Terra Cotta Warriors Worth the Wait!
I think we were one of the first families to purchase tickets many months ago for the Terra Cotta Warrior exhibit at National Geographic that opened last week. I know we have a special reason to jump on anything with Chinese culture since our fourth-grader was adopted from China and we do whatever we can to stay connected with her birth culture.
My only hesitance was the fact that she, as most nine-year-olds, is not a fan of the museum outing! Lucky for us this tied in very nicely with planning our first trip back to China with her next year, which will include a stop in Xi'an -- the home of the Terra Cotta Warriors.
I'm happy to say, she was mesmerized. (Unlike Washington Post art reviewer Blake Gopnik).
There was no whining and no pulling us through quickly to hit up the gift shop. I didn't even have to bribe her with the promise of ice cream at the end! PunditGirl was fascinated by the artifacts -- the details on each different warrior, the jade, the maps. They captured her in a way I haven't seen before. Maybe it was because she's older and her class is studying Ancient China in social studies this year. But I think part of the reason she was so engaged is also because she is practically jumping out of her skin over the idea of seeing her birth country for the first time since she was a baby.
Doing things like this brings her questions to the forefront, just as our trip will. I think she's ready. I hope she's ready, because we already have the plane tickets (thank you airline miles!!). I'm glad we had a little taste at home of what we're going to see when we're touring China and had a chance to start answering her increasingly complex questions about why she's here and not in China.
I've got a few months to prepare myself for the cultural and emotional overload I think is in store for us. I guess I'd better get started.
When Joanne isn't trying to wrap her head around the 15-hour-flight to Beijing, you can find her talking about motherhood and politics at her place, PunditMom.
Original DC Metro Moms post. Photo by PunditMom
