Arrival in Xi'an and Day 1 (11/21/19)
As expected, around 1:30am the train attendant came around to my bed and woke me up. All my stuff was already packed up so I didn’t have to rush and disembarked at Xi’an just before 2am. There were a few taxis around but between my experience two days ago coming back from Huanglong Cave and being grossly overcharged in Istanbul for a nighttime ride I decided to just walk the mile or so to my hostel.
I stuck to the main road which took me around a huge roundabout centered on a walled tower. It reminded me of the iconic arch in Paris (Arc de Triomphe), so I looked it up a few days later and found out it’s a 650 year old (1384 A.D.) bell tower from the Ming dynasty! Very cool and maybe worth a more invested look-around when its not the middle of the night. There were a bunch of large buildings set back from the road with courtyards and pedestrian spaces so I assume there are lots of interesting places around. There were a few skylights poking up here and there as well so I’m sure there’s a whole underground component I’m missing. Again, something to check out when the sun’s up.
After a few blocks I turned off onto a side street and then again into an alleyway. The whole thing was lined with shuttered food stalls and a couple of them were still open even this late! There’s gonna be street food galore tomorrow! Also, even though it was a poorly lit back alley I never really felt unsafe. There were always people in sight, it was just off the main road, and all the closed stalls meant the area sees a lot of foot traffic.
I found my destination, the Alley Youth Hostel, without much trouble thanks to the Xi’an map I had downloaded, and went to check in. Small problem, they didn’t have a room for me until noon, even though I had said I was going to be arriving in the wee hours of the morning. The only guy there also didn’t speak much English so it took a little while for me to figure out what the problem was. I made it clear that any room was fine for tonight and I would be happy to move when I woke up. China was cheaper than I had expected to I wasn’t worried about the financial prospect of a more expensive room for one night. He hooked me up with a private room and so I took a shower and passed right out.
Around noon cleaners started knocking and I had to roll out of bed to get my more permanent room. I definitely took longer than they wanted and it was weighing on my anxiety but I figure if they really needed me out they would have just walked in and started cleaning or set someone up to physically wake me up. I talked with the front desk and got my new room which is a four person shared space that turned out to be way better than I thought!
Back in Chengdu my shared room was tiny, the beds were crowded, my roommates noisy, and barely enough storage space to fit my backpack. Here the beds were much larger and each person got a full sized locker which I really appreciated. The room also got direct sunlight which is always nice. Also, the beds were arranged in a single unit cube with stairs to the upper bunks and privacy curtains that actually covered the whole bed, another thing I’ve learned to appreciate.
I slept on and off for a few more hours and planned out some city activities with the front desk’s help. They had a really nice map with directions on what buses to catch and recommended walking routes. Thank god, I don’t want to improvise with buses ever again. Also, turns out the hostel is right next to the most famous street food in China - Damaishi Street! Part of the Muslim Quarter, its a kilometer long alley packed with goodies! At 7pm I figured it was time to eat something and ducked through a few back alleys to the heart of Damaishi Street. It was absolutely packed with people and a million different foods, I had no idea where to start! I wandered a while, taking stock of my options, before settling on a restaurant boasting a huge pot of a sticky, gelatinous, soup out front and a clear price listed (I could always watch how much others are paying but this is so much easier). They had a TV in the back playing some sort of show or documentary featuring the shop so I figured if it was good enough to be on video, it was gonna be a winner.
Ooo hot damn that was a good food! Easily one of my favorites from this whole adventure. Spicy enough to make my nose run and packed with flavor from lamb and veggies. And that telltale tingle of Sichuan peppercorn. The texture was certainly unique, I mean I would compare it to a thin pudding or like a watery Jello but even though that sounds kinda gross it took all of 2 seconds to get over just because it was so tasty! It came with some bread for dipping that I used to mop up my bowl and actually decided to go back for a second serving instead of trying out something new. And that goes against my code of always trying something different this trip - it was that good! After coming back to the U.S. I found the restraunt on Google, Ma'er Youzhi Suantang Dumplings Hand-Made Noodles (马二优质酸汤水饺手工面), so if I ever go back I know exactly where to eat!
I was like 90% full after two bowls but revved up after such an amazing first find so I spent about an hour walking the street and checking out all the different foods around. Dumplings, cakes, noodles, soups, fried breads, whole fish on a stick, and so much more - I could eat somewhere different every day for a month and I’d be barely scratching the surface! The only thing I bought to eat was some sort of savory dumpling/sandwich wrapped in a friend noodle bun that was incredible! No clue what was in it, but it had an express lane straight to my face. I also picked up a couple rolled yellow buns that resembled cinnamon rolls but with veggies. No clue what’s up with them but a snack for tomorrow will be much appreciated, since I intend to do a lot of walking at THE TERRACOTTA WARRIORS I SO EXCITED!!!
