6 Months Away from the Homeland!

It's true. Today marks 6 months away and we are alive, kicking, and still getting along! It's hard to believe that we have been away for so long. But, when I look back it feels like an eternity has passed since that November night when we first stepped on our flight to Peru. Eleven countries, fifteen flights, endless hours on buses and trains, and God knows how many walked miles later, we are in China and exhausted. I knew this day would come, but I denied it until it actually happened - we don't want to go ANYWHERE or see ANYTHING. I would actually rather sit and watch movies in the hostel than go explore the city we are in, Pingyao, a small glimpse into old-world China. How pathetic!? We lead difficult lives. Despite our lack of motivation, we have seen a number of cool things in the past week and met a handful of amazing people.

First stop after Hong Kong was Shanghai. Unfortunately, when we arrived we had some trouble with our ATM card and spent the first entire day walking from ATM to ATM.
We found that by walking from bank to bank we were able to see a greater part of the city and it eventually led us to the bustling area of the city by night time. We wondered the Bund, checked out the lights of Shanghai, and tried to sell roller blades. Well, to be fair, Jess tried to help 2 Chinese girls sell roller blades to tourists and I spent a good 10 minutes actually trying to use them. Picture this: Jess running up and down the street with an energetic Chinese girl, attempting to sell light up roller blades to anyone that looked western. Now, picture me, far behind, leaning on a 5 foot nothing Chinese girl who is trying to help me stand on 2 feet and teach me how to use the death traps. It wasn't good for sales, I can say that much. Afterwards we got the ATM to work...thank the lord for Commerce Bank!

The following night was a bit random. Jess got lured into a pub by a "Hoegarden Beer" sign. Apparently 2 Australian guys recognized us from one of our many ATM stops the day before and before we knew it they were buying us a traditional Chinese dinner at a posh restaurant. We tried pigs feet, fish heads, and frog. They don't waste anything here in China...apparently we could have ordered cat...I was thankful they didn't put that in front of me.

From Shanghai we took a near 24 hour train ride to Xi'an. This city is the home of the "8th wonder of the world," the Terracotta Army. Discovered in 1974, these ruins consist of near 60,000 warriors made to protect the first emperor's tomb. They were constructed in 200 B.C.! That's right...after nearly 2,000 years underground, these ruins were discovered by some farmers digging a well. The sheer number of them is overwhelming, considering when they were made, and the fact that they are so detailed. From the the expression on the warriors faces right down to the horse's teeth, you can make out everything. Not all of the warriors have been restored and there is still much work to be done. Nevertheless, the site was definitely worth the long train all the way out to Xi'an. Here is one of many pictures of the warriors:
At the moment we are in Pingyao. This is an old banking city halfway between Xi'an and Beijing. The walls surrounding the city are the only ones remaining in China from the Ming Dynasty (1300's). Apparently, at it's height the city flourished as the financial capital of China. But, it was too poor to modernize since it's collapse and, lucky for us, has kept it's old-town China feel. The architecture is amazing and the streets are filled with antiques and temples. It is definitely one of my favorites in China.

We had a pretty random experience last night. Jess impressed some old man by doing a cartwheel and he invited us into his home for "picture." We assumed he wanted a picture of us (we are so vain), but he actually wanted to show us his photo albums. Apparently he was a martial arts star in his hay-day; he had newspaper clippings, photos of himself preforming in front of large crowds, and plaques. He even whipped out his sword, non-chucks, and spear...and let us play with them. He didn't speak a lick of English but I left feeling like we had a whole conversation.

That brings you all up to date! Lucky you. Tomorrow we take 2 buses to Beijing, where we plan on participating in our self-organized Olympic games. Events will include spinning, leap frogging, and my personal favorite, "how many Chinese people can you get to take a picture with you?". I don't think that Beijing knows what's coming their way.