Christmas Eve
China Time: Friday, December 24, 2010 11:00
Hey guys. Merry Christmas Eve! I hope you all are enjoying getting ready and spending time with your family. Our Christmas Eve was extremely full and so much fun. It was also white and freezing!
This morning we met the group at 8:30 and headed to a “little” village outside of Xian. There are quotation marks because their definition of little is less than a million people. Anyway, our first stop of the day was the terracotta factory. While we were there, we learned how the Terracotta Warriors were made and the kids got to make one of their own. There were places you could buy the replicas of the Warriors and other terracotta products. Jai bought a small 4-piece replica set, but no one else got anything.
Next, we had lunch at a local hotel. The food wasn’t as nice as we were used to, but the experience made up for it. While we were at the hotel, they taught us how to make dumplings. It was fun for all of the kids, especially when they brought them out for us to eat later in the meal. Connected to the hotel was a small market. L, Meg and I all bought knock-off North Face backpacks for a very reasonable price. I also got a calligraphy set and a book that shows me how to make the characters.
After lunch we headed to the Terracotta Museum. This is where they keep the Terracotta Warriors. It is located on the original site and all of the warriors are where they would have originally been placed. Not all of the pits have been fully excavated. Actually, none of them have been to their full extent. They are waiting on newer technology to help them keep the relics safer and in better condition.
Our last stop of the day was the city wall around Xian. The original plan had been to bike on the top of that, but it was too cold today. Instead, we just went to the top and walked around a bit. It was very cool to see, but it would have been a lot better if we hadn’t wanted to get back in the warm bus so badly.
Christmas Eve dinner was funny. Our original plan had been to just stay in and order room service, but they weren’t offering it tonight. So, Dad, L and Meg went to the supermarket down the road and brought back ham, bread, orange candy, potato chips and pop. It was a crazy dinner. Grandma Jean provided us with a round of hot chocolate that everyone loved and the TV was playing back-to-back English Christmas movies.
After dinner and a movie, everyone gathered in Mom and Dad’s room and read the Christmas story. Then we watched a video on GodTube about how the Christmas story would look like if it was modern day and being played out on Facebook. It was eye opening but cool.
Now, everyone is asleep or getting there. We get to spend our Christmas Day on a plane heading to Chengdu. Luckily, it’s not that long of a flight. I hope you all enjoy you day.
Merry Christmas and God Bless,
~Kristen
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