Xi'an/Shanghai

Ni-hao!

This morning Rik took me to the breakfast nook around the corner from our hotel that he visited yesterday. He got a donut and pastry while I got the fried wrap filled with glass noodles and greens. Breakfast cost $1.25. The lady cook loved Rik.

After breakfast, our guide took us to the Muslim quarter of Xi’an. It was a 15-min walk from our hotel and, along the way I took pictures of scooters.

Bicycles and scooters are as plentiful as cars and I’d say about 75% of the riders are without helmets.

Men and women alike seem to be very fond of teddy bears and cute characters to adorn their rides. Also, there is a duvet-type of covering popular with scooters. I’m thinking it’s a great idea not only to stave against the cold but it would provide cushioning in the event of an accident. I’ll be trolling Alibaba for one for my scooter when I get home!

At the Muslim quarter there were hundreds of stalls selling street food and all sorts of products you’d see at a market. Like fried squid on a stick, sheep’s heads and beef-filled cow’s stomachs. You know, the usual:

Rik started with freshly made pomegranate juice. It’s super delicious and good for your digestion. Bonus!

We stopped at a vendor who was stirring a huge pot of beef bones. Turns out he was making hamburgers out of the beef. Meat!! Give me meat!! After so many meals of buns and dumplings, I have a major protein deficiency. We got a hamburger loaded with a paste that looked like hoisin sauce but full of chilis. It was juicy and delicious.

For dessert we shared a bowl of crunchy sweets filled with gas so when we eat them, it looks like we are smoking.

I ran into a fire-breathing dragon:

The drum tower where they beat drums morning and evening - an ancient tradition for telling time.

Random pics of our walk:

This afternoon we left Xi’an and took a 7-hour train to Shanghai. We had some special liquor Aaron gave us called called Baiju or rice wine. But it’s made with neither rice nor wine. It was more potent than Fireball and helped keep our spirits up during the super-sonic trip.