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When it's raining in Shanghai ... Xi'an 西安

Since Saturday evening, still raining. Temperatures are unlikely to exceed 10 degrees, the wind is blowing, the air spring feel. On Sunday we slept almost until lunchtime - the sound of rain striking the windows were very tripped anaesthetizing. The estate already bloom in red camellias, shrubs inches in buds.

several days when the air conditioner heard some crunching. Driven by bad intuitions may go along with it does not share with Large M, but today I started to munch unfortunately, like a big M came back from work in the house was quite quiet and Large M heard these sounds. Immediately jumped on the chair, stood on it, she said, she is derived from the flat. Just because it was going to shop, asked them to on the occasion She bought the mouse trap (here are the ones with glue, mouse or rat enters the present and completely glued.) Then I asked Mala M, or wants to have a pet. I responded to view full gratitude. The last rat breathed his last, unfortunately, but I promised that as now I do catch on, this bath with it, buy a frame and we will breed. Large M listen with the acquisition and said that in that case, it certainly brought out in August. I quit, perhaps, a window because a frame with a rat will be a constant for the corridor leading to the front door. So we shared a bear skin, and here again started to munch. I wanted to open the window and watch from outside the creature, but the windows closed the tape, because they are leaking (of living in China are not practical at all, thermally insulated, and oknac are slit, through which the wind blows.) Tape came off, and then waited in silence (M Large whole time stood on a chair.) In the end it started again, munch, quietly opened the window and shined a flashlight. And suddenly the hole through which the flat tube is placed from the unit flew some birds. Stone fell from my heart, because August uspokila Large M - most recently the rat was in the kitchen and I had to driving by on the outside, or something to prepare himself, and for that I have two left hands.

Mala M learns in school just two rows in the memory of yesterday zakuwala Meng Haorana 孟浩然 line - just about spring. The poem is titled "Spring Dawn" 春晓 (some sources say that the title poem is "Spring Dream" 春 眠):

春眠不觉晓
处处 闻 啼鸟
夜来 风雨声
花落 知多少?

as Spring normally slept in. As long mornings
me from sleep will not get singing birds has come
night wind and the rain drummed on the windows,
How many lands have to lose the flowers ...

Above my rather free translation, but the corresponding and the weather (just started to roar, the first spring storm this year ...), and this ptaszysku, which tries each uwic nest in our air conditioner, and of course this spring drowsiness.

the drowsiness that is probably all of us here are suffering, even the Chinese have a saying that illustrate well - "Man is a sleepy spring, summer, without power, cuts a nap in the autumn, winter and three months in general does not raise" ... 春困 夏 乏秋 打盹 睡不醒 的 冬 三月.

On Saturday I started the second part of the course Guqina. Teacher is - as in the first part - Mr. Cai 蔡. This young man, graduated from the Shanghai Academy of Music, but in the classroom 二胡 Erhu (string instrument with two strings and a small soundbox, a lyrical sound.) As he told us, hates Erhu, but fell to his liking Guqin, who studied under the direction of the Gong Yi 龚 一. Cai doing any business, apparently with great success, often it drivin 'in Europe, mainly Spain and France, he bought an apartment in downtown Shanghai in the period when prices were already crazy, drivin' imported car. It teaches only because of his teacher and master of the Yi Gong, who runs the type of club Guqina 琴 馆, and such organizing courses to earn an instrument. Cai is a talented, said to just burn CDs. Interestingly, I recorded in a special environment. So far, these recordings were made most often in churches, or studio. Cai decided to make recordings in natural surroundings mountains. I wonder how will that effect, I never heard that someone got the idea for such an idea.
first lesson was also my chance to take my instrument to fix it in the end. After leaving the lesson I was quite surprised when it turned out that good go Gong Yi. Could not fix it on the spot, Gong Yi suggested that they would come the next day, because only then it will be ready. I asked that after repairing pograł on it a little. There such a rule, with the Guqinie should play all the time, playing on it "fed" him and improves the sound. The better a virtuoso on the game, the better for the instrument. Often students buyer expensive instruments and take it to their teachers for half a year and the longer that those "facelift" of their sound.

