Saturday, June 11, 2016

Xian Trip 2016 - Day 2 - Bell Tower

After dinner, we made our way up to Bell Tower, bell tower is the centre of Xian City.

Admission Fee: CNY 35 for the Bell Tower only and CNY 35 for the Drum Tower only;

CNY 50 for the joint ticket of Bell and Drum Tower

Opening Hours: April 1 to October 25: 8:30 - 21:30

October 26 to next March 31: 8:30 - 18:00

Once we made our way up, we saw so many swallows flying around the roof, was an amazing sight.

The Bell Tower, is a stately traditional building, that marks the geographical center of the ancient capital. From this important landmark extend East, South, West and North Streets, connecting the Tower to the East, South, West and North Gates of the City Wall of the Ming Dynasty.

The wooden tower, which is the largest and best-preserved of its kind in China, is 36 meters (118 feet) high. It stands on a brick base 35.5 meters (116.4 feet) long and 8.6 meters (28.2 feet) high on each side. During the Ming Dynasty, Xian was an important military town in Northwest China, a fact that is reflected in the size and historic significance.

The tower was built in 1384 by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang as a way to dominate the surrounding countryside and provide early warning of attack by rival rulers.

Read more from travelchinaguide.

Inside the bell tower, was a small museum showcasing ancient embriodery and statues.

From the highest level of bell tower, we could walked round the tower and view the city from North, South, East and West. The night view of the city was so beautiful.

From far, drum tower could be seen and was beautifully lighted. We did not climbed up drum tower.

We stayed till the closing hours, were the few tourists left till they closed the gate.

Video of view from top of Bell Tower Xian China

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