48 Hours in Xian

Wonderwall Xian’s city wall dates back to the 12th century and is lit up at night; (right from top) see the Terracotta Warriors in the Tomb of Emperor Qinshihuang; dine on dumplings cooked in bamboo steamers

48 Hours in...

XIAN

The Chinese city may be famed for its Terracotta Army, but with Ming-era ramparts and the Muslim Quarter’s souq-like lanes, it’s ripe for exploring

WORDS BY VIRGINIA CASEY

DAY 1

8am

After breakfast, head out with your driver and private guide to see the life-size model army of the Terracotta Warriorsq in their custom-made museum about an hour’s drive from Xian. The hundreds of warriors on display are arranged in vast pits, although you can view several statues up close, giving you a greater sense of their craftsmanship. Your guide points out beguiling details that are easily overlooked.

11am

Follow up your visit with a glass of green tea at one of the cafes surrounding the museum complex. You might have the chance to meet one of the farmers who

first discovered the army in 1974; he is sometimes found signing books in one of the museum gift shops.

1pm

Travel back into Xian for lunch at a local family’s apartment. Your host, Shang, teaches you how to shape and fold dumplings before you sit down to eat. Bring an appetite – the table soon groans with all types of fragrant seasonal food. Expect more familiar sweet and sour dishes and some regional creations.

4pm

Walk off your lunch with a stroll around the grounds of Big Wild Goose Pagodaw. A walled sixth-century Buddhist complex, its showpiece is its eponymous pagoda

– a stepped tower that looks a bit like a teetering Jenga construction. Explore its renovated halls, chambers, and shrines, then steal away to enjoy a few moments of quiet in a small grove of bamboo and plum trees.

7pm

Xian’s Muslim Quartere is a bazaar-like enclave redolent with spices, sesame and cooking oils. In lieu of sitting down to dinner, join a local guide for a small-group food tour through the brightly lit, pedestrian-only streets. Hopping between a handful of small restaurants, street-food stands, and hidden-away eateries, you can try lamb skewers, biang biang noodles, and other local delicacies.

SPECIALISTS’ TOP TIPS

Try gelato infused with local flavors at Shaanxi 13, Beiyuanmen, in the Muslim Quarter. Antony Batki-Braun

Stop by the Great Mosque to see its intriguing hybrid of Chinese and Islamic design.

Heather Moult

Rent bicycles to cycle your way around the city walls.

Lucy Halvorson

AUDLEY TRAVELER | 41

See you in Xian (clockwise from this) See the Big Wild Goose Pagoda in Xian; Loess Plateau; farmer smoking a pipe in Loess Plateau; army of Terracotta Warriors

City Walls

XIAN

DAY 2

9am

Meet your guide, Rocky, for a vintage 4x4 tour through the farming villages of the nearby Loess Plateaur. Stop off at abandoned cave homes, farming villages emblazoned with Communist propaganda murals, and craft workshops. Watch a master papercutter at work and meet an armourer who has replicated the weapons once carried by the Terracotta Warriors.

Rise like a phoenix Phoenix Pavilion at the Great Mosque in the Muslim Quarter

12pm

Finish your tour with a casual bite to eat in one of the villages – perhaps a juicy roujiamo (a succulent pulled pork burger) at one of Rocky’s go-to cafes.

2pm

Spend the afternoon pottering about central Xian. Wander among its wide-open squares and parks, and visit the triple-storied Ming-era bell and drum towerst.

6pm

Before heading for dinner at one of the restaurants in the Muslim Quarter, take a walk on the city wallsy. Dating back to the 12th-century, they’re punctuated by watchtowers and are illuminated dramatically come nightfall.

TRAVEL ESSENTIALS

Flight information: Direct flights from most major US airports to Beijing take about 14 hours, and Xian is four to six hours on the train from there. When to go: Xian is at its best during China’s temperate spring months (March to May) and in September. July and August see the city swell with domestic visitors, and the first week of October (Golden Week, a public holiday) is also a busy period. Skirt around these times if you’re looking to have a calmer experience. Get me there: An 11-day tailor-made trip to China, including time in Xian, Guilin, Beijing and Shanghai, starts from £4,435pp. For more information, please contact Virginia or one of our China specialists on 1-833-640-8060.

DAQING RD

HUANCHENG WEST ROAD

HUANCHENG WEST ROAD

NORTH SECTION

XIGUAN STRAIGHT

STREET

SOUTH SECTION

WEST ROAD

HUANCHENG

HUANCHENG NORTH ROAD WEST SECTION

WEST STREET

NW 3RD ROAD

QIAOXINKOU

City Walls

Luanhu Park

MUSLIM

QUARTER 3Great

Mosque

WEST STREET

LUANHU ROAD

S GUANGLI ST

HUANCHENG SOUTH ROAD WEST SECTION

6

Drum Tower

NORTH STREET SOUTH STREET

Shaanxi 13

LIANHU

5

NANYUANMEN

XIXIN ST

Bell Tower

HUANCHENG NORTH ROAD EAST SECTION

Revolution Park

WEST 5TH ROAD EAST 5TH ROAD

BAISHULIN

Loess Plateau

XINCHENG

XIAN

EAST STREET SHIYUAN ROAD

City Walls City Walls

4

HUANCHENG SOUTH ROAD EAST SECTION

JIEFANG ROAD

JIEFANGMEN

BAISHULIN

City Walls

TAIHUA S ROAD HUANCHENG EAST ROAD

2

CHANGYING WEST

ROAD

Terracotta

1 Warriors

CHANGLE W ROAD

CHANGLEFANG

Xingqinggong Park

Big Wild Goose Pagoda

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