Anyway Guqin is already in the house and the girls sound rash or irritation of the ears ...

After class on Saturday, I returned home and after dinner I went to a local music club Yuyintang 育 音 堂, which is located in a small building in the Tianshan Park 天山 公园. This is one of the fastest continuous working club, featuring mainly Chinese rock music, though sometimes on the stage, there are also foreign bands. On Saturday was the performance of the band AZ - Yong Su duo 苏 勇 (those were the bassist Cold Fairyland 冷酷 仙境, who in 2008 left the band and creates his music) and Wu Zhuoling 吴卓玲, the former frontwoman and guitarist of the band, "an atmosphere Excursion" 星期三旅行. Wu is an interesting figure, said to be three years went to Tibet to look for the legendary land of "Shangri-la" - a paradise on earth, a place where there is no policy, no wars, no disease ...

Shangri-la is a place described by James Hilton in his book "Lost Horizon" (Lost Horizon) in 1933. It was supposed be somewhere in the deep valley in the western part of the Kunlun mountains near Tibet 昆仑 山. It is thought that Hilton based his descriptions of the books of Joseph Rock, a famous scholar of Tibet and the eastern foothills of the people of Naxi culture expert 纳西 inhabiting these areas. A few years ago for tourism development in the region was given arbitrarily decided that the Shangri-la Zhongdian is a region in northern 中甸 Yunanie, but this is just one of many possible places where he could be this mystical land.

do not know if Wu had fallen Zhuoling Shangri-le, it was probably a gimmick company executives to add it as a mystery, but it is already in Tibet, Wu Zhuoling has written many songs, There has translated a series of books about Winnie the Pooh, there also she found peace and inspiration. The current disc is special, the concert was also a nice, well was found in the small room of Yuyintangu, sit in the first row at the scene, listen to Wu and Su ...

And through the window just then started to lac ...

PS.Przed time TV reported that the current February has 5 times more rainfall than the typical.

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night - The Two Towers and kitchen

Xi'an as any Chinese city, has much to offer even after dark, if only because of the beautiful illuminations. Especially around the city center bell and drum tower is beautifully illuminated, and although not on such a scale as. such as Shanghai, by the fact that the architecture in Xi'an is either old, or modeled on the (center of the city - also modern buildings - echo the style of Chinese architecture from the time of greatest splendor of the country and city, ie the Tang Dynasty in AD 唐朝 7-10) atmosphere of the place is special. By the way

interesting is a country in which the notorious lack of electricity, where electricity is a distant province of only a few hours a day, and at the same time is wasted huge amounts of it so that cities that look nicer and more attractive in the evening. But what is not done in the name of tourism - and no doubt many of Xi'an on tourism gains.

The entire effect is particularly evident in my favorite neighborhood Muslim 回 坊, where at dusk every booth, every shop, every soup-kitchen are lit, A further additional effects of fire in the furnaces, glowing embers in the grill, Fire Plume Ridge from the soup kitchen.

Below are some pictures in a little bigger than usual format (opening up when you click):

city center - is composed of elements of the architecture of the Tang Dynasty (AD 7-10), when Xi'an (then called Chang'an 长安- "Eternal peace" - Xi'an current name means "Knowing the West") was the capital of the country, and China experienced perhaps the biggest period of prosperity in its history when the silk route between China and Arab countries traveled hundreds of caravans, when in Xi'an lived thousands of foreigners, women were playing polo and ideal of beauty was not frail anorexic, but the corpulent painted doll ...

