Xian, China (Part II)

In addition to our trip, apart from checking out all the historical landmarks and places, Cynthia took us for some quick stops at local factories to see some China made goods. These materials used are somewhat familiar in almost every part of the world... =)

Silk Factory



Silk worm eggs...

that can be stretched up to that size!
Trust me, it was stretchy and definitely un-pokeable.

More silk worm eggs being cleaned and processed.

This was the part where the silk was pulled & stretched
to become China made products.

Pearl Factory


That oyster contained more than 1 pearl, 13 - 15 pieces in it!


Pretty big ones will go straight behind the glass counter for us girls to choose..

Jade Factory


Jade under the spotlight, mesmerizing..

Raw materials before turning into pretty jades!

We learned that the lighter colour ones, are pricier. So, don't think the coloured jades cost more than the lighter ones! ;)

Fa Men Temple






Yup, it was super cold that day.

Local Park



Us girls ever posing in every way we can, with or without props.. ;)

In front of the musical fountain

Us with Cynthia, the tour guide

The 2nd highlight of my trip...
Muslim Street!!!


Drum Tower

The view of the Muslim Street

The art of making this sweet dessert where in malay we call it 'gula tarik', literally means 'sugar pull'??? heheh..well, click to see the above photos, where she repeatedly pulled the sugary dough, again and again and again, until it became so threadly fine as below...

Fine art? Yums!
The filling was filled with nuts surrounded by sweetness.


According to dad, the people above were some of the ethnic minorities of Chinese Muslims living in Xian.

Some minorities like the photo taken above, looked like some Turkish people; slightly fairer, bigger eyes and looked abit mixed whereas the Muslim Hui people that i took with one below...

looked like the other Han people in Xian, except she was wearing the scarf. =)
Nice old lady...

Later on, i saw this interesting stall cooking up some yummy stuffs...


The ingredients..The filling..The cooking

The many customers waiting...

Sizzles!

More food?

Well, we found a place for good halal food in the midst of the Muslim Street. It was a 3 storey restaurant and very packed! We were lucky enough to get seats on the 3rd floor itself. =)

Here was the order of our last night in Xian!

Spinach
Grilled spicy lamb
Ox tongue
Chicken with black sauce
Spicy prawns

After consuming vegetables for 4 days, lunch and dinner, i was so happy when i had my tummy filled with these goodness on the last day! All the dishes were so good and tasty, well minus the ox tongue as it was a cold dish...but the rest were absolutely yummy! The dishes were nicely cooked, not overly salty but just nice. The grilled lamb and spinach were my fave! Love love... =)

Final & Part III of Xian, China post will be up later tonight!
Overview of what the culture is like.
Do check it out ya!

=D

Luv luv!!!

Photos by Nurvia Ooi & Farhah

Xian, China

OK PEOPLE!!
Are you ready for my China post?! Here we go...!
...

It was 3 weeks ago when i went to Xian, which is the capital of the Shaanxi province and one of the oldest cities in China (Sourced from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xi'an). It was a 5 day trip guided by a local tour guide, Cynthia, where she took us around the South, West, North and East of Xian for a very historic trip and learning process.

Get ready to feast your eyes with the snapshots!

XIAN, CHINA
18 - 23 October 2010

KL International Airport
(KLIA)


Together with my sister-in-law & brother

Up up and away!!!

It was a tour of about 18 of us, families and friends, where we pushed off early in the morning from KLIA, traveling for 4 hours and transited in Guang Zhou awhile before leaving for Xian for another 2 hours flight journey. Reaching Xian airport, we took another 1 hour plus bus ride into the city of Xian. It was already night time when we reached our hotel, Skytel Hotel, smacked right in the middle of the city. Tired or not, I took the opportunity to join my dad & his friends for a cool, night walk along the streets of the city.

Streets of Xian


The morning view at 8.30am

Fitting in with the locals

Pancake rolls and sweet cookies


Huaqing Palace




A sketch of the Emperor and his favourite concubine



China is all about dragons, high walls
& potentially tall girls? haha..

China is also all about kung-fu, oriental architectures
& concubine wannabes? haha!!

Yes, fyi, that's me in the red traditional chinese outfit. =P

Hua Shan
(Mountains)


2 hours drive from the city, worth the journey..
great mountain view!!!


With brother & eating sweet potatoes with sister in law

Come hug me on this mountain!!!


The highlight of my trip...
Terracotta Army


The vast land solely for the Terracotta Army Museum

Check out the many local tourists and foreigners visiting this place

more than 8,000 statues...

and the archeologists are still digging for more buried statues.


each one with different features and sizes

the girl who was excited about it all!!!
History rocks!

The final pit where more to be dugged out!




'Chow' toufu..(literally translated as 'smelly' toufu)

Check out the orange sun!!!

Part II of Xian, China in the next post!

Luv Luv!

Photos by Nurvia Ooi