I am in Xi’an primarily to investigate bringing my students here–check hotels, see what activities might be suitable, etc.

It is a great place to visit, capital to 12 or 13 dynasties (I can’t remember exactly) and clearly different to the south of China in all sorts of tangible and intangible ways (food, weather, industry, etc).

A secondary purpose is to catch up with a former student and friend now teaching here. We have been working on some research ideas via email and it will be nice to discuss them face-to-face.

Anyway, its an almost perfect day outside, so it won’t be much of a chore to investigate some sites that may be relevant to my students.