A little sightseeing

Beyond the computer stuff, we were also treated to a tour of the Terracotta Warriors, apparently the 8th Wonder of the World, and believe me they are wonderful. Over 8000 of them were built to protect the tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, who ascended the throne at age 13 in 246 BC. He managed to defeat the other 6 kingdoms and unify China in 221 B.C. thus beginning the Qin Dynasty. He also introduced the common writing system of Chinese characters as well as a common system of weights and measures, plus a network of roads that connected the entire Empire and allowed him to maintain control. Another one of his achievements was to unify the Great Wall, which had been a series of fortifications to keep out the Mongolian tribes. Don’t tell the Chinese, but back then Taiwan was not part of any of this, but was home to 12 different aboriginal tribes, the descendants of who are still around today.

The tomb and all the warriors were built as a defence in the afterlife, similar to many other cultures. The most amazing thing about these warriors is that each one has a unique face and pose, and they run the full gamut of an army from that time period: cavalry, archers, others with swords and other glorious instruments of mass murder. The Warriors have all been reconstructed by teams of patient archaeologists, as they were almost all destroyed in a peasant uprising soon after they were built. The whole ruined site was found by accident in 1974 by some local farmers digging a well. There are actually three different sites, the largest of which is probably the size of 4 football fields and 2 others which are not quite as big but where excavation is ongoing.


With 1.4 billion people, the Chinese have no problems doing things on a grand scale, weather it’s Terracotta Warriors, Great Walls, 3 Gorges Dams or a huge event like ACON5. There is something in the Chinese spirit that drives them to accomplish these huge projects. Thanks also must to the city of Xian for being such gracious hosts. It’s probably one of the most laid back and friendly “tourist” cities I’ve been to. And of course, let’s not forget all the hard work of ABIT for another successful and fun ACON event, plus key sponsors Intel, ATI, LG and Corsair for making it all happen. Gamers everywhere will be looking forward to next year’s tournament, where the rumoured favourite is Taipei.