GetSetJetSet

Posting From: Peninsula Manila, sunburned post-Palawan


I think I made my feelings on PEK T2 clear in an earlier post…it’s kind of a dump. The domestic portion is even worse than the int’l. This got me thinking about how people always go ON and ON about how American airports are terrible while Asia has such wonderful airports, well yeah…most of these people are only familiar with the international arrivals terminal in the flagship airport for the entire country. Is it really surprising that’s nicer than Toledo? I mean sure SFO, LAX and JFK are also terrible, but anyway…T2 domestic departures, not so great.



I DO like departures boards that are filled with places I haven’t been.



I had no checked luggage, because why would anyone check luggage, so I went up to a check-in desk to inquire about a possible upgrade.

This China Southern flight had been scheduled on an A321 when I booked it, but recently had swapped to an A330. I thought perhaps the move to a widebody might allow me to cop a reasonable upgrade to J. The guy behind the counter told me to talk to someone in the ticketing office around the corner. I went back to chat with them, and they informed me I would have to go to another building to ask someone from international ticketing for some reason. At this point, I decided I didn’t want an upgrade that badly, so I said thanks, but no thanks and went back past the check-in area to security.

I’d hoped to be able to grab a coffee after security to pep up a bit, but there was nothing between security and Gate A19 for me except an airline lounge that was not interested in admitting Y pax or Priority Pass Card holders. Sad times. I found a seat near a power outlet at the gate, and tried to ignore the sweltering temperature in the terminal until boarding time.

Today’s flight, my first with China Southern, would be CZ 3173 from PEK to XIY, operated by Airbus A330-200 B-6057, my 15th flight of 2018.



As if often the case with foreign airlines, there was no rhyme or reason to the boarding process, just a mass of humanity pushing and pulling and getting up to the counter as fast as they could, no quarter given to elites here (not that I have any SkyTeam status anyway).

On board, we were looking at a humane 2-4-2 config in coach.



I was too late to the online check-in game to score an exit row seat, but I did manage a window (45A).

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: Peninsula Manila, sunburned post-Palawan

I was still a little groggy when we landed in Xi’an what with the time zones, four flights and no sleep.

I’ve wanted to see the Terracotta warriors for a long time, since this was such a short trip, and I wasn’t 100% sure I was going to be able to take it until close in, I didn’t have time to dig around and find a good deal on a driver/tour guide, or a cheap way to get out to the attraction, so I just set it up through the hotel (Westin). It was a huge rip off pricewise, but at least it was easy.

My guide was waiting for me at arrivals. I asked her if there was anywhere in the terminal to grab a coffee, since I was barely awake, and she directed me to (much to my surprise), a Starbucks. I’ve been all over the world, but still have a tendency to assume secondary or tertiary cities in China won’t have all the western chains, easy to forget that a city like Xi’an, that many westerners haven’t even heard of has roughly the same population as New York City. Crazy.

My guide translated my order, cold brew, and I was informed they didn’t actually have it. China, nice. So I settled for a hot black coffee with some ice dumped in it. My guide asked if I would mind if she scanned her phone to get the loyalty points for the purchase, I let her have at it.

The drive from XIY out to the soldiers is about 1 hour depending on traffic.



During the ride out, the guide gave me some helpful info about the history of the city of Xi’an and the Emperor that commissioned the soldiers. If anyone wants the history lesson, let me know, and I’ll add it in a later post.

Once we arrived, the place was mobbed. Apparently it had been worse the previous week during a Chinese holiday. My guide whisked me along the tourist trap trail. The first stop was, to see the farmer who allegedly found the first soldiers in 1974 while digging a well in his field. I played along and overpaid for his book, which he signed before taking a picture with me, then bought some similarly overpriced miniature soldiers to give people as gifts.

Next was a queue to buy tickets, then a queue to enter the park itself. Once inside, it was about a five minute walk to the first pit. There are three pits that have been excavated, or partially excavated. The first, largest and by far most impressive opened in 1979. A second opened in the 80’s, featuring terracotta generals and some bros with chariots. There is a 3rd, not particularly interesting pit that I believe is a work in progress.

