The dReamcatcher.: Farewell China

I definitely fell in love with China in a way I didn't expect...Despite the terrible traffic & general confusion, it is a very impressive country that is at once traditional (Chinese Medicine, Taoism, body work, cuisine) & at the same time cutting edge (art, design, fashion, business). Drenched in historical significance, China took a global back seat in the Mao times & is again booming with prosperity & vibrancy. Definitely on the upswing, it was a fun place to visit is the midst of such drastic development.

On one of our final days we flew to Xi'an to see the Terracotta Warriors, a collection of terracotta sculptures, each individual, life size figures, depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BC and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife, and to make sure that he had people to rule over. It consists of 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which are still buried in the pits (wikipedia).

The warriors were discovered in 1974 by this gentleman above. He found one while digging a well & was awarded 300 RMB (approx $50) by the government (which he handed back). He now works at the gift shop on site & signs books.

As you can see they are still located below ground where discovered, most of the warriors have not been excavated because once they are exposed to oxygen, their painted exterior, still colorful after 2,200 years, vanishes within 5 minutes. They are waiting for more "modern technology" to remove the others safely.

Guy bun heaven.

The TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) class turned out to be very interesting. Alex only uses herbs when he has a cold & he doesn't believe that either the new Eastern or Western medicine stresses enough the importance of preventative rather than symptom based medicine. He discussed diet as a key tool to mental and physical well being.