Dinner diplomacy: Hors d'oeuvre, assorted veggies and sorbet for PM Modi in Xi'an

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was treated to a scrumptious spread of Hors d'oeuvre, assorted vegetables with

pancake and red bean rice along with fruits and sorbet at the power packed dinner with President Xi Jinping in Xi'an.

Other items that made it to the dinner table were sour and spicy soup with fried dough, bean curd with mushroom and braised asparagus and

bamboo fungus with lotus root.

MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted a picture of the menu, saying, "Chinese specials tonight. Banquet dinner in the honour of PM @narendramodi in Xian."

Prime Minister Modi was earlier accorded a traditional tang dynasty welcome at South City Wall in Xi'an. He also witnessed a grand

cultural programme at the Pot City Courtyard.

The Prime Minister presented replicas of a stone casket of Buddhist relics and a stone statue of Lord Buddha to President Jinping with

whom he held summit-level talks in Xi'an. The two leaders discussed wide ranging issues including peace and tranquility on the border,

trade imbalance and investment climate during the talks.

Prime Minister Modi also appreciated the Chinese leader for warmly receiving him outside Beijing.

The Prime Minister also visited the terracotta warriors and a Xian pagoda connected to Xuanzang, also known as Tripitaka, the monk who

bought the Buddhist sutras to China from India thousands of years ago.