The Muslim quarter
Head north off Xi Dajie, a street of small traders west of the Bell Tower, and suddenly the scale of the streets constricts to create the intimacy of a village, the narrow, unsurfaced alleys lined with cramped brown, two-storey buildings, half-timbered and with verandas. This is the Muslim quarter, for centuries the centre for Xi’an’s Hui minoriW who today’ number around thirty thom sand, a people said to be descended fi’om eighth-century Arab soldiers, The winding streets are rewarding places to wander around; a good entry point is Damaishi Jie at the district’s western extremity, the main market street, marked at the intersection with Xi Dajie by a green arch sporting Arabic calligraphy. Walk north up this street - it’s often too packed to cycle up - and you pass poky little dumpling shops with rows of street stalls in front, many of which sell offal. Look out for the sheep skulls - when you buy one the vendor scoops the brains ont with a cbopstick and wraps them up in paper for you. More palatable, and definitely worth sampling, are the sweets, some stamped with good hrck messages, the mutton cooked on skewers while you wait, and the nuts and seeds heaped on plates outside tiny shopfronts.
Head east of here at a junction about 200m up the street, walk for about 700m, then take the winding alley south and you come to the heart of the dis- trict, the Great Mosque (daily 8am-6.30pm; RMB12). The largest mosque in China, it was originally established in 742, then rebuilt in the Qing dynasty and heavily restored. An east-west-facing complex which integrates Arabic features into a familiar Chinese design, it’s a calm place, unpenetrated by the hectic atmosphere of the streets outside, and is a rare public place where simply sit- ting and reading doesn’t draw attention. On either side of the stone arch at the entrance are two steles by two of the most famous calligraphers in China, Mi Fei ofthe Song dynasty and Dong Qichang of the Ming. The attractive court- yard beyond, which holds a minaret in the form of an octagonal pagoda at its centre, is lined with wooden buildings featuring abstract eave decorations - the usual figurative designs being inappropriate for a mosque. Also here are free- standing steles bearing inscriptions in Chinese, Persian and Arabic. The main prayer hall,just beyond the two fountains, has a turquoise roof and some fine carvings on the doors and eaves; you can enter (take your shoes off) when it’s not being used for prayers.
A short walk east of here is Beiyuanmen, a street lined with souvenir shops at least as interesting for their ancient trees and attractive wooden architecture as their wares. Head south along it and you come to the Drum Tower (daffy 8.30am-6pm;RMB12), which marks the limit of the Muslim quarter. It’s a triple- eared wooden building atop a fifty-metre-long arch straddling the road. You enter up steps on the western side, though there’s not much to see when you’re up there, as the building no longer holds the drmn which used to be banged atdusk, a complement to the bell in the Bell Tower which heralded the dawn.
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