Serious Travel Article 22: Xi'an Part 1. The Muslim Quarter

Xi'an feels like a collection of small coral islands scattered in the ocean. The parts of Xi'an you want to visit are the coral atolls, floating above a reflective sea of uninteresting glass and frozen waves of concrete. Surrounding the little islands is a barrier reef, worth visiting, protecting the little gems from the fury of the high seas.

Xi'an involves a lot a pavement stomping, and after dropping off our bags at our hostel, just a room in some lady's house. We pounded away. The city blocks all feel sameish and with no clear destination and no clue that you're getting any closer to an atoll of interest, your legs feel all the more tired.

Coco was taking me to the Muslim quarter, an area she used to come to when she was a student in the city. But it had changed so much in the four years since she had studied there it had become unrecognizable. We stopped to get directions and were pointed back onto the right path. The main street in the Muslim quarter came out of nowhere, hiding behind a corner in some dank, dead end in the city. 

The uninteresting streets of Xi'an

The crowds make it seem buzzing. Tourists come from all over China, and the world to gawk at the Koranic followers who dwell there. I found the place interesting too, particularly the trash bins. Many of the tourists had bought kebabs of mutton, vegetables, tofu and even skewered sugared fruits. These had been piled into the bins in the Muslim quarter and instead of being cleared, had been allowed to pile up until they became towers of jagged wooden skewers which stool proudly with the bin far below acting as a solid foundation. I enjoyed adding my skewers to the towers. 

A bin based tower of sticks in Xian's Muslim Quarter

The Muslim quarter is quite clearly Islamic. The Arabic script which is used to write the Xinjiang Uyghur language is everywhere while women cover their immoral parts (their hair) and men grow long bushy beards and wear white skull caps.

Somewhere within the Muslim quarter is a bazaar which wouldn't look out of place in Marrakesh, Mosul or Medina. An ongoing, narrow and semi covered alleyway, occasionally branching off in some other direction. The alleyway was filled with warm, rich colours, lots of red, orange and yellow everything. The traders were well verse in world languages, especially English which is rare in China. The traders in the market spoke English better than most of the Chinese English teachers I know. As good as there linguistic skills were, they were filled with ill meaning. They sold all manner of fake antiques, dancing cardboard cut outs floating on bits of string (yes, that old trick) and general tourist tat. The tat was so overpriced my wife and I spent an hour inquiring and listening to foreigners trying to haggle just for entertainment. The sort of rubbish that you could buy in Zhengzhou (off the tourist trail) for 0.1 yuan was selling here for 10. If it cost them 10 yuan, they'd be selling it for 200.

Xi'an Muslim Quarter: The Bazaar. Don't get overcharged!

We saw a German couple haggling for a crummy watch. The hawker started at 600 yuan (£60), the Hawkers got it for 300 and walked off happy. The traders later boasted they'd bought it for five yuan in a box of a thousand.

I know a lot of travellers tell you not to haggle too much because these people are poor and unfortunate, some tell you to aim for 50% off. Don't listen to them, in Xi'an, and in many places around China this isn't true. The traders are rich and they like nothing more than ripping you off. Haggle for a fair price or don't pay. Tip: When the price is settled and you've got your money out, ALWAYS ask for an additional freebie. It usually works as the traders can see how close they are to getting their money, but be prepared to walk away.

The best thing about the Muslim quarter is the food, don't let the hanging carcasses of dead animals, attracting flies in the mid day sun put you off (well, use your discretion). Try as much as you can but if you're pressed for time and can only try one thing, get the spinach noodles. I fell in love with them in Xi'an.

For Part 2: Click Here

For Part 3: Click Here

For Part 4: Click Here