The Temples in Qingyuan

I finally found the time to do spend a day sightseeing. Unfortuantely, it happened to be raining heavily ALL day! And it was also very cold. Despite the weather, it was a wonderful trip. It is an experience I would definitely like to have again in another part of China.

The day began at 7am. It was myself and six other teachers. We took a taxi to the main bus station in Guangzhou, and then got onto a coach bus to Qinyyuan (proncounced "Ching-yuan") It was almost a two-hour bus ride to Qingyuan from the bus station. Then from there we hired a private boat (500 yuan), so about $7 each. We had our own drivers take us around for the entire day! It was rainy, cold and miserable when we got to the first temple- Feilai. We had to walk up a few flights of stairs to enter the temple, which was situated on the steep riverbank of a gorge. It was founded about 1, 400 years ago, the current buildings are mainly from the Ming Dynasty. It s absolutely beautiful!! It's hard to imagine all the work that went into making the temples and the sculptures. There were a lot of tourists, mostly Chinese, so it was quite busy. We climbed to the top. It was green and peaceful. The rain also added a nice touch. The walk up to the pagoda was very soothing.

After about an hour and a half, we got back onto to boat, where our boat drivers- a cute older couple, had lunch waiting for us. It was about noon. They had fish...which we got to choose. I of course, didn't eat any, and instead bought a cup of instant (beef- yuk!) flavoured noodles. After a short boat ride, we arrived at the temples in Felxia. These ones were supposed to be more "spooky." Well for one thing it was a LOT more difficult to get to the top! We climbed and climbed for about an hour and a half. There were stone steps, which were slippery from the moss, and very steep! I was surrounded by beautiful green trees and plants. Only four of the teacher made it to the top! It was definitely worth it though. The temples were maze-like. It was at the top of the hillside, and there is nothing around but trees. It was so quiet, peaceful, and serene. I was in awe. There were two stone-walled daoist temples to explore. While up in the highest one, we saw a group of monks come to pray. I was too shy to take a picture. I cannot imagine them having to make that climb everyday!!

After spending some time at the temple, it was time to come down. That was the hard part! I almost fell a couple times. My legs were wobbly and literally felt like jello. Most of us passed out from exhaustion out on the bus ride back. It was a truly awe-inspiring experience, and while I was there, I was wishing my family and friends were with me to experience the beauty of the place. I guess you will have to settle for my pictures, which do not do it justice!