For first time visitors to China, Beijing, Shanghai and Xian are three options which most visited and must-see cities for tourists to visit China. If you want to enjoy ancient atmosphere and historical sites in China then a tour to Xian and Beijing will be ideal. But on the other hand, if you want some other feeling of modern China then Beijing and Shanghai could be the best combination. 

Since I did interest with the underground mysterious tomb of Terracotta Army then after Beijing trip, my family and I, we decided to continue our trip to Xian, ancient capital of China. So, our stories start in the early morning each day began in Beijing. A first visit in Beijing to the Great Wall was interesting. We arrived at the wall at around 10:00am to soon begin our strenuous hike up the side of the hills. Some parts of Mutianyu section of Great Wall were so steep, make sure to wear comfortable hiking shoes while hiking the Wall.

Mutianyu Great Wall in Winter

The scenery was picturesque and breathtaking. In total we hiked for just over one and half hours till head back to the foot of the Wall and looking for some souvenirs. Lots of small stores on the foot of the Wall sell Chinese handicrafts, clothes, t-shirt, unique souvenirs etc. If in Beijing, there has Great Wall then in Xian, there has Terracotta Army. The reasons why I came to China which are visit both magnificent places.

Image of Terracotta Warriors

A trip to Xian began right after we spent 3 days in Beijing explored must visit historical sites in the capital. Right after we arrived at Xian, the first destination that we preferred to visit surely Terracotta Army. As UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of China's most popular attractions, Terracotta Army is one of the best things to do in Xian. We did saw amazing large tomb with hundreds of terracotta sculptures in life size with different postures and figure details. It was such an interesting and amazing fact since it was built in ancient times of China without modern skill and equipments.

Overall, I am so glad we could make it, visit two famous historical sites of China. In addition, we also found lots of interesting facts about China as well as got great memories back home.

During 4 days tour to Xian, my vacation from Dubai to Xian actually not complete. The time that we spent in ancient capital city was short enough and the time goes too fast. From my short experience, we can discover real unique views of all customs, traditions, culture as well as the people life style there. Besides famous attractions in town such as, Terracotta Warriors, Xian City Wall, some museums, Bell and Drum Tower etc, we also could taste authentic food and snacks in Xian.

Apart from a great and unforgettable visit to Terracotta Warriors, a short trip toXian City Wall in the afternoon was nice and relaxing. Above the Wall, there offer so many things to do and love. Climb up and down the stairs to the watch towers. Rent a bicycle and circumnavigate the wall. Have sightseeing above the Wall to surroundings.

Old Building of Xian City Wall

With one day Xian City wall and Terracotta Warriors tour, we did know about the basic introduction of both famous attractions in Xian. Our guide who accompanied us was friendly and informative. She answered all my questions about Xian clearly. A short tour with organized itinerary and transportation guaranteed. It did make us spent less of time visit both places.

Actually, we had other mission in Xian, it is more important than the Terracotta Warriors on my itinerary. In fact we picked our hotel based on its proximity to the Muslim Quarter in order to have brunch and dinner there every day. As one of the largest Muslim community in China, Xian offers its wide ranges of Muslim snacks and authentic dishes.

Tasting Snack of Chinese Muslim Flavor

In Muslim quarter, visitors can have a wide look for authentic flavors of Muslim dishes as well as lot of Muslim clothes, religion and unique atmosphere The Muslim Quarter is different from the rest of Xian because there offer unique atmosphere and one of my favorite places in Xian. Xian's Muslim Quarter is widely known among Chinese travelers as a foodie mecca, where 1,500 years of cultural fusion with the Middle East has produced some of China's greatest peasant dishes and street snacks.

The Muslim Quarter was a very lively environment. There were so many different people, fabrics, toys, clothes and other things from different parts of Asia. It was fun walking through the markets to see different things that we could find. I found the culture that really interesting to see, Chinese cultures but also influenced by Muslim culture. All in all, I think visiting Xian was totally worth it.

From our trip to Beijing, we continue my tour in China to Guilin with my friends. From my first day in Beijing visited the great Great Wall till the second day did visit palace, ancient garden as well as sacred sacrificial altars in Beijing till had the flight to Guilin. Guilin was my second city after Beijing that I visited during that trip.

Small Town Nearby, Yangshuo

Guilin is a lovely collection of lakes and rivers which connect the various areas of the town. This place can be famous because it has one of the best karsts landscapes in China. One of those famous landmarks is Elephant Trunk Hill. My friends and I, we decided to visit the Elephant Hill scenic area (it is actually a hill that looks like an elephant with its trunk), the icon of Guilin. With the tour arrangement, we did visit that place but found that area already covered with fog. Such a pity! We could not see clearly about that elephant version.

Actually, our original plan here was to visit Guilin for a couple of days and then move onto spend two nights in Yangshuo. But because we can speak just the simple Chinese so I prefer to take this tour from local travel agency that I booked in Beijing. With this Guilin tour, we did not only can visit the hill and fabulous natural cave called Reed Flute Cave but also can have a chance for cruise the Li River. The river Li has some stunning scenery and not surprisingly is very popular with the Chinese. The sights of some of the rocks feature on the 20 Yuan note so all Chinese people know about this place.

Bamboo Rafting along the Small River

Cruised along Li River depart from Guilin then reached Yangshuo, a small touristy town near from Guilin. In Yangshuo, we could see great nature scenery around, few tourists, less pollution, not traffic and pollution. The highlight of the Yangshuo sightseeing trip has to be the Bamboo raft down the river. This river cruise was very short, but the scenery was beautiful.

Our guide was terrific, she was just out of tourism college, spoke really good English, very friendly and informative. We did experience lots of interesting experiences. It such a trip brought us back to the nature, to see the beautiful small town with stunning landscapes combines with river, limestone karsts hills, and blue clear sky.