City Info: Xi'an, Shaanxi Province

Xian most vividly illustrates the continuity of China's long civilization. Once the largest city in the world, Xian served as the capital of 11 dynasties over a period of 1,100 years. It has been described as "the biggest open-air museum in China."

Despite its glorious past, Xian gradually devolved into a midsize textile and manufacturing center in China's heartland. It might have remained so had it not been for the extraordinary discovery of the terracotta army of Emperor Qin Shihuang, the most famous of the Qin emperors. Peasants digging a well in 1974 happened upon the vast underground vault. Archeologists have so far unearthed more than 6,000 life-sized horses and warriors in a tomb the size of a football field, each soldier hand-modeled to resemble the individual members of Qin Shihuandi's army.

Population
6,600,000

Cuisine

Special dish is the Xian Qiao Zi

When to Go
All year around, spring and autumns are the best times to visit.

Airport Info
The city airport, Xiguan is approximately 40 km northwest of Xi'an. China Northwest Airways run a minibus service between the airport and their Xi'an booking center downtown on Laudong Lu. The bus runs every 50 minutes and costs CNY 20/USD 2.4 per person. A taxi to the airport will cost approximately CNY 150/USD 18 per taxi

Accommodations

Main Scenic Spots

Excursion from Xian

Official Websites
(only in Chinese version)
- Shaanxi Municipal Government

Museum
- National Museum of Shanxi History
The buildings house most of the rich art collection previously found in the old provincial museum, which still holds the magnificent Forest of Steles, the largest collection of stone tablets in China. A day easily could be spent viewing the more than 4,000 exhibits dating back to the early Zhou Dynasty. On display are original Tang frescoes never before shown, and remnants of the fine silk fabrics that lured Silk Road traders here from lands as far away as Persia and Europe, along with fine Zhou Bronzes, life-size stone carvings from the Han Dynasty, and the tricolor glazed pottery made famous by the Tang.