The going is slow, because the soldiers were all found in pieces, and it’s a painstaking process to put everything back where it belongs. Some of this can be seen in the back of pit one.



Beyond the Herculean task of finding and reassembling all of these guys from bits, the haste with which the initial soldiers were uncovered caused the paint they were adorned with to fade, so we all see images of terracotta, clay colored soldiers and assume that’s how they originally were. Apparently, this is not the case, so further excavations are being carried out in a way that will preserve the color. Perhaps new pits will open in the future with more colorful warriors. Without further pontificating, here’s what you came to see. Again, I didn’t want to overdo it, but if you want more pictures of the soldier, chime in and I will post more downthread.











I expected to be BLOWN AWAY by the terracotta warriors. While they were impressive, it was not the amazing experience I thought it would be. I am glad I came to Xi’an to see them, and it was interesting, informative and they are very impressive looking in person, but it just doesn’t have that WOW factor that some attractions do. Also, beyond the scale of the first pit, the other two were pretty lacking and the entire place can be seen surprisingly quickly. I still recommend checking it out, but adjust your expectations. It’s more of a neat thing to see, than something to come to China specifically for.

ironmanjt

Thanks for the super timely post! I'll be in Xi'an in two weeks and appreciate it. Can't wait to see your thoughts on (a) the Westin and (b) and better "way" you could have done the warriors.

GetSetJetSet

I should get to a full post on the Westin soon, but it was a very pleasant place to stay. I have low level SPG status, but they bumped me up a room class and gave me club access. It's right across from the Big Wild Goose Pagoda which is pretty neat. In the old town you can easily see the Bell & Drum Towers, the old city walls, stroll around the Muslim Quarter and get some Pao Mao (I have a restaurant reco for you) the same day as you go to the soldiers. The only "better" suggestions I would have, would be to contact some local tour companies. I am sure many of them can do it for a fraction of the rip off price I got from the Westin.

offerendum

Surprised about your warrior-experience. Sad it wasn´t more momorable.

GetSetJetSet

No worries, it was still really neat and I'm glad I went. Not like Xi'an was the primary focus of this trip anyway, it was just a quick detour before things got rolling. Not everything can be the Pyramids.

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: AAdmirals Club YYZ, awaiting final flight back to NYCAfter finishing up at the soldiers, I decided to stop in to the hotel to drop my bags in the room and take a quick shower before heading out to explore Xi’an. It was around noon at this point, but I hoped that I would be able to check in.The ride from the soldiers back to the hotel took around about an hour. The Westin is located in a very nice part of the city. Much of the environs look newly built, and it’s roughly a 15-20 minute drive to the old downtown core.Entrance.My tour guide was desperate to add me on WeChat, saying she had a friend who would give me a tour of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda across the street for free, so I told her wait while I checked in, connected to WiFi and downloaded WeChat.The nice girl at the desk, noted my low level SPG status (Gold from having an AMEX Plat) and told me that they were able to upgrade me as a result. She went on to say that there’s a club at the Xi’an Westin. I asked if I had access to it, and she told me she would comp me access this trip. Nice.With the key cards in hand, I went up to the room to check out a map and decide what exactly I wanted to see in the afternoon. I was a big fan of the room. The bed was comfortable, the desk/sitting area came in handy, and the bathtub was plenty deep. In case it hasn’t become apparent yet, I am a BIG fan of bathtubs, and the tub or lack thereof will be discussed in every future hotel post.After going out to explore the city, which will be addressed in subsequent posts, I stopped into the club during cocktail hour. There were decent food and beverage offerings, and the view from the club of the Pagoda across the street is pretty nice.The following morning, I woke up early, likely thanks to the jetlag and went down to breakfast, which was included in my rate.That’s a horrible picture, but there was a pretty excellent breakfast spread and lots of unintentional entertainment from Chinese tourists staying in the hotel. Apparently they thought breakfast buffet meant “stock my house with food for a month for free.” I watched one guy show up with SEVERAL Tupperware containers. He took close to 20 hard-boiled eggs, packing them in one after the other until the container could take no more. Then he moved on to the pastry table and filled another piece of plastic to the gills, next he plundered the sushi platter. One container after another filled to the hilt then dropped into his bag. Objectively it was pretty disgusting behavior, but I was amused. Sadly I didn’t get a video of him or any of the other breakfast bandits in action.Outside the breakfast room there are some weird terrariums with what I presume are local flora and fauna.The hotel also had a surprisingly well appointed gym, with a good selection (for a hotel gym) of weights and cardio equipment.I was very satisfied with my stay at the Westin. The location was very pleasant, with parks, restaurants and bars nearby. The Westin is also still close enough to all the attractions in the center. The room was comfortable and spacious. The gym, restaurants and other facilities were up to standard, and the concierge was very helpful in assisting me in orienting my tourism plans and finding transport into the center. I would stay here on a return trip to Xi’an without hesitation.

