Having a spectacular time in China!!  We drove out to the famous site of the Terra Cotta Warriors, WOW!  I'd heard of these, seen the pictures but not prepared to be present at this amazing archaeological site.  China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, ordered the making of the life-size Terra Cotta replicas of his army, horses and chariots to guard and protect him upon his death over 2000 years ago.  This guy had some serious paranoia issues, ordering the creation of over 8,000 soldiers, 520 horses and 130 chariots to protect him in the afterlife!  He is entombed in a nearby mausoleum that is booby trapped and surrounded by a river of mercury.  His tomb has never been unearthed.  Visiting the site we saw hundreds of the soldiers and horses unearthed and reconstructed.  We could also observe the areas where excavation is on-going and I saw the pieces of each figure painstakingly being put back together.  The site was "discovered" by local   farmers drilling for water in 1974.  They reported the strange finding to the Chinese government, not realizing what he had found.  They were compensated (rewarded) $5.00 by the Chinese government.  They did not own the land, one does not own land in China.  The government seized the land and began the excavation of this national treasure.  One of the farmers was present at the site and autographing a book recounting the history of Qin Shi Huang and his warriors.  I've included a picture of him here as well.  The existence of the Terra Cotta Warriors was recorded in historical manuscripts but their location was never disclosed in  the writings.  The Chinese were never sure if they really existed or not until their discovery in 1974.  Just so awesome seeing this national treasure!