Duck, Duck, Goose!

Close up of Wild Goose Pagoda

An interesting perspective on the Large Wild Goose Pagoda. The climb inside was tough (but nothing compared to the Green Tortuga's recent skyscraper climb in Seattle--there weren't any free smoothies loitering around the staircases anywhere) but the view at the top was spectacular. We could see much of Xi'an and its walled inner city. This city is undergoing one intense renaissance. There are tall buildings sprouting up everywhere. China is definitely being transformed before our eyes. It's incredible that they've been able to preserve so much history despite the incredible modern growth occuring all around. Climbing up this pagoda reminded me a bit of our Leaning Tower of Pisa climb way back in the early 1980s. The stairs were a bit rickety but seemed solid enough. Thankfully, this wasn't leaning. The views out of each levels' windows were nice and the breeze at the top was very welcomed on a warmer than predicted day. A bit of haze lingered throughout the air--I suppose more from the Yellow Dust storm than from pollution as this region seems to run on mostly nuclear power. We saw 5 reactors along one stretch of highway outside of the city on our drive out to the Terracotta Warriors the day before. I'm sure there were others in the region as there didn't appear to be much other forms of energy (rushing rivers, wind anywhere in the area). Xi'an is the industrial center of the region and a major force in China's entire textile industry.