钟楼 Bell Tower - a building, who know all the tourists, as she is in the heart of the city, and beside it is the oldest open to foreign tourists Bell Tower Hotel (foreigners can live in China only in selected hotels 涉外 宾馆, now almost all but a dozen years ago was the relatively few). Tower - the largest such structure in China - now stands at the intersection of two major roads in the city center (the part surrounded by walls); built in 1384, is 36 meters high, and it hangs inside of a giant, 5-ton bell. The tower originally stood opposite the Tower Drum (where the middle of the city was located before the advent of the Ming Dynasty 明朝 - ie before 1368), but in 1582 I was moved to its current location. Inside the tower hangs a bell weighing five tons - were cast him in the end of the fifteenth century, the bell was bigger earlier - weighed more tone and made it to the early 8th century. Apparently Bell Tower after moving to a new location the old Bell lost his voice and needed a new bell was hanging.

Tiger Pillows - Tiger motif decorates August in China, also part of clothing or equipment used by small children. The aim is to deter bad power. Approach this from a distance and smile indulgently, seeing Little Ones in Chinese tiger hats or Tiger 虎 帽 Butkach 虎 鞋, but during his stay in the house master's son noticed the tiny altar. Curious, I started it to researchers and specialists - Fangfang told me that he was an altar in the family for many generations - and I noticed a strange gun lying before him. As it turned out it was a tiger bone, which the master had brought from Singapore (the killing of tigers in the PRC is severely punished, even though it was once widespread dealings with the specific properties wgledu their bones - I have written about this before). Fangfang explained that if you give Apparently sniff dog or wolf tiger bone powder, it'll take it under her tail and flee in fear - Such is the strength of the same bone. Hence, the shrine had a bone to deter bad just under the house. On the other hand near the altar lay a dog owner, and somehow did not show fear, no but maybe because he was your, and not possessed by the evil powers ...

kebabs Ram 羊肉 串 - the trade in them is dominated by Uighurs, even in the Muslim quarter in Xi'an, inhabited mainly by the Hui nationality 回族, can meet-selling skewers of Uighurs. This colorful nation, their loud calls, jokes and laughter bluff are a nice accent among the more expressive or emotional little Chinese people.

甘蔗 Sugarcane is a natural and healthy delicacy. You can buy it in most markets, fruit and vegetable in China, often also on the street. Served either in the form of 40-50cm pieces, peeled, hard, purple color of bark - then it bites off pieces of August, bites in the mouth, sucking the juice, then spits out the rest dry. Another way - for the lazy and those with poor teeth - is squeezed juice drinks (like in the photo) with a juicer. NB my dentist says that because the Chinese have nice teeth, I eat a lot of raw or half-raw, hard vegetables, also bite the umor pits (sometimes these can be noted from cesciowo threadbare front incisors, already the seeds). The dentist claimed that the worst order - which has encountered in his practice - in May the Japanese (but why) and Germany (known sauerkraut ...)

week course can not miss your favorite Paomo - one of the two famous - except the ravioli Jiaozi - Food Xi'anu:

and restaurants have plenty of soup kitchen clients, the fire crackled in the furnaces. Kitchener Chinese vegetables are fried in so-called. Wokach ( Guo 锅, briefly but the deep oil. Vegetables are sprayed, partially fried, partially cooked, but at the same time retain their nutritional value, and vitamins. Chinese people do not eat salads practically, they think that eating raw vegetables is unhygienic. When cooking oil, often deals with the fire, which gives additional light effects. Unfortunately, in connection with this way of cooking food in Chinese homes often far from the ideal of purity - not only the stove, but the walls are covered with a thin film inches of oil, whose glued to the dirt. Hence, if you want to rent an apartment, pay close attention to the kitchen - they are the most often - next to the bathrooms - the weakest link in its entirety.

