Day 4 – Han Yan Ling Underground Mausoleum and Museum

This morning we left Beijing and flew to Xi’an. We visited the Han Yan Ling Underground Mausoleum and Museum, which in my opinion was the best visit on the tour so far as there were way fewer people and much more to see. The mausoleum/museum, the joint tomb of Emperor Liu Qi of the Han Dynasty and Empress Wang, has an amazing collection of artifacts. While some are in display cases, others have been left for viewing in the excavation site. Visitors can actually walk over the excavation site on glass floors, allowing you to see directly into it.
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Han Yan Ling Underground Mausoleum and Museum

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We stayed at the Shangri-La Hotel for the next two nights. The photos below show the view of downtown Xi’an from my room and the hotel entrance as well as a lobby poster describing the historic landmarks in Xi’an. This evening I enjoyed an American-style dinner (complete with Australian beef and wine and selections from the salad and dessert bars) in the hotel’s Yi Cafe.