We left Beijing behind after breakfast for the airport. Xian, pronounced Shea-an, is one of the oldest cities in China and one of the one of Four Great Ancient Capitals of China with more than 3100 years of history. It is the home of the eastern terminus of the Silk Road and home to the Terra Cotta Warriors, which we are planning to visit.
We hopped on a plane and arrived to warmer weather than we experienced in Beijing. The trade off was pollution. Lots of it, and unaccustomed to it.
We managed to gather enough of us together to head out to celebrate New Years Eve. We found a bar called O'Henry's, after getting a little off course and calling in the assistance of some pedestrians, but after one beer realized it was too expensive so we went off in search of another. No. 1 Bar was next, and it was completely vacant. After 9 of us piled in, we were pretty sure the owners called everyone they knew exclaiming 9 westerners were there.
We broke out some Uno Jenga and started playing, with the sounds of very bad karaoke in the bar. The room began to fill, and beers were cheap. One lady assisted us in Uno and showed off her mad skills with patience and balance of bricks...."you take a block from the middle and you put it on top, and it teeters and it totters and it just won't stop..." The smoke in the room also began to fill and we ended up leaving before midnight. We walked to the City Wall, where a Drum and Bell Tower were located in the center fully illuminated with lights and stood by to watch and listen to the celebrations. We soon watched floating lanterns rising in celebration. Eventually off went the fireworks and a fountain became illuminated in fire as a band played on. It was quite the spectacle for a city that apparently doesn't celebrate traditional calendar new year.
Made our way back to the hotel for a much needed shower and bed. It sure is handy to have a hotel within walking distance of party and bar central. Time to take on some warriors tomorrow!
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