About Chinese noodles we could write a whole book. There are dozens of them kinds - Trailed napopularniejszy is pasta (I think they should still call it) Lanzhou Lanzhou La Mian 拉面 兰州 - the cake is so mined 活 面 (this requires effort and time) that is very malleable and does not tear when stretched; pulls So do you eat first to draw arms on the sides, then consists in half, stretch again, and so a dozen times, until the pasta becomes a suitably thin. Another type of pasta is cut with a knife Dao Xiao Mian 刀削面. A large piece of dough urobionego chef keeps in one hand and the other a sharp cleaver (Chinese people prefer a cleaver and uses it for cutting knife as we do) cuts of the vats of boiling 10cm strips of pasta water, which after cutting, fall into the boiling water. What's bigger "artists" I have set the cake on his head, then cut down with his two hands pasta, in which you hold fast choppers.
Other interesting types of pasta, a Cat's Ears 猫耳朵 and "pimples" 搓 疙瘩. It's getting them, based on a small lump of dough and use your thumb to "rubbing," I am in the second hand. Noodles wrapped in August on the shape of cat ears or flat spirals. NB Chinese claim that they were the first with pasta and Italians learned to make their art on the Marco Polo ...

easiest and least time consuming way to make pasta, then squeezing it (picture cottage industry "squeezer" was the previous entry) 压 面, so is the pasta is getting on an industrial scale.

When it comes to the same cooking, boil the pasta and you can enter it in the soup with vegetables or meat - it is called then it 汤面 noodles in soup. It can also fry 炒面. Alternatively it can be cooked then drain, put into a bowl, then add the separately prepared "butter" 卤面, such as eggs and tomatoes. For each of these modes you can add an acute paste, vinegar or soy sauce. Two provinces, famous for its pasta is 陕西 Shaanxi and Shanxi 山西. The latter is known for its production of wine vinegar 陈醋, which added to many dishes, too, of course pasta. Apparently because the water in Shanxi is alkaline, and health need to be to eat large amounts of vinegar.

Pasta them chopsticks, which requires certain skills, what else can draw the long strands of pasta with two poles. To be able to eat our noodles in this way must be good "string" - such as pasta literally sucks. Hence the Chinese pub with pasta is filled with the sounds of such a literal "pulling" and siorbania. TERMINALS pasta Niewprawnym people will be "danced" and uswinia clothes completely, so you better give up the pasta when it is officially dressed. Shaanxi Province

(which is already the capital of Xi'an) is famous for its beautiful cut-outs. Women in rural areas, when winter comes and there is no field work, sit at home (a typical house are the types of dugouts carved into a yellow 窑洞 Lessi) on heated beds Kang 炕 (this is basically the type of furnace, as in our old tenements stoves, but It is flat and serves as a bed) and with scissors cut intricate cutouts. These cutouts amazing precision and artistic skill, mostly from the red color, were stuck on the doors of homes for decoration and to deter evil spirits. Until today I enjoy them very popular and orginalna souvenir from a trip to Shaanxi.

Drum Tower 鼓楼 stands at the entrance to the Muslim quarter. Built in 1380, was originally located in the giant drum, whose sound proclaim the changes worth (Chinese people shared a day for 12 worth - a two-hour periods). Drum has not survived to our time, but the remaining tower. Because
drum sound is not too loud, from 5 to ne bells started to be used (apparently sound dwonu in Beijing, he carried a distance 25km!), Which pretended to time during the day, while the drums - at night.

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Xi'an 西安 - treats people and a few stories

recently returned from a nearly week-long stay with Xi'anu. Xi'an is the former capital of the country, much richer than the history of Beijing, a city world-famous primarily as the discoverer of the famous terracotta army of the first emperor China, Qin Shi Huang 秦始皇. Almost every trip, who came to China, is in the program visit the terracotta army museum.

