Day Five: Monday

We arrived in Xi’an, a small town in central China, at around six in the morning, too early for most of our likings, but it did encourage/ force us to get an early start to the day. We made sure to buy our return tickets first thing to ensure we could get back, and then jumped on the first bus that came our way: springs were missing from the seats and it was at about twice its capacity, but it got us to where we wanted to go.
The Terra Cotta Warriors were one of the highlights of the trip. They are the self-proclaimed Eighth Wonder of the World (but then again, so is Andre the Giant!) Built over 2500 years ago, there are over 6000 life-size warriors, many of which are still being excavated and pieced together. Each of them have different facial features, intricate details, and are equipped with bronze weapons, and were buried to protect the emperor in his next life.
We drove back to Xi’an, where we hoped to find a bus to take us to Huashan, a smaller town and home to what is considered a holy mountain. Our plan was to go to the top of the mountain, where there are cheap hotels with an incredible view and sunrise.
Less than five minutes after arriving, we were herded on to another bus, similar to the ones we had taken previously….only to sit there for an hour and a half while they waited for it to fill up. Eventually, we were on our way, and the trip was rather uneventful…except for the fact that a grown man just couldn’t hold it any longer, took out his *ahem,* and started urinating out the window. Unfortunately for Rob and me (Bec), we were sitting by the window, which, because it was an old bus, didn’t have good seals….we didn’t appreciate the shower we took.
We arrived in Huashan, and, after much work, managed to escape the people “encouraging” us to buy their products, take their taxi, eat their food, or stay in their hotel. We walked the short distance to the cable car that would take us to the top of the mountain, only to find out that there was an exorbitant fee not only for the cable car, but for the privilege of setting foot on the mountain. It was our biggest disappointment of the trip, but we ended up staying at a hotel on the outskirts of town instead.