We continued our journey to Zhengzhou. In China, most “Western apps” did not work without a VPN, and even with a VPN, some apps didn’t work as seamlessly as their Chinese counterparts. Instead of Google Maps, we used AMAP, a very nice navigation app that came with a lot of features, like showing the current state of traffic lights along your route.

When entering the perfect expressways, we had to show our Chinese license plate to the toll gate personnel. Most of them had to ask their supervisors what to do with it, and it usually took some time to get onto the highway, but the staff were always super friendly and motivated to help us.

And Rosinante weighed around 3.45 to 3.55 tons—not too bad considering everything we carry around with us.

We arrived on the outskirts of Zhengzhou and found a very nice parking lot close to our next climbing area.

There were a few mobile homes parked where some owners were living full-time. Many locals also arrived in all kinds of cars to camp in their vehicles or pitch tents for the night. It was lovely to see, and we guessed that for them, this parking lot and the small hiking area behind it served as a wonderful recreational getaway.

It was fascinating to see how the locals camped. Many had electric vehicles, so they brought induction cooktops that they plugged directly into their cars to cook meals. Some stayed inside their air-conditioned vehicles for most of the time, while others hung out in large, lively groups across the parking lot.

Of course, there were stray dogs as well. Compared to some of the massive stray Kangal dogs in Turkey, these strays were pretty cute.

After sunset, there was a lot going on along the small boulevard near the parking lot, which offered a great view over the city. Some locals practiced Tai Chi, while others just hung around, ate, played games, …

… or sang karaoke right at the bus stop.

Many people smoked, and spitting on the ground was a very common sight. We researched it and asked a few locals; the spitting seems to stem from Traditional Chinese Medicine beliefs that toxins should be expelled from the body. Even though smoking was widespread, there were still info panels highlighting the negative health effects of smoking.

The climbing area called 龙景 was a bit disappointing at first: from the parking lot, the trail to the climbing sectors was obvious, but the location of the first sector wasn’t right. Not a huge deal, we’ve navigated much harder approaches, but when we finally found the first sector, many bolts had been removed, making it unclimbable.

The second sector, right next to the first, had only a few routes, but they looked climbable.

We decided to push further to the third sector, and that one was absolutely beautiful! A impressive, large wall with well-bolted routes.

The rock was very unique: much of it was a mineralized stone that felt somewhat soft. It felt a bit strange at first, but we quickly got the hang of it.

We enjoyed the climbing immensely, even though the sun was beating down on the rock all day. As belayers, we draped wet towels over our heads to keep cool. Fortunately, there was a small creek running right next to the wall.

From the top of the higher routes, we enjoyed a fantastic view of the city. See details about the 龙景 climbing area on thecrag.com.

The massive “domino block” apartment towers of Zhengzhou.

And from the parking lot, the surrounding rock formations looked stunning as well.

We continued on to the world-famous Terracotta Army in Xi’an. It was a massive attraction and thoroughly impressive.

It’s unbelievable how much work and detail were put into building this grand mausoleum!

The sheer level of detail and individuality crafted into all the statues was mind-blowing.

This is one of the main halls, where visitors can see various stages of restoration. These are still covered statues—thousands of them.

Here were uncovered, broken fragments waiting for restoration.

And these were fully reconstructed statues. Thousands!

Every single figure had distinct facial features and a unique expression. Visiting the site was incredible, and learning about the history behind the Terracotta Army was just as fascinating.

In the commercial district of the site, there was an abundance of souvenirs and even more street food.

I bought a nice bracelet in hopes that it might help me practice a bit more patience in certain moments.

We found a overnight spot in the site’s massive parking lot. Coincidentally, we ran into two couples from our overland convoy with whom we had crossed the border into China. It was wonderful to reconnect and swap stories about our experiences in China so far.