Photo - Former street leading to the biggest museum of stone steles - the oldest and calligraphy - in China:

My stay in Xi'an focused on the daily practices of the master - get up at 6:00, drive to Muslim district 回 坊 for breakfast, a passage under the city walls (Xi'an is surrounded by calculating the over 600 years of massive walls), the exercise of a master and a group of his students, then the transition to lunch, back to the hotel, siesta, again exercise - first standalone , then the house master dinner at his house, coming back to the hotel, taking notes, the silence of the night. After 2 days, then decided that I will not be wasted time for an afternoon nap, and twice I went to the famous temple of the Eight Immortals; evening and ridden to the Muslim quarter, which you can not refuse specific color - a lot of wide assortment of food, shops, lots of people, tourists, Hui Muslims both nationalities 回族 and 维吾尔族 Uighurs, a completely different side of China ...

photos - a favorite place for morning exercises residents Xi'anu parks are situated along the huge walls of the city:

photos - Gate Wenchang 文昌 门 in the southern parts of the wall:

Writing about Xi'an is a must to mention local dishes. I was in town several times, both alone and with family, as well as leading tours of the Polish. Attractions in the form of monuments little different variations I have already trimmed (except perhaps the Shaanxi Provincial History Museum 陕西 历史博物馆, in which a visit is always a fascinating trip into the deep past of China). Food in Xi'an is not bored me at all, however. So I can not skip it here. Probably the best kitchen you can find in the Muslim quarter. First • No pork, which to me means the opportunity to eat everything; second great taste - distinct, with a predominance of Arabic spices, and of course the ubiquitous hot peppers; third swietne sweets - including authentic halva, which is not unlike me to associate with childhood, when she was a rare and a true rarity.

Photo - pepper-paprika soup 胡 辣汤 tastes like cream in the morning ...

morning usually ate soup pepper-paprika Hulatang 胡 辣汤. May seem strange that the morning matches Aug. empty stomach spicy food, but somehow I had never, therefore, no stomach trouble. Soup comes in two versions - henanskiej (from the province of Henan 河南) - Is a thick, glossy, have entered into starch, with cabbage, potatoes, sweet peppers and meatballs wolowymi, taste a little bit of goulash soup resembles ours, and the variety of Shaanxi 陕西 - this is dark, with a damn what he knows, because it is opaque, but is also very tasty.

Photo - Muslim soup sales company Hulatang on the street:

Mandatory For soups are bought from Mo 馍 thick cake, said to be the typical thing for the Arab cuisine, which grinds to a rather thick pieces, melted them in the soup , and so is eating. Because the soup is quite thick, often after it drank the warm milk or soy Doujiang 豆浆 rice gruel, or thin Xifan 稀饭. For some reason unknown to me Chinese people do not drink tea in the morning, at most hot boiled water or rice gruel already.

photos - all kinds of nuts, almonds and dried dates offered at stalls in the Muslim district:

One day we took a break from the soup, and the variety we had probably the most typical Chinese breakfast - a kind of "caddis" cooked deep oil, ie. Youtiao 油条. Virtually all of China in the morning you can see how the street, on makeshift stoves made from metal oil drums, cooking August Youtiao, stand next to the tables at which customers are free it consumes the air, most often by eating soy cheese also called light "soy Brain" Doufunao 豆腐 脑, the consistency of jelly, to which is added different spices and silage, we have our Youtiao eaten with soya milk.

Photo - Mi Family Restaurant serving Paomo is always full:

When it comes to lunch, my favorite is dominated Paomo 泡 馍. Paomo is a typical Muslim food delicacy. In short you can say that it is a kind of soup with meat and pieces of cake. It is an interesting Preparation - in which, moreover, client takes an active part. The first thing is to pay the bill - then it must also decide whether you want to beef or mutton soup. Generally, the latter is considered to be tastier and more nutritious (Chinese people regard the lamb meat, "warm", whose eating effectively warms the body and protects against the cold), what's interesting, yet i found Paomo of mutton, which would have had a nasty smell of this characteristic, which You can often meet with mutton dishes served in our country. Gets empty bowl and a few (depending on orders) small patches Mo 馍. In addition, everyone gets - the money - a small saucer of pickled garlic, sweet T angsuan 糖蒜 and acute pasta with peppers.

photos - head of the pub is holding money (my husband is not worthy of trust) on the small talerzykach cakes, sweet garlic and hot pepper:

