Xi’an

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The first thing in the morning – lazy cats on the roof:

They were bathing in the sunlight while I was leaning over a dirty sink brushing my teeth.

When I got on the highway to Xi’an though, the sun was shining upon me too, I had a can of cool herbal tea in my hand, and walking suddenly seemed really comfortable:

The city was drawing closer and closer:

At one point, a guy with a motorcycle stopped next to me and said: “Let’s chat for a while!”

And so we did – all the way to downtown, he would be pushing his bike and ask questions:

I enjoyed his company, and I was happy to find out that he and I shared the same Chinese family name Lei 雷 (but then of course I am a total imposter).

At some point Mr. Lei 雷先生 had to take off though, so I was on my own again, drifting through crowded streets with towering buildings above me:

I thought this dog and his owner were cute:

And this one was just pitiful:

A stray dog with some plastic cords dangling from his neck somehow managed to cross a large avenue and make it all the way to a fruit stand before someone got a hold of him. I don’t know what happened then, because I eventually walked on by.

Xi’an is one of the few Chinese cities with a remaining city wall – and a very pretty one it is:

I was going to enter from the Changle Gate 长乐门, but when I got to a courtyard inside the gate, these folks told me that there was no way through:

Feeling tired and weary anyways, I decided to hang around and chat for a while, all the while feasting on cookies and orange juice.

Then I was mentally prepared to take to the streets again:

It’s really just too many people to navigate through with a large backpack.

I was happy anyways that I didn’t have to take the bus:

Or worse, wait for the bus:

Well on the other hand, it felt kind of nice to be in the city again.

Especially in a city as historically rich as this one:

I think what it comes down to is this:

People want what they don’t have – at least most of the time.

I suddenly seemed to have everything though:

My friend Steven from Canada had asked his friends Maomao 毛毛 and Mr. Tao 陶先生 to take care of me while I was in Xi’an, so they went all out of their way to get me this superb hotel room and treat me to dinner and find me a personal tourist guide.

Wow, I thought, how will I ever find a proper way to express my gratitude?