Spanning a millennium housing the thrones of 11 dynasties before the rest of China came into the scene, Xi’an is considered by many as the birthplace of China and the cradle of its proud civilisation. China’s first emperor chose Xi’an as his capital, and then the Romans, the giant of the other world, exchanged trade and diplomacy here with the Han monarchs. The city later hosted the great Tang Dynasty over four centuries, overseeing China’s golden age of literary supremacy and economic prowess, and then came the illustrious trade networks of the Silk Road, bringing a wealth of treasures, people and cultures into this city, making Xi’an possibly one of the most cosmopolitan settlements in the world at that time. Its fabled past of being at the centre of the world may well have passed but Xi’an’s proud heritage remains intact together with its hallowed history. The city doesn’t only contain an arsenal of historical behemoths for the history buff but is also boiling with a cauldron of cultures for those searching for a unique blend of travel spice. Go savour that rich slice of culture and history with a customized Xi’an tour package from Chan Brothers Travel Private Tours and see where it all began.

Qin Shi Huang was the first and foremost emperor of China, and like his birthright, he was perhaps the best one of them to leave an eternal legacy with his unquenchable appetite for the grandest and the most spectacular. Aside the Great Wall of China, the nation’s premier icon, his mausoleum, discovered in 1974 and named as the Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses, was his other great project. Visitors enter the city-sized archaeological site and will be immediately gripped by the interior of ceilings studded with precious stones. And the build-up of intrigue multiply by the seconds as they approach and see before their eyes the famed subterranean army of over 10,000 life-sized terracotta troops, standing tall and proud arranged in battle formation, seemingly ready to protect their master through the afterlife and beyond. If you go expecting logo-style structure and symmetry, you will be in for a pleasant surprise – these figures are shockingly human and the ornaments so masterfully detailed that you can’t help but wonder if they were perhaps real people, tragically sacrificed at their master’s order and incredibly fossilized by some work of nature. When you walk through its massive rectangular vaults in awe, you can’t help but marvel at one man’s ambition, and success, in the quest to live on forever.

The mineral streams that flow through the area where Huaqing Hot Springs is located has been doing so for more than 6,000 years and little wonder why countless monarchs since the Western Zhou Dynasty in the 11th century BC, had their eyes set on this coveted site in succession. Decorated with luxurious palaces, royal pools, ornamented pavilions and halls surrounded by willows and sculptural rocks, emperors and their beloved consorts throughout dynasties and empires frolic in the breathtaking surrounds, enjoying the finest in life that their royal status entitled them to. Due to historical preservation, visitors are not allowed to dip in these exact pools, but plenty of hotels around the area offer the same quality of hot springs all year around. Guests can enjoy the ever-flowing source containing precious and therapeutic minerals and experience the same treatment as did all those royals in the past, and all these after a great day out wandering around the dainty environs of Huaqing Hot Springs. 

Xi’an was at the epicentre and crossroad of the ancient Silk Road and has long flourished with a multitude and blend of cultures way before the rest of China caught up, and among the cacophony of trading, interaction and acclimatization beginning all the way back during the Tang Dynasty, Islamic influences has contributed to the cultural and ethnic make-up of Xi’an ever since. As the best city in China to experience this unique blend of Chinese-Muslim marriage, Xi’an has a plethora of mosques catering for its sizeable community, and the grandest and most symbolic of them all has to be the Great Mosque, built in the 8th century and located right at the Muslim Quarter. Covering an area of over 6,000 square metres and divided into four courtyards surrounded by a series of pavilions, archways and pagodas, the architecture is significantly Chinese in influence. The walls, decors, ornaments and tiles however feature a splendid array of Islamic art and religious scripts. After spending an afternoon at the grounds of the Great Mosque, the bustling Muslim Quarter is just nearby for you to delve deeper into this mixed cultural fix, and this time round it will be through the stomach, and boy, are those lamb dumplings delicious.