With all this sits at the table - but how about the place is not open for lunch easily - and proceeds to tear the cake into small pieces (in the case Hulatang pieces were large and the Paomo the finer, the effect is better). Drac cake you can talk with my friends, this is - I'm usually in Chinese cuisine - a great opportunity to exchange views, develop closer systems, etc.. After reduction in August it gives the cake the waiter, who in a dirty smock uwija August between the tables. He asks what we want soup (beef or mutton) then gives us a quickie metal. The kitchen in our meat is thrown into a bowl, usually with a big piece of fat, soya noodles 粉丝, some vegetables, poured soup, then a whole is boiled. After about 15 minutes the waiter comes out of the bowl and wywrzaskuje our number - and gives us the soup after its presentation. Interestingly, in muscle can see no longer fat - it completely melted during cooking.

Photo - Beating cake Mo :

My favorite place, in which it is served is Paomo Family Restaurant Mi 米 家 泡 馍 馆 in a Muslim neighborhood. It is very famous, all the elements - meat, garlic, cakes - are made according to special recipes, which gives a rather unique taste effect. Unfortunately, sometimes it comes to mistakes, and get a cake soup with crushed not ours, but strangers dirty paws. The pub is mentioned as a family one day daddy took her son, money, and illegal factories surrounded the few football teams. As a result, they lost one million yuan, and then for a long time, not only with Paomo quality has deteriorated rapidly, but also service firmly declined. But I guess either already went out on his own, or come to each other, because during this visit, the food was better than ever. Paomo served in several ways, depending on the amount of soup in which you are given up to them for consumption. Family prepares them to me so. dry 干 泡 way - gets to eat pieces of cake soaked in soup, so that in the bowl, there is practically liquid, another way to enter is called. The city is surrounded by water 水 围城 - in this case is so soup in a bowl that surrounds it, and placed in the middle of present-soaked pieces of cake.

Photo - croissants Mahu served in the "oily tea from fine bone:

Another delicacy is called. 麻花 Mahu, a type of baked, twisted hard "croissants". They are served in the so-called. Oily tea Youcha 油茶 - thrown to her, cooked through moments to soften, and served in a bowl with soup. Sam Youcha is brewing on the brown powder - quite recently learned that the bones are ground beef. "Tea" is often used for sweet - sugar, walnuts and raisins. Muslims do in fact have a knack for cooking. Besides Paomo and Hulatang course, offers lamb skewers Famous 羊肉 串, pancakes stuffed with meat, Xiao Chao 小炒 (made as Paomo, but with hot pepper), various pasta (served in soup - something like our soup with noodles ) or fried. It can not miss also ravioli Jiaozi 饺子 of whom Xi'an is famous (in the tour is called. dumplings 饺子 宴 Adoption, during which serves dozens of kinds of dumplings with different fillings and different shapes). Most are Jiaozi in sour soup 酸汤 饺子 - as the name suggests, they are served in soup with plenty of vinegar. It's particulars, and besides them there are also other specialties - dried dates, walnuts, almonds, and hundreds of different candy - I especially liked the above-mentioned halva and walnut stuffed 花生 酥 persimonowe cakes flavored with osmanthus 黄桂 柿饼. The latter requires explanation.

Photo - Persimonowe pancakes during frying:

Now persimony is a type of fruit, which looks a bit like tomatoes, the trees grow and mature in autumn. You can eat them raw, but only mature, because before that are horribly bitter. Persimon mature is one who is in the middle is completely liquid, and the skin is very soft. You can eat teaspoon flesh is very sweet. Somewhere in October 1990 the school took us on a trip to the imperial tombs in Beijing. There is a lot of fruit orchards, including many already persimonowych. A colleague from Bangladesh polakomil on them, buying a few from a roadside shop assistant, and began to consume them on the bus. After a few minutes drive was messy like a baby, because I do not persimony daly to eat normally in his hand. After returning to the dorm in August led to right, but the dozen or so hours later it started to be cleaned from inside the hey ... Madre write the book, with a ripe raw persimon good for constipation, but consumed in large quantities evokes diarrhea. Interestingly, cooked, in turn, stops the diarrhea ... Persimony are stuffed with candied walnuts and beaten with sugar osmanthus flowers (they are very small, most often yellow flowers, a very intense aroma, bloom in autumn), look like small, round cakes, and are sold at many stalls in the Muslim quarter Xi'anu.

