not a door or privacy. Lastly, there is also the option to sit.
We chose the hard sleepers for several reasons. First, as a family of 7 we could get 6 beds facing each other (our youngest shared a bunk with me and traveled for free). This option was the cheapest bed option and gave us a tiny bit of privacy since we had a whole area. We did not have a door, so that meant lots of interaction with other travelers. The introvert in me wanted privacy, but more than I wanted privacy I wanted my kids to really experience China, the culture and the people – hard to do when you go in your private room and shut the door.
Corbett engaged a few other travelers in games of Chinese chess on his phone. He always lost, but I was proud of him for trying and for overcoming language barriers to engage others.
We had little papers with basic info about our family printed on them. This was the quickest way to explain to others a little about us and why we were in China.
Everyone we met was extremely positive about the size of our family. I got lots of thumbs ups and “Very Good!” from everyone regarding being a mom of 5. Everyone we met was also so curious about our youngest daughter and responded with warm kindness when they understood she was our adopted daughter. They were also in awe of her when she talked – the English took everyone off guard.
My oldest daughter downloaded a translator app and talked to as many people as she could. She is just like her dad in that regard. While I hid in a top bunk and looked out the window, she took the phone and walked the aisles talking to people. She usually came back with food given to her too.
Our main (really only) purpose to start in Xi’an was a visit to the Terracotta Army. My oldest and youngest sons have spent countless hours reading about the warriors and were well prepared to teach the rest of us.
The Terracotta Army is a huge tourist destination. We saw a few other foreigners, but mainly everyone was Chinese. Tons and tons of Chinese tour groups.
This is the outside of the main room that holds warriors. There are three main buildings, this is the biggest one.
An estimated 8,000 warriors, horses and chariots are buried in trench-like pits. Each warrior is unique and made by hand by an estimated 700,000 workers. The army was constructed around 215 B.C. by order of Emperor Qin to protect him in the afterlife.
In 1974 farmers working to dig a well uncovered one warrior, which led to the discovery of the thousands and ultimately Emperor Qin’s tomb (which has not been excavated).
When you considered that the warriors were created in 215ish B.C. – it is mind blowing. Standing there in person it was mind boggling to consider each warrior being made by hand in modern times – let alone in the ancient world.
It does’t take too long to walk around the main pits. There is a museum and other areas to learn more about the history of the army and what is still left to be discovered.
We explored all the areas – and this guy was followed by these girls the whole time…until they finally worked up the nerve to ask for a photo with him.
It was Father’s Day, so we tried to find a somewhat hidden place for our annual Father’s Day picture. After taking this – I turned around to see a crowd had gathered and were taking their own photos.
We didn’t plan much time in Xi’an and had a plane to catch early the next morning. Despite being exhausted from the train ride, we wanted to venture out into the city a bit. We spent the evening on Muslim Street. It was super touristy (as far as shops), but we had fun and ate incredible local food. 
Notice the older gentleman’s face in the photo below. He was so taken by seeing my oldest daughter.
The next morning we boarded a plane to Guangzhou…
I highly recommend reading up on the Terracotta Army whether you ever plan to visit or not. It is fascinating!
Here are a few links to help you get started:
National Geographic Article about Emperor Qin’s tomb
Kid friendly videos (Pinterest search)
Homeschoolers: There are tons of ideas on Pinterest for teaching this to kids and project ideas for making your own clay warriors.
My travel tips for the Terracotta Warriors:
- Read up before you go – especially if you have kids. The whole experience is far more interesting and incredible if you know the history. You can use a tour guide, but there is something about learning ahead of time and then experiencing it firsthand.
- If you are comfortable with public transportation, we took a public bus to the Terracotta Army. From the train station, it is a short walk to the right bus station. It was easy to find and the stop was obvious. (I would google to get the exact bus number)
- It is pretty busy. Most visitors are with tour groups and they move as a group. If you want a specific photo spot, just wait a second and a group will move…then jump (or push your way) in.
- There are several restaurants – local and not (KFC, McDonalds) right outside the gate. We ate ahead of time to save money, but got ice cream at KFC.
- There are lots of tourist shops – most have items you can find elsewhere for much cheaper.
- There will be crowds, prepare for that and don’t let it distract you from the incredible sight of the army. It can be tempting to move fast to get away from crowds, but I’d recommend really taking time to soak it all in.
- The first room (the largest one) was our favorite. Push your way to the very front for that view and then slowly move around the perimeter.
- For staying 1 night – we booked an Airbnb. This was way cheaper than 2 hotel rooms (family of 7). I think it cost us $35 for a 4 bedroom Airbnb. We used buses to get around town.
