Sep. 1: I arrived in Xi'an. After losing my papers that I needed to find my way to the hotel and contact my meditation group, I was essentially lost in the city. Fortunately, there are Starbucks over here, they have WiFi, and I had my computer. I spent two days in the city initially, before leaving with my meditation group to go to Mt. Wudang, and then another three days there after finishing the retreat.
Xi'an
So, what did I do after returning to Xi'an? Did I go to see the Terra Cotta warriors? No. Did I check out the Wild Goose Pagoda or the Bell Tower? No. Did I do anything else even remotely related to Chinese history? No, so what exactly did I do with the time that I was in Xi'an? I hung out, with my new found friends, in the muslim district. Why? Because the muslim district is awesome. Basically the whole area is active from morning until late night, and the main streets and alleyways are filled with fun little shops, great restaurants and street peddlers. Tons of some of the most amazing dried fruit is available for sale pretty much everywhere, and really great street food and delicious sweets entice you wherever you walk. Plus, the locals in this area are particularly open minded and friendly, and you'll find a fair bit of English spoken here as well (although when the allyway sellers start using it to bargain, it's a little unnerving, as you no longer have the advantage of being able to discuss with your friends in private). Now that I'm in Beijing, I'm suffering from a bit of Muslim District withdrawal, because the Wangfujing street market area is much smaller and no where near as cool. Hopefully I'll find myself back in Xi'an before too long.
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