Photo - Senior Muslim reading newspaper on the street - even better winter to go out than sit closed in the house:

Muslims in Xi'an is a fairly closed community, clutching each other in their enclave 回 坊. Have a great knack for trade, also the fine, they work hard, often from an early age. Employed are often teenage boys aged 12-13 years, originates from the poor western provinces of China polnconego (usually 甘肃 Gansu and Ningxia 宁夏) gets 70 yuan (about U.S. $ 10) per month, plus the wasted food, a place to sleep you have to find themselves, usually somewhere in the basement. If the landlord will allow for them to sleep in a bar on the complex tables, then consider this as a distinction. He gets up at 3 am, they go to buy products to prepare breakfast for clients, then helps them cook, sell meals, then work again in preparation for lunch, 3 hours of sleep, and again work, usually about midnight. Work is a slave, boys are often treated brutally by the owner, no wonder it is precisely among them the criminality is rife. Authorities look at the affair through her fingers, because the issue of minority national pride - especially those who profess Islam - has always been a delicate (frequent conflicts between native Chinese - Han - a Chinese Muslims), and beyond that - as the old saying goes - in the fresh water fish, not live can 水 至 清 则无 鱼.

Photo - pancakes stuffed with vegetables or meat and vegetable fried are on the spot:

PEOPLE ...

... in the north of China is clearly different from those in the south. Most southerners are slim and petite, but Chinese people from the north are distinctly larger, roslejsi. To this have different facial features, and strongly generalizing can say that those from the north look more "classically". Chinese people from the north refer to southerners, rather contemptuously, sometimes calling them "petty thieves," 瘪三 (Shanghainese this term, but already widely accepted throughout the country) because of the rickety appearance and falsehood in his eyes ... During my stay I had the opportunity to watch a lot of street scenes, and talk with friends from Xi'anu.

Photo - Fried Mo in two sizes - larger for stuffing, less grinding:

First of all, they know how to drink, really. Overall opinion about the Chinese is such that it can be drunk small amounts of alcohol (which is a joke with a beard - the student says, "we bought a bottle of beer at three and then I do not remember already "...). Apparently, even the scientists noticed that some Chinese people are missing an enzyme that breaks down alcohol, the dose of small stocks allows them to your leg. My observations, however, are completely different. Inhabitants Xi'anu can drink, and it's a lot. Prefer skunk above 50 degrees (weak alcohol punches to the head of the delay, falls under the table before a man realizes that he has enough - so I explained.) Minor drink glasses, but a lot, starting from the general toast and then drink each with each, or more of one. A friend told me that one of his friends likes vodka, I once got drunk heavily, came out of the pub, and after a few steps, he began to vomit. How do I ask him whether there is still a drunk, then replied that in 80%. Once again it took time, but the same question, replied that in 60% ... Another drank until the bleeding from the stomach. It's all about who can not refute the myth of the Chinese drink.

Photo - Muslim pub - in the middle of August dumplings served in soup, sour and sweet on the outside of what sells-bit - pancakes persimonowe:

Another thing - are eager to fights. I was witness to a situation where two guys were sitting next to each other on the sidewalk, and had cleaned the shoes pucybutow. Suddenly, suddenly roared to a second, the second cast in the bunch, they both stood up, then one suddenly went first and scored on him in the face. That even will not be shaken, he started to throw more first bluzgi, the first probably lost a little rezonu, pulled out mobile phone and started dwonic for help (when I joined the crowd of onlookers to hear what goes wrong): "Take three men and come quickly, not forget to take giwer (带 三 个人 快 过来, 别忘 带 东西). I think myself will shambles, but the second as he heard that he left it fast, also caught on the corner and drove off ... The situation quite like the movie.