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: YYZ AAdmirals Club waiting on final flight home to NYCIt was around lunchtime. I was only in Xi’an for one night, so I had a limited amount of meals to have there. In my pre-trip research, it seemed that Paomo was the most unique and typical dish in the Shaanxi cuisine that Xi’an is known for. Since I wasn’t sure I would end up having dinner at all, and I was departing for Hong Kong in the morning, it would have to be Paomo for lunch.Paomo is an odd soup dish. The restaurant gives you bread, that you then tear up into tiny pieces. Once you’re finished ripping up your bread, they take your bowl away, fill it with lamb broth, noodles and a little bit of lamb meat and bring it back to you with some fixings on the side that you can add to taste.My limited google searching turned up Tong Sheng Xiang as one of the best spots in Xi’an for Paomo. It also happened to be right in the center of the old city, near the Drum Tower, Bell Tower, Muslim Quarter and City Walls, so it seemed like the ideal place to have lunch before getting down to sightseeing.I grabbed a metered cab in front of the hotel, and as you can see it was very gangster. The driver is separated from the passenger by jail cell style bars. My driver was wearing aviators, white gloves and ripping cigs the entire drive.The Bell Tower is located in the exact center of the city, surrounded by a traffic roundabout.Col. Cabby, motioned to one side of the Tower and said something in Mandarin, presumably to indicated the restaurant I was trying to get to was on that side, then he pulled over on the other side, because he didn’t want to go around. China.To traverse the roundabout, there’s a Soviet style underpass that has exits on various corners as well as a way up to the Bell Tower itself (more on that later).I correctly guessed which corner I wanted to pop out on. The only problem is that all of the restaurant names are only in Chinese characters, and I had no idea where in this complex the restaurant was located.Luckily, before leaving the Westin, I asked the concierge to write the name of the restaurant down for me in Chinese characters. I showed the paper to various merchants as I worked my way across the shopping plaza, and finally found Tong Sheng Xiang. It looks like this from the outsideThat’s not very helpful, since you have to go into a building and take the elevator to the 3rd floor to get to the restaurant itself. I advise the paper and ask people method.It was around 1:45pm by this point. The restaurant closes from 2:30pm until 5pm, in between Lunch and Dinner. It was already emptying out when I arrived. This party was the only group in the main room, although there were other people in the private rooms around the exterior of the main dining room.

GetSetJetSet

Con't

The menu is only in Chinese, and the waitresses only speak Mandarin. I don’t read Chinese or speak Mandarin, and they looked very puzzled that a random white guy was sitting in their restaurant. After a lot of laughing, smiling and attempted hand gestures, one of the waitresses said “Paomo?” I shook my head yes, but still wasn’t sure she understood.

She did. She returned with an empty bowl and some hard bread and pantomimed to me to rip it up. She didn’t think I understood, and came back with a plate of ripped up bread, to show me what to do. Of course, I’d already done my research, so I was prepared and got to work.



The thing with Paomo is to rip the bread into very small pieces. I wanted to get it right of course, so I went on ripping and ripping. It takes a long time to rip that much hard bread into small bits. Finally, it was done.



The waitress took my bowl, and returned shortly thereafter with the soup and the fixings. She showed me how to add everything, and lunch was served.



