Our trip began in Shanghai, but quickly moved on to Xian where the group visited the famed Terracotta Warriors. Of the eight thousand warriors, about one thousand are on display, each modeled after a real person so every face is different. As these guardians of the first emperor marched silently in the pit below, the group enjoyed taking photos and drinking in the amazing sight.

Before leaving Xian we had time to visit the soaring Large Wild Goose Pagoda with its beautiful gardens. Then it was on to Dunhuang where we stayed at the Silk Road Hotel with its marvelous roof top view of sinuous sand dunes on the edge of the Gobi desert.
A short distance from the hotel many of the group enjoyed a camel ride to Whistling Sands Mountain with its Crescent Lake, also known as Sand Hill and Moon Spring.

In the evening Fred Espenak prepared us for the eclipse with a mix of photos, video and anecdotes of past eclipses as well as information pertinent to this eclipse and our viewing site.

The next day was spent at the Magao Grottoes, a truly incredible Buddhist site. Not all of the 491 caves are open to the public, but we were able to see several of the more interesting ones including the library and the cave containing the reclining Buddha.
We also viewed some earthen remnants of the Great Wall and visited the local market for shopping and the inevitable haggling over prices for local crafts.

The real excitement began on the morning of Aug. 1 as the group boarded the bus to travel to our eclipse-viewing site. The site was outfitted with shelter from the Sun and a tent where refreshments were available throughout the day, so the group was quite comfortable as we waited for the Moon to take that first bite out of the Sun.
Our site was just outside of Jinta, a small city whose name means Golden Pagoda and it was a golden site for us. Although clouds encroached on the horizon to the east, the sky above us and to the west remained clear.

Right on schedule the Moon made its presence known by breaking into the Sun's perfect circle. As second contact neared we felt the dropping light and the corona flashed into view. The curve of the Moon's shadow as visible in the sky as well as the planets Mercury and Venus. Much too soon the Sun's feathery halo disappeared into the brightness of the sky as totality ended. Amidst hugs and cheers we exchanged congratulations and promises to meet again in the Moon's shadow.

The next total eclipse occurs in southern China on July 22, 2009 - Spears Travel will be there! We hope you will too.

by Patricia T. Espenak