The Great Wild Goose Pagoda rises seven storeys above the southern part of Xi'an, a plain, tapered tower of grey brick that has been leaning slightly for centuries. It was built in 652, in the Tang dynasty, to store the Buddhist scriptures that the monk Xuanzang brought back from India after a journey of seventeen years, returning to the capital Chang'an in 645. His travels, over deserts, mountains and kingdoms, inspired the famous sixteenth-century novel Journey to the West, with its Monkey King, one of the best-loved stories in Chinese literature. In the temple of Da Ci'en that surrounds the pagoda, Xuanzang worked with a team of translators for the rest of his life.
The pagoda is about sixty-four metres high today, and you can climb the stairs inside to look out over the city. Around it lies a lively square, with a fountain show in the evenings that is said to be among the largest in Asia, and a calm temple compound with halls, bells and old trees. Nearby, the Xingjiaosi pagodas hold the remains of Xuanzang, and the site of the Weiyang Palace recalls the great Han capital. Chang'an was the eastern end of the Silk Road, among the largest cities in the world in its day, and the pagoda is a surviving piece of that golden age.
Xi'an is a city of more than six million, and the food is a pleasure: hand-pulled biangbiang noodles, roujiamo, a sort of Chinese hamburger with braised pork in flatbread, and lamb soup with crumbled bread, much of it in the Muslim quarter near the Drum Tower. The old city walls, among the best preserved in China, can be walked or cycled on top, and the evening light on the wall is lovely.
An honest note about riding: foreign visitors cannot simply bring a motorbike to China and ride around, since the country requires special permits, local registration and a guide for any foreign vehicle, and in many Chinese cities motorbikes are restricted in the centre. For most people, getting here means arriving by train or plane and enjoying the city on foot or by bicycle. Fuel is not an issue in a city of this size, and the roads in the countryside around Shaanxi are largely excellent. Spring and autumn are the most pleasant seasons, as summers are hot and winters can be cold and smoggy. Check air quality before climbing the tower, since haze can hide the view.