Paomo, as I said is an odd soup. The bread soaks up almost all of the broth, so you’re eating soggy bread with some meat on top more than you’re really eating a soup or a stew. Despite that description, which I’m sure doesn’t sound tremendously appealing, it was pretty tasty. Definitely worth trying if you find yourself in Xi’an.

By the time I finished, the restaurant was totally empty, and I felt bad keeping them, so I paid for the Paomo and tipped the waitress 30 or so RMB which was my leftover change from the cashier. She seemed perplexed at the concept of receiving a tip, and tried to give me the $ and indicate it was my change. I tried to explain I was giving it to her as a tip, and she seemed confused but grateful, then insisted on accompanying me to the elevator and ringing it for me before saying goodbye.

Off to the streets of Xi’an.

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: AAmirals Club YYZ…still. Barely awake.

The Drum Tower looked pretty neat from the outside, but I didn’t expect much from the interior.





I bought a combo ticket entitling me to enter the Drum Tower and the Bell Tower, assuming (rightly) that I’d make it over to the Bell Tower at some point before going back to the hotel.

After climbing the steps to the main level of the Drum Tower there were (GASP) a bunch of drums. Completely unexpected.



There was some sort of exhibition going on in the main interior space, but all of the information was in Chinese, so I have no clue what it was about. The ceiling was nice though.



I continued upwards and found a pretty good view of the Bell Tower.



None of this was particularly exciting, and I could see into the bustling streets of the Muslim Quarter from the Drum Tower, so I figured the best course of action was the climb down and get on with it. Later Drum Tower. See it for completeness I guess, but don’t expect much.

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: Good old New York, NY

With the Drum Tower ticked off, I went downstairs and set off for the busy streets of the muslim quarter. If I wasn’t still extremely full of Paomo, I would have been tempted to try some of the sundry fare on offer at the stands lining every street.





I spent a solid 30-45 minutes strolling through the streets, and the bazaar before finding myself back on one of the main arteries. Since the Bell Tower was directly in front of me, and I’d already paid for a ticket, I figured what the heck.

To access the tower, you have to go back to the underpass system. You head directly for the middle. After a ticket check and some stairs, you emerge on the island in the middle of the roundabout.



The Bell Tower was basically the Drum Tower but will a big bell instead of a bunch of drums. Needless to say I didn’t linger.

From here I walked towards the city walls and took some snaps.





I didn’t have time to spend the hours it takes to walk the miles of city wall, so I proceeded out the main gate and into the more modern part of Xi’an. A nice river surrounds the old city walls.



I will tell you one thing about Xian at rush hour. It’s not the easiest place to find a taxi.

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: New York, NY

The previous day, I ran out of gas. The long journey to China, the early wakeup, it all hit me around 5 or 6pm, and I didn’t make it to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda on Day 1. Luckily, the pagoda was literally across the street from the Westin, and my flight to Hong Kong wasn’t until ~3pm.

After breakfast, and a morning lift, I showered, finished packing up, dressed and went across the street to tick this final Xi’an box on my agenda. You can see the pagoda even before you cross the street from the hotel. It’s a very neat looking structure. I won’t go into the history here, unless someone wants it. If so, please post at me, and I’ll address it downthread.





You have to pay a fee to enter the complex the pagoda is located in. There are various Buddhist shrines and stone carvings. Then, once you get to the pagoda, you have to pay another fee and get a different ticket to go inside and climb to the top.

It wasn’t horribly crowded inside, so the ascent went fairly quickly. This is only one view, but you can look out windows pointing in different directions to get similarly great views of Xi’an facing other ways.



I really enjoyed the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. The entire complex was pleasant, the interior had some small exhibits, and the views from the top were great. I would say this was definitely a more worthwhile endeavor than the Bell & Drum Towers.

On the way out I stopped and lit candles for my Brother and Grandmother



Then it was back to the Westin to chill for a few minutes, make SURE everything had been packed and then grab a taxi for the very long ride out to the airport.

Later PRC, time for DAT HONG KONG SAR!