Photo - pucybuci street - in a place I have witnessed fights:

Travelling from Xi'anu bus to the airport I saw a similar situation - the taxi driver muttered something there, after an unsuccessful course of catching the customer to the airport, the customer is heard , then moved on, yelled at him, but laid the taxi driver learns at each other, started to look at the sides and silly smile (smile is a sign of embarrassment at the Chinese people.)

Photo - pasta can be done in different ways, also squeeze in those wooden jaws:

colleague told me that often comes to fighting, he repeatedly he took part in them. Once a friend from school were at the mall. Came to the flame war with seasonal workers, the laborers struck a friend, it felt like blood, it conquered the rage, grabbed a person on a bicycle, and with all his strength zdzielil nearest assailant, the man covered in blood, he fell unconscious to the ground (the rule is that in the event clashes with a lot of attackers, you should not fight with everyone, but we choose possible weak and cripple him in this way rejecting others to fight). She came by the shop called police, she colleague, his friend and a group of laborers to the police station. The officer looked at my colleague He said: "You can see right away that nice of you scamp." Suddenly the phone rang, the officer went out for a while, then came back and asked the workers: "Are You Xi'anu outside, do not you know that its inhabitants speak quite sharply, but this is normal with us, and I do not mean to argue with someone. " "And you" - here he turned to his colleague and friend - "you have to pay 200 yuan for disorderly conduct." The guys paid for, the workers left, and when the doors were closed behind them, the officer ... gave them the money! It turned out that in the meantime, a friend rang to a friend, who is head of the local branch of our militia 武警 counterpart in Xi'an, and he immediately contacted the police station commander, and the matter was settled. The guys came out of the station and waited for their workers with an apology, saying "we are outsiders, we do not have trouble here, we have gathered together 400 yuan, please, take them to consent."

Photo - roasting nuts in the hot sand - all mixed in a special mixer:

This story, told to me by the character of events, by the way is well illustrated by the power of law in the Middle ... No wonder that last year when a peasant from Xi'an demanded the justice, went to take a bus of Australian tourists as hostages, in return, posing a meeting with the Chief of Police in the city. This situation ended in August, like all similar - Terrorist shooting by a sniper.

Returning to the fighting - these situations are unlikely to have their own place in the south - yes, there are flame war, but it rarely comes to blows. And if at all, it is usually a woman wrap guy ...

Photo - Muslim sells halva (in red papierkach):

Drivers in Xi'an ride very fast and generally have a foot deep. This is not a rarity, cultural drivers in China can be counted on the fingers. In Shanghai, I got used to "enforce" precedence during the transition to stripes on a green light (taxis usually cut down before passers-by, or allowed to enter between them on the strip, especially when the twist and have a conditional green light). In Xi'an also so tried, and some times literally brush with death, in the end buddy did not categorically forbade me this behavior. Besides, during my short stay in Xi'an occurred inch series of accidents, including one particularly tragic, where the truck "Liberation" 解放 entered the group of children going to school on bikes, killing four of them, the driver fled the scene. Police offered 100tys. yuan reward for a person who will help find it (NB in \u200b\u200btoday's newspaper already read, the driver turned himself in to police).

town lies on the trail of the wild west of China to the east, also drug transport routes, hence the criminality is large, especially be careful about around the railway station, which locals have a bad fame. Foreigners in China who may feel more secure, also victims of attacks - a friend from Germany before the train It took two teenagers walkman (it was half of the 90s) under the threat of a knife.

Xi'an has its own atmosphere, interesting stories, lots of monuments, on which the need to explore the full year, plus Starbucks, with free Internet access. It has dark and light side, like every place, but it can be liked.

Especially for the food ...