Saturday, April 10
I had two stories to share with you from yesterday before I share with you today’s adventures. One occurred on the wall encircling Xian and the other at the Museum of History. One of the administrators I have met here is a young man from Wisconsin. He is assistant principal at Hudson High School, located in Hudson, WI. I was born in Hudson in 1959 so naturally I figured this guy to be pretty cool and even better; he resides in the Great State of Minnesota. He is about the same size as I am and we decided to ride bicycles around the City Wall (approximately 12 - 14 miles) on one of those tandem bikes. You know, the two-person kind. Well, in hindsight that would have been fine for Lori and I, but it was not such a good idea for Mr. Scott Huffman and I! I did though relay my concerns to him prior to riding because the bike did not have balloon tires and there was going to be some serious stress put on the poor rims. We made it about two thirds of the way around and them we had to pedal fast to go up an incline. Well we got our speed up, landed our jump and them the back rim was stressed and that was the sudden end of our Hoosier-Badger tandem bike experience. Then, when we had our single bikes, one of my pedals came off and two other principals had to push me! Mr. Murphy’s Law had struck me…. twice, in China.
The second experience from yesterday that I did not mention was that Mr. Huffman and I met a large group of students from a high school in Xian at the museum. They were a great bunch of kids and we enjoyed talking to them about many of the things the PUMA students talk about when they are Skyping our friends at Mrs. Guan’s Second Experimental School in Changchun City, (where I will be at during the week of April 17). I will have to get the name of the school from Mr. Huffman and I will attempt to send you some of the pictures we took. It sure was a neat experience.
Today, April 10th was an exceptional day. The day began with a light
breakfast and then we had three visits: to a pottery factory where they hand make Terra Cotta Warrior replicas, musical instruments, Jade figures and exotic woodworking. There are very few workers but their craftsmanship is spectacular. We watched as the workers carved each clay figure, wet sand furniture or work a loom while they made a blanket. The PUMA STAFF wanted to get a gift for the students of Helfrich Park to be permanently displayed at school. That gift will be a hand made set of some of the Terra Cotta Warriors, a horse and a statue of the Emperor. Students, be sure to thank all of the PUMA staff for this school gift!
Following our trip to the pottery we went to the Huatang Hot Springs. The first emperor made this area to be a place where he could be after he was pushed westward by opposing armies. There is one pool in the complex that dates back 3,000 years! The springs are built at the foot of a mountain and are fed partially by waters that empty into the Yellow River on this side of the mountain. Streams and other water flow on the other side of the mountain empty into the Yangtze River (like what occurs at the Continental Divide in the United States). Emperors were not the only people that used the springs. In the 20th century one of Mao’s former allies that turned to be his enemy lived there awhile before he was captured. There are still bullet holes in window and in the walls from the final capture in the mid 1940s. There were five buildings to this General’s compound that consisted of his room, office, secretary’s office, a dining area and a room for his bodyguards.
Finally we went to the Terra Cotta Warrior Museum. All I can say is what an incredible archeological find this was. In fact, this is known as the 8th Wonder of the World (and would Mr. Nelson love to see this unbelievable exhibit). The Terra Cotta Warriors were commissioned to be made by the first Emperor of China (around 221 B.BC.) who became Emperor at age 13 but only lived until he was fifty because he was poisoned. He believed that he would live after death and wanted an army to protect him. Chinese officials believe that there were 8,000 clay soldiers made, along with horses and weapons for his tomb, which is located 1.5 km east of the Emperor’s Mountain. Two farmers digging a well found the warriors in 1974. Can you imagine?! In fact, another of the school gifts will be a book about the warriors autographed by the only surviving farmer that found the artifacts. The museum is actually five buildings with three of the buildings built over the actual tombs where the warriors are. The area the museum and the walkway area sits on is at least 15 times bigger than all of the Roberts Stadium parking area, if not larger! Today was not a “busy” day and I would estimate that at least 20,000 people visited. It was breathtaking and I have many pictures to share. To be in the buildings covering actual tomb sites that date back to time before Christ was born (over 2010 years!) and even being able to smell the dirt is really indescribable.
Following our busy day we had dinner at a restaurant that was where the people in the city would normally eat, nothing fancy. The meal was very good and consisted of a few different types of noodles (some long, some like ravioli but without the inside stuffing), a variety of vegetables and some other local cuisine. Again, everything was pretty and a couple of the dishes one would have to develop a taste for.
I hope the PUMAS worked hard in the classroom and followed the Simple Six daily.
