Xi'an City Wall (西安城牆) is located right in the city center of Xi'an City. The initial palace wall was established back in the Tang dynasty (618 - 907) at the site. It didn't change a lot during the Song and Yuan Dynasties (960 – 1368).The massive construction of the city wall was started by Zhu Yuanzhang (朱元璋), the first Emperor of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). He ordered to build a fortified city wall on the previously existing western and southern parts of the palace wall. It took about 8 years to complete the Xi'an City Wall. Luckily it survived during the wars. UNESCO included the site in the tentative List of World Heritage Sites under the title "City Walls of the Ming and Qing Dynasties".
We stayed at a hotel just outside the south gate (Yongning Gate, 永寧門) of Xi'an City Wall. We walked to the barbican that we could find at all 4 gates - East Gate (長樂門, Changle Gate), West Gate (安定門, Anding Gate), South Gate (永寧門, Yongning Gate, ), North Gate (安遠門, Anyuan Gate). It is a fortified defense used to protect the main gate. Inside the barbican is an open area where we saw the 2-story with triple-eave gate tower on top of the gate which you can find on all the four gates. It represents the major facility of the wall-gate defense system. The 12 m high, 12 to 14 m wide on top, 15 to 18 m wide at bottom, and 13.74 km long rectangular city wall is one of the best preserved city walls in China. We learned it is almost 14 km in length and decided to rent a tandem bicycle. It blew our minds that the path on top of the city wall has the width of a 4 lane road in normal city. The 12 m high city wall is situated between the old city and the new city. The famous landmarks such as Bell Tower, Drum Towers and Muslim Quarter are all inside the wall. Skyscrapers are not allowed inside the wall. There is a moat around the city walls to protect the city. A flanking tower can be found every 120 m to defend the city. It took us almost 3.5 hours for a trip around the city wall.
Although we rented the tandem bicycle, I would suggest the single rider bicycles. You need to bring plenty water with you especially on sunny day on the almost 14 km path. The ancient buildings near the city wall were interesting and maintained quite well. Bring your camera, water, and hat and enjoy a journey back to the past.
We stayed at a hotel just outside the south gate (Yongning Gate, 永寧門) of Xi'an City Wall. We walked to the barbican that we could find at all 4 gates - East Gate (長樂門, Changle Gate), West Gate (安定門, Anding Gate), South Gate (永寧門, Yongning Gate, ), North Gate (安遠門, Anyuan Gate). It is a fortified defense used to protect the main gate. Inside the barbican is an open area where we saw the 2-story with triple-eave gate tower on top of the gate which you can find on all the four gates. It represents the major facility of the wall-gate defense system. The 12 m high, 12 to 14 m wide on top, 15 to 18 m wide at bottom, and 13.74 km long rectangular city wall is one of the best preserved city walls in China. We learned it is almost 14 km in length and decided to rent a tandem bicycle. It blew our minds that the path on top of the city wall has the width of a 4 lane road in normal city. The 12 m high city wall is situated between the old city and the new city. The famous landmarks such as Bell Tower, Drum Towers and Muslim Quarter are all inside the wall. Skyscrapers are not allowed inside the wall. There is a moat around the city walls to protect the city. A flanking tower can be found every 120 m to defend the city. It took us almost 3.5 hours for a trip around the city wall.
Although we rented the tandem bicycle, I would suggest the single rider bicycles. You need to bring plenty water with you especially on sunny day on the almost 14 km path. The ancient buildings near the city wall were interesting and maintained quite well. Bring your camera, water, and hat and enjoy a journey back to the past.
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James Huang - All rights reserved.
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