The Terracotta Warriors of Xian

          I boarded one of the buses going to the site of the Terracotta Warriors early in the morning.  On the short ride out into the countryside, I immediately met two young globetrotters, Grace from England and Tor from Norway, and we spent a pleasant day together exploring the sights (and we’re now all friends on Facebook!).  The Army of Terracotta Warriors is one of the must-see sights in China and undoubtedly one of the most impressive things that I have seen in my travels throughout the world.  This army of soldiers was built two thousand years ago (210 BC) to guard the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China (shi huang means first emperor).

An Incredible Archeological Find

          Considered one of the greatest archeological finds in the world, it was discovered by accident in 1974 by peasants drilling a well.  There are thought to be about 8,000 warriors in the three pits opened to the public and it is believed that more will be discovered in the future.  Pit 3 is the largest and contains 6,000 soldiers, each individually sculpted and, incredibly, the features of each face are unique.  In addition to soldiers, there are also horses and chariots, each beautifully detailed.  After visiting the site of the Tomb of Qin Shi Huang we caught the next bus heading back to town.  It was a fantastic day and could not have been easier for an independent traveler to do on his own.