Notes From Xi'an 西安随感

10/10. In that greyish space in the top left of the picture you should be able to see three of the tallest buildings in the ming de men area. Not today. 11/10. That was yesterday. My zest for life took another battering this morning after waking to the sound of a good old-fashioned downpour adding itself to the already incomprehensibly gloomy mix. "Yes, we can."

13/10. "Oh yes, we can!"

10/10. After taking the first picture above, and while brewing my morning pot of coffee, I looked out at this. I couldn't help downing the whole pot, making a second lot, adding half a bottle of JD, getting my computer out, checking the price of a bit of cheap Greek island land, and making sarcastic noises about development paradigms and 5000 years of civilization. "Yes, yes, I know."

13/10. Never Doubted It.

10/10. Rising from directly behind that second lamp post, maybe only 5-600 metres away, is one of the tallest and most distinctive buildings in the south of Xi'an - the luminous TV Tower. Not today. This photo did, though, give evidence that the Tower's disappearance wasn't in fact due to me riding my bike backwards at 8 in the morning, with two pots of coffee and half a bottle of JD swilling around my head. It shouldn't be forgotten, however, ever, that on good days we can see the beautiful Qing Ling Mountains from here. "Oh Yes, we can!"

13/10. Joie de Vivre and a lung bursting cycle in the sun.