Premiere landmark visitors will encounter in Xi’an(西安Xī’ān) is its ancient City Wall, which stretches just outside the railway station. It is the most complete ancient city wall(古城墙gŭchéngqiáng) in China and one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world. Xi’an was originally a walled city, and even today the wall is considered a landmark dividing the city into the inner part and the outer part. The city wall is massive – it is tall, long and thick. The South Gate and North Gate are the two main entrances to the inner city. The city itself is neatly arranged along the city wall.
Solid as mountain, the city wall’s thickness is greater than its height. The Wall is composed of a series of military installations including the moat, drawbridge, gate building, Jianlou Tower, Zhenglou Tower (the main building), Jiaolou Tower (turret), Dilou Tower (watchtower), Nv’er Qiang (parapet) and crenel. Complete City Wall, together with the moat and Around-Xi’an Park, has become a must-see scenic spot of Xi’an city.
