It looks like we will be in school a few more days

Mom and Dad have told us that the Travel Approval that we were sure was coming seems to be delayed. We have to have that to get on plane - so it looks like we will not leave on Tuesday as we had planned (unless there is a miracle!).

We are packed and are all disappointed. But it won't be long until we are in China!! Zoe we are coming as fast as we can!!

an army found during the Qin Dynasty

The first emperor of China (early rulers were called kings) had this stone army to protect his tomb. When they found it it was a huge discovery.

"The Terracotta Army was discovered by some farmers in March 1974. The farmers were digging a well when they stumbled on one of the Terracotta Warrior heads. The finding led to the discover of one large pit and two smaller pits of clay soldiers. A forth empty pit was also discovered. The Terracotta soldiers were created for the Emperor Qin Shihuang.
The largest pit is over 200 yards long with around 6,000 soldiers in battle formation. In the front of the formation was the archers followed by eleven long columns of foot soldiers. The right, left and rear flanks of the formation all faced outward toward the enemies which may be trying to attack from the sides or back of the formation. Each of the soldiers have a distinct face believed to be sculptured after real soldiers in the army.
The second pit had about 900 warriors and over 500 horses. This force would have been a Calvary back up for the force in pit one. The horses are divided into about two-thirds chariot horses and about one-third cavalry horses. Pit three has only 70 Terracotta Warriors and is assumed to be the leaders of the army.
It is believed that the Emperor had these Terracotta Soldiers crafted to protect his tomb. The tomb had armed crossbows set to trigger off at any intruder. The people who buried the Emperor were sealed in the grave by a stone door which came down after they entered. By sealing the workers in the tomb, it kept the location of the tomb secret."

source: http://historylink101.net/china/terracotta-warriors.htm

Next - find Anhui

Mom says Zoe is in a town called Chuzhou (it sounds like Chew joe) in the Anhui Province of China. We are going to meet her first in Hefei. Hefei is the capital of the Province. A Province is like one of our states but they are pretty big.

One of the three big rivers that are in China, runs right through the province. In the summertime it rains so much that this river floods the cities. The building where Zoe lives has been flooded before - they had to go upstairs!

Yangtze RiverYangtze River or Yangtze Kiang is the longest river in Asia and the third longest in the world after the Amazon in South America and the Nile in Africa. The name Yangzi was originally used by local people to refer to the lower reaches of the river. However, because this was the name first heard by missionaries, it has been applied in English to the entire river. The name is found in many forms, including Yangtse River, Yangtsze Kiang, etc. The Chinese name of the river is Chang Jiang , literally meaning Long River, and this name is also found on many modern maps in English. The Yangtze is sometimes referred to as the Golden Waterway. The river is about 6,380 km long. It has traditionally been considered a dividing point between north China and south China, although the Huai River also shares the claim.
source: Onpedia

First - find China

China is on the exact opposite side of the world from us. It has mountains, deserts, snow and really rainy places. Some of the country is difficult to live in because of the weather. Alot of people think China is bigger than the United States but it is about the same size. The big difference is their population. It is about FOUR TIMES as big as ours.

China has been a country for about 8,000 years. That is really old compared to our country which is 230 years old. Of course, they have had alot of different rulers and governments. More about that later.

I can't wait to meet my sister - but where is she?

My name is Grayson and I have two brothers and a sister. My sister is still in China. We are going to China to get her soon and bring her home with us! We are leaving in less than two weeks!

While we wait to catch our plane, my little brother and I are going to (with mom's help) post things we are learning about China. Have fun following some of our links!!

Mom says we should be technoratti before this trip is over.