A wander through Xi'an

One of my favourite things to do in Xi'an is wander through the food section of the muslim market. It's a photographer's dream - you can't take more than a couple of steps without seeing something you want to take a picture of. And unlike muslim markets in other parts of the world, everything's jumbled together. There isn't a separate meat street or fruit street or fish street. Here you can have a shop selling nuts and seeds next to a roasted chicken stall next to a bakery - which makes for a delightful mix of colours, shapes and smells.

Typical Chinese butcher's shop

Roasted chickens for sale

Boy selling various meat kebabs

baked seed cakes
cakes and pastries for sale - some delicious, some not, and some with surprising centres like bean curd or vegetables!