Night train just as gross as anticipated again but at least only 15hrs this time. I got the bottom bunk which was prime positioning for random children to try to climb on me when they got confused about which bed their mum was in!! We decided fairest way was to rotate bed locations so we all get one train journey in the “coffin” (top bunk). I obviously did my research and offered to do the last leg to Beijing immediately which others thought was really noble. Clearly no one else bothered to work out this was also the shortest possible route where we get on at 10pm and off at 6am! Fools!

Another shocking excuse for sleep, maybe 1hr or so in total. Bunks right above a squeaky set of wheels, get some WD40 on there for christ sake lads!!! So shattered when we got off. Following gross vomit fiasco we worked out a couple of us have had about 12hrs sleep in 4 days! Zombie doesn’t even cover it…..

Met Lei Lei, our new tour guide at the train station. Super fabulous bloke who’s life’s ambition seemed to be to find a job which involved holding a flag! He swished the dragon trip logo through the streets like he was in a baton twirling championship! He’s a total sweetheart and affectionately refers to us as “angels”. Only slight anomaly was the mate he bought along to join us for 3 days of this chunk of the trip. “Hoop” is a 50 odd year old bloke who looks a bit Yewtree and has worn double denim every day….but nothing about this place surprises me anymore! We boarded the bus an pretended it was normal.

 

Listened to traditional Chinese chorus of disgusting locals hack up the contents of their lungs and spit them on the floor of the bus around our feet #canyousaySARS

Arrived at the hostel which is within the city walls of Xi’an, really sweet little place, very traditional, lucky given the array of hostels we passed on route…including “golden shower hostel”…so really could’ve been much worse!!

Got to the Lobby only to be told we were in a shared dorm again. After fiasco in Chengdu put my foot down and decided along with Annick to upgrade to a private room, I would pay £15 for distance from the militant trade unionist vegetarian vomit-er literally EVERY day of the week! Think it sent a clear message that we are still not amused!

Really like Xi’an on the whole. It has a really authentic traditional feel whilst still feeling vibrant and cosmopolitan. The balance between old and new can be found everywhere from the food to the architecture.

We had some lunch and headed to the city walls to get a birds eye view of the city. Nothing within the walls can be more than 10m higher than the wall itself so walking the walls gives a great perspective. It’s 14km to loop the whole thing, Sophie and I decided against cycling and went for an amble instead. She has a chest infection and I have a small amount of dignity to maintain so we both thought walking was the best option. Had a chat with a very eager to please Lei Lei who was excited to have us as his first solo trip in 6 weeks of working for the dragon trip.

Miraculously the sun has decided to join us here, so we walked 6km or so and decided we had earned a frosty beer. Sat on the veranda of the Hostel and waited for the others.

Headed out to see the biggest light and water show in Asia at the Golden Pagoda in town. Had to navigate the bus system by ourselves….bit of a nightmare but meant we got to see some hidden bits of the city whilst we desperately searched for the mythical 609 bus stop!

 

Show was free and very impressive. Other entertainment highlights were jobsworth security guard who swore at a 5 year old and blew a whistle in his face for sitting on the ledge. Fuses also starting to spark amongst rest of group about true feelings towards the vomiter. Its all very drama drama. But makes for interesting viewing regardless.

 

Think beds in hostel must double up as concrete paving slabs on the day as I think idve slept better standing upright the shower than on that! So hard! Also helped by room being above nightclub kareoke night. Chinese woman murdering maroon 5 at 1am! Not sure if she was at a “payphone” or on her “way home”?!?!

Wednesday was unmissable visit to the see the Terracotta Warriors. As Xi’ans most famous landmark we were expecting a conveyor belt of tourists but was surprisingly quiet. Had a great morning marvelling at them all. Really is very fascinating. Watched the world’s most boring video which tried desperately to suck most of the enjoyment out of it!

Excavation is very manic and has resulted in lots being damaged and poor preservation techniques mean oxidisation has destroyed all the colour. Regardless it is striking to see so many thousands lined up in perfect rows, testament to what can be achieved when you forcibly imprison the entire population of a city to work slave labour for 40 years!!!

Got some time to top up the tans on the lawn outside the museum and headed back to the hostel for some free time and to stock up on toys for our visit to the Star Sun House Special needs school.  Particularly interesting for me given my current career thoughts. Strikingly different attitude to special needs and disability here means the majority of these children are abandoned at birth or shortly after their needs become apparent. Really is heartbreaking to see. Place was full of beautiful children who were full of fun and just wanted to play.

Had a really wonderful time. The poverty is very apparent and the lack of funding they receive is appalling, all the staff are selfless volunteers who care for the children all of whom live there. Really wished there was more we could’ve done than just bring bubbles, toys, draw pictures and dance with them for a couple hours. Majestic you realise how fortunate we are in the UK to have a far more open minded attitude towards children with complex needs.

Headed to the Muslim quarter for food and more tacky souvenir shopping. Celebrity status in full swing as always, locals fascinated by westerners who obviously don’t venture out in the towns very often. 5 people asked for pictures with me this time, so we are getting good at just playing along as everyone is very nice on the whole. Lovely to see the city lit up at nighttime, it is a really beautiful place – one of my favourites in China so far. #minimalcontest

Off to the mountains to become a kung-fu master for the next couple days, via stinky 6hrs coach obviously! So I’ll keep you updated on if I find my calling, Karate Kid stylee! Xx