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: New York, NY

From the Westin to XIY, the drive is about an hour. It was longer than I’d expected, so I was glad I left early and had plenty of leeway.

I thanked the taxi driver, grabbed my bags and was into the terminal



The check-in area at XIY looks great, but it gets worse airside. You’ll see.

I found the Cathay Dragon check-in counters and quickly grabbed my boarding pass.



Immigration and security were both a breeze. How often do you say that about a Chinese airport?

Once I was airside, the only lounge option was the not so aptly named “First Class Lounge.”



Aside from the tree of life in the middle of the room



It was decidedly not “first class.” The food offerings were anemic and looked sad, the chairs were not particularly comfortable and there were no power ports. Luckily it was not long before it was time to stroll through the mostly barren terminal for boarding.

Today we would be flying on an Airbus A330-300 registration B-HLI done up in the new maroon Cathay Dragon livery.



Boarding started about 10 minute late, no big deal.

The seats on this KA A330 are the same as the CX regional seats (2-2-2 config), as they have synched their products up nicely.



Good old 11K



I can’t say these are my favorite seats in the world, and they don’t give the traveler a TON of room to sprawl out.



The business cabin on this flight, KA 943, was extremely empty. Initially there was a woman seated next to me. I asked the FA if it was going to be an empty flight. She said yes. Since there was going to be enough space for everyone to have their own set of two seats, my seatmate adjourned to row 10.

Once installed there, she swiveled around, leaned over the seat and tried to make conversation, asking if I was also going to London, which I thought was a bit odd, since I am not British and this was a flight from Xi’an to Hong Kong. She then asked WHERE I was going, if not London, and I told her that I was going to Hong Kong, as this was a flight to Hong Kong.

She asked what I’d be in Xi’an for, and I confided that my primary reason for visiting the city had been to see the Terracotta Warriors. She was tickled by this and told me she TOO had come as a tourist to see the warriors. OH WHAT A COINCIDENCE! She was nice enough.

GetSetJetSet

Con't

I know my audience, and if there’s one thing the trip report board seems to enjoy more than pictures of airplanes and airplane seats, it’s airplane menus and food, so here we goooooooo













I had the stir fried beef with some spicy chili sauce added and it was pretty excellent. The Hong Kong style milk tea and ice cream was a nice way to finish.

During the flight, I watched Hostiles with Christian Bale. It was excellent. I highly recommend it either on a plane, or sitting in your living room, definitely worth a shot.

Flight time was somewhere around 2.5 hours. We were finally feet dry and about to land in Asia’s world city and one of my all time favorite places in the world. I was VERY excited to be back in Hong Kong. We even landed 20 minutes early.

GetSetJetSet

Posting From: New York, NY

Hong Kong Day 1. I was off the plane quickly, and on my way to immigration. The line wasn’t terrible, and very quickly I was through the border and on my way to the airport express. I thought about withdrawing more $, but there was a massive queue at the ATM after customs, so I passed. I had put enough HKD for a one-way airport express ticket in my jacket before leaving Xi’an.

24 minutes from HKG to Central. You cannot beat the ease, convenience and comfort of the airport express train. I was counting the seconds until arrival.



My flight landed a little before 8pm. This was already my third day in Asia, so I was pretty well adjusted to the time. My girlfriend had taken the Cathay direct from JFK, 16 hours in coach (god bless her), and arrived at 2pm that afternoon.

As per the txts I received, she checked us into the hotel (The Pottinger), and talked them into a free 1-class upgrade to a slightly bigger room, a room with a bathtub. With that accomplished, she passed out.

I come to Hong Kong 3-4 times/year to visit friends. This would be my girlfriend’s first time meeting this crew. I woke her up when I got to the hotel, and we both showered and got ready before heading up the street to the LKF to meet everyone at our favorite lousy dive bar, Stormies.

It was 9 or 10pm when we got there, both of us surprisingly awake and in good spirits given all the travel. My friends in HKG are degenerate alcoholics. One of them has a shot named after her at the bar, so as you can imagine, the night quickly spiraled out of control and out of focus. Always great to be back in HKG.