China Day 6

After breakfast we drove to the Western Gate of the Xizn wall and walked on the immense wall up to the Southern Gate. Disappointed in that the Chinese regulations do not allow people over 60 to ride bikes on the wall! The massive wall is still in wonderful  condition and encircles the whole of the ancient city.

We then walked to the Muslin quarter which was again an incredible experience. The streets were lined with an extraordinary number and variety of  food shops with Muslim culture foods- pastries, sheep's heads, goats hoofs, etc. We arranged to meet Tim Topper for lunch and had a great time with him.

Final visit in Xian was to the mausoleum of Emperor Hanglangling which is like a mini version of the terracotta warriors. It is underground and the figures, horses, chariots are all in smaller scale. The museum is set upsoyouwalkover the excavation pits on glass panels - quite an experience.

Off to the station to catch another very fast train to Tianshui - a city of only about 3 million. This is where the real silk road section of our trip starts and we are off the tourist track well and truly. We've had an amazing reception from the locals- very friendly, want to take photos of us, very helpful and lots of "hello" and "welcome" calls. We feel like celebrities. 

Another lovely meal - select your ingredients a bit like hotpot but then they cook it all and bring it to your a bowl. Again, so friendly and helpful. The owner even took a video of us!