ChinaTeacher

THOUSAND BUDDHA CLIFFS   (Photos – Look for My Links on the right side of this screen and click on Photos!) 

I was told not to bother visiting the Thousand Buddha Cliffs – they said it’s not a big enough attraction.  But I am so glad I did!  However, it was not a direct or easy trip to make.  First of all, I had to take the long-distance bus to Jiajiang Bus Station from Leshan City.  Then, in the middle of the highway, they transferred me to a local bus heading to Jiajiang.  The people were so kind!  On the local bus, the lady ticket-taker was amazing.  Jiajiang appears to have a very high ‘seniors’ population, as most of the bus passengers were quite old.  At every stop, she would give them a ‘hand up’ onto the bus and then make sure they were settled before letting the driver move on.  When they saw me, I greeted them in Chinese which brought huge smiles to their faces!  We enjoyed some ‘simple’ conversations, with everyone saying gracious goodbyes to me as they left the bus.  Finally we got to my stop, and 3 of the old ladies joined me during the walk through a small village leading to the cliffs.  They told me they visit this place every day because of its numerous hillside temples.  Unfortunately I didn’t have time to also check out the hillside temples with them so we soon parted ways as I spotted the ticket booth for the Thousand Buddha Cliffs. 

The toll for this ‘small’ attraction was a mere 7 RMB ($1).  I asked if they could store my bags for a small charge (I was enroute to the holy mountain of Emei Shan that day), and the man agreed, but refused to take any money for this extra service.  I love visiting small villages! 

My first view of the cliff carvings practically blew me away!   I don’t know if there are actually a thousand Buddha carvings, but there were certainly a large number of incredible carvings of Buddhas, and other religious deities.  For the many locals who pass these cliffs each day on their way to work, the carvings present a wonderful diversion for those who have to lug their bicycles up the steep steps to the village.

Walking back through the village, I was quite taken with the activities going on there.  A large group of musicians had gotten together and seemed to be having a great old time.  They beckoned me to join them, but I knew they would probably ask me to sing, so I refused and continued on, hoping to catch the next local bus to get to Emei Shan by lunch time.  The ticket taker on the second bus wasn’t half as nice as the first one I met.  But, I did make friends with many of the old ladies on board.

I got a little worried at the bus station when the staff there told me “miao” (No) when I asked for the bus to Emei Shan – I was shocked!  If there was no bus, then how was I going to get there??  But the lady told me to wait a minute and sure enough, after about 10 minutes she pointed down the street to where a blue bus was stopped.  Apparently I was to get on that bus.  It was indeed headed to Emei Shan!  My side trip to the Thousand Buddhas Cliffs was a most satisfying one.

EMEI SHAN

Mount Emei is the highest of the four sacred Buddhist mountains in China, reaching a height of 10,337 ft.  Temples and monasteries are scattered over the mountain and pilgrims spend days climbing to the top of Mt. Emei to offer prayers to the Buddha.

I stayed at the Teddy Bear Hostel at Emei Shan (next to Baoguo Temple bus station) and couldn’t have been happier.  I got the most beautiful and luxurious private room (with bath!) for just 150 RMB.  I was told the price would be going up to 300 RMB the next day because of the National Holiday.  But, wow, hostels have certainly come a long way.  You can pay 30-40 RMB for a bunkbed in a dorm with shared facilities, right up to a luxurious private room with bath like mine.

My time was short, so I immediately took the easy way up the mountain.  I jumped on a bus which takes you to Jieyin Dian Hall, close to the top of the mountain (2 hrs each way).  From there it is a 5-minute Cable Car to the summit, or so I’m told.  But, after arriving at Jieyin Dian Hall, it was so foggy that I couldn’t believe the Cable Car to the Peak, just a 20-minute walk away, would be any better.  So, I got back on the bus and came down the mountain.  Big Mistake!  I found out later that ‘all was clear’ at the Peak – damn!  I wouldn’t have time to do it again before I left Emei Shan for Chengdu. 

I did meet two wonderful girls on the bus coming down on the bus.  Both are from Shanghai, near where I live, but one of them attends university in Chengdu.  I do hope to visit Emei Shan again, but it will be much better if I come with a small group, so we can do some hiking and stay overnight in some monasteries, and also see some of the wild monkeys living on the mountain.  I’m coming back!
 

China’s National Holiday takes place October 1-7 and to make the most of my upcoming holiday, I have rescheduled a few classes so I can have 10 days to enjoy the sights in and around Chengdu, Sichuan Province.

