In Xi’an, the historic capital ofthe Middle Kingdom, as well as innumerable copies of the warriors of the famous terracotta army, available in every conceivable shape and size, there are also on sale lovely silk scrolls and the characteristic three-coloured porcelain of the Tang dynasty. The best places for shopping are the Arts and Crafts Stores on Nanxin Jie, Nan Dajie and Dong Dajie.
National sports By far the most popular sport in China is table tennis. Chinese players have
dominated the world table tennis scene for many years, and foreign players nowadays often come to China to learn the finer points of the game. Other sports such as gymnastics, athletics, badminton, swimming, basket ball and volley ball also have their followings, and football is fast gaining ground as a game in which women as well as men are already starting to excel.
Martial arts There is a long tradition of the martial arts in China, where they take more
than a hundred different forms. Dating back to several centuries b.c. and originally developed for self-defence, in the course of time these have become techniques for physical and spiritual relaxation.
Recent years have seen a growing interest abroad in the martial arts of Gongfu (kungfu as it used to be called, wushu in Chinese) and Shaolin, the form of unarmed combat developed by the monks of Shaolin Monastery. Younger people in particular prefer physical training in the more aggressive forms of this kind of sport, performed at high speed with jump kicks and lightning blows and using fists, fingers, and feet.
Gongfu and Taiji (shadow boxing) entail the exercise of mental as well as physical faculties with a view to strengthening the muscles and improving breathing and bodily tone, although Gongfu also uses weapons such as swords, staves, etc. and calls for greater speed of reaction and considerable agility.
