Posted on 05/05/2005 10:05:17 AM PDT by Dr. Marten
Here are some photos from the newly opened "Tang Dynasty Paradise Park" in Xi'an.
It just opened at the first of April and even though it has no real historical significance, it's still a beautiful park that provides some of the best entertainment I've ever seen in my life and I highly recommend paying a visit.
Even though the only historical ties the Tang Paradise Park has are in its appearance, it still provides somewhat of a modern view of the architectural beauty that graced the Tang Dynasty period. It also has the largest and most beautiful water show in all of Asia. In fact, I was completely stoked by the water show. At nightfall, the water fountains begin throwing out an enormous wall of mist that hidden cameras thrust film shows against and it was simply amazing.
It's like being in a futuristic movie theater.
Incidentally, my wife and I were unable to visit the park on our first try because Lien Chen was scheduled to arrive for a visit of his own that evening. In fact, there were banners hung out front (notice the pics) that were welcoming the "Chinese Guomingdang Party".
We didn't get to see Lien Chen, but we had a great time when we returned the next day.
You can also view a short video clip of one of the Lion Dances I captured.
China-related ping.
Given the population of that country, its amazingly sparsly attended. Is this one of those places reserved only for tourists or what?
Compare that to an average shot of Disneyland.
I'm not aware of any tourist attractions in PRC that are foreigners-only. Dr. M, did you visit the park on a weekday? That would certainly explain the sparseness of the crowds.
On the other hand, go to an attraction that's on one of the major tourist trails (esp. in the east), and you won't be able to avoid the crowds, regardless of the day of the week.
Ping to #4.
I'm also not aware of any tourist attractions that are "foreigners only."
This park however, was definitely built for the sole purpose of tourism. As I mentioned above, it has no direct historical significance and before it was built the land was occupied by run-down flats full of residents that had already been relocated before.
As for the crowds, I simply did my best to exclude people in my photo shots as much as possible. Even though the park just opened at the first of last month and it's not yet listed on any tourist maps, there were still well over 300,000 people there on that day (a weekday during the May Day holiday).
I didn't eat enough before we went because I figured I would just grab something at the park. duh! There were so many people that it was nearly impossible to get anything unless you waited in line for hours and didn't mind standing up to eat.
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