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The Bell Tower & The Drum Tower On our first full day in Xi'an, we decided to jump a taxi to the downtown area and get ourselves oriented and acquainted with the city center. There are at least 3 major attractions in the center of the city, the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower and the Muslim Quarter including the Great Mosque.
The Bell Tower sits in the very center of downtown and is circled by a large round-about. Constructed in 1384 in classic Ming architecture, the bell used to be rung and dawn. Originally the tower was located in the center of the old Tang imperial city. It was moved to the current location in 1582. There is a large pedestrian underpass beneath the entire downtown intersection. Although this is much more convenient than crossing the busy downtown streets, it is somewhat easy to get disoriented while underground. It can be difficult to find the right exit to the street even though signs clearly mark the way. As we arrived downtown, we grabbed a snack from a vendor on the lower level of the gigantic shopping mall and took in the incredible view of the Bell Tower with the Drum Tower in the near distance.
We then made our way, underground, to the large center square where street vendors are selling everything from ice cream to kites. The kite vendors were a little aggressive, but I must admit we were showing interest in the different designs of the Chinese kites. Most of the designs include many, many small kites all strung together, in succession, along one string. These were really fun to watch as they stretched from the ground to altitudes quite high above the city.
The Drum Tower was first erected in 1380, also during the Ming Dynasty. While the bell was rung at dawn, the drum was beat at sunset to signify the end of the day. The outside of the Drum Tower's first level is encircled by many large drums. Each symbolizes some good fortune and is labeled with beautiful Chinese writing. These you are not allowed to pound. But there is a extra large drum near the front entrance that you may pound and pose for a picture, for a small fee. There is a small, but fascinating, drum museum inside. It displays all kinds of drums, many of which I had never seen. The Northward views from the Drum Tower provide good views of the bustling Muslim Quarter.
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Ticket for both the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower
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