I traveled alone, which can be both good and bad. It started off great – I sat next to 2 Chinese businessmen on the plane from Hangzhou to Chengdu – they speak no English whatsoever. But, I brought my ‘handy-dandy’ dictionary with me, so I enjoyed a wonderful ‘chat’ with the man next to me!

On exiting the airport, I found the cooler weather in Chengdu so refreshing after so many months in stifling heat back in Hangzhou. The taxi touts pounced on me as soon as I exited the doors, but I successfully found my way to the Long-Distance bus and paid just 5 RMB to get to downtown Chengdu. My destination was the Long-Distance Bus Station where I hoped to catch a bus immediately for Leshan, approx. 2 hrs away.

You know, it’s hard to avoid getting cheated in China. Despite all my research and my ‘less than adequate’ knowledge of Chinese, they still got me! I arrived in Leshan okay, and then a nice lady lured me over to her ‘taxi’ for my ride into Leshan town. But，once I accepted her offer, I found myself climbing into a ‘pedicab’ for the ride, not the taxi she pointed to (so clever!). I only consented to the pedicab because I realized she was going to have to pedal me all the way into town – lots of legwork for her because I’m no lightweight! It was a long ride for her so, to be honest, I tipped her as well.

My hotel, the infamous Taoyuan Hotel was just ‘adequate’ – the first room they showed me was quite dirty, but not to be undone, they showed me another room which was adequate for 100 RMB. I only stayed there because the location is very central. The ferry docks for boats taking you to see the Leshan Giant Buddha are just across the street! My advice to others would be to look around for a ‘cleaner’ hotel.

The time I set aside for Leshan was quite short so, after settling into my room, I headed out to the Ferry landing. I’m glad I arrived here just before the holiday – not too many people around yet. I met up with others on the boat, a tour group from Taiwan and another tour group from Malaysia. I had a great chat with a girl traveling with her family from Taiwan. Later on, as we approached the Giant Leshan Buddha towering over us, I had a great talk with a young Malaysian fellow – turned out that he is a tour guide who was taking his clients on a trip through China, with a local Chinese guide. I took tons of pictures of that towering Buddha, and he took several of me with the ‘big guy’ in the background.

It is hard to describe how immense this sculpture truly is. My research tells me it took 80-90 years to carve the Giant Leshan Buddha into the side of the cliffs – the sculptors even went so far as to carve drainage holes throughout the Buddha sculpture so water drains away without damaging the buddha’s surface. And the patterns carved into his robes and hair were all designed to drain water down and away from the Buddha as well, very clever indeed.

Leshan Town is much bigger than I expected there is a ‘new’ town adjacent to the old town center which, thankfully, has been left as is.

During my afternoon walk, I came upon a Nursing University right in the centre of town! Choirs of nurses were scattered throughout the campus, and appeared to be practicing for a singing competition. They kindly allowed me to take some pictures, but then of course I had to reciprocate – I felt like a celebrity! The girls were so excited to see me as they only have one foreign teacher on staff, from Australia, with whom they can practice their English. I stayed for a short time, answering as many questions as I could.

Just around the corner from the university, I found the infamous Yang’s Restaurant which is mentioned in the travel guides, and also on the internet. It has moved again, to 186 Baita Lu (2^nd floor). Mr. Yang welcomed me to his restaurant, more of a family restaurant, it is quite small and is part of his home. Mr. Yang has excellent English and has tons of stories to tell. He showed me albums of photos showing the people he has met and the tours he can sell me. Over dinner, we chatted about his experiences and he again told me about his tours. Unfortunately I was not staying in Leshan long enough to take a tour so, not wanting to take too much of his time, I thank him for his hospitality and continued on my way, I am sure that a tour with Mr. Yang would focus on some of the ‘untravelled’ areas around Leshan. Maybe another time.

I spent that evening strolling along the river road enjoying all kinds of entertainment along the way. There was a huge National Day performance on one of the many water-side stages. In the distance there was a huge group of women performing exercises to music – I thought it was another performance. Just outside my hotel, next to the water, were perhaps 100 people singing as a choir – the sound was so beautiful that I simply had to stop for a bit.

Most tourists who come to Leshan, do so in tour groups, so it’s not uncommon to see 20-50 foreigners parading along the streets, shopping, buying fruit, taking photos etc. Few seem to have the time, or flexibility to stop and try to engage the locals in conversation. But, this is what I like to do the most! In Leshan I met so many people, old people, university students, children, you name it. And, because I was traveling alone, people’s curiosity would get the better of them so that they often attempted to approach me. 

(Photos – Look for My Links on the right side of this screen and click on Photos!) 

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