Today we traversed over 3000 meters high to Mt Emei which has one of the 4 sacred buddhas. Our trip was a long one taking 3 hours by car to reach the nearby town. Stopping by in Leshan to see the Giant Buddha. We were told this requires a 3 hour hike, something we were not informed of. The hike is 35 stories down to the foot of the buddha and a 35 stories climb back up. There was a single file queue all the way down, so we opted to take the boat instead. Although we did not get to be close up to the Buddha and visit the surrounding park, we were able to take some good photos from a distance.

After we reached the foot of the mountain food was served at "Teddy Bear hotel" which seemed to cater for travellers looking to hike the mountains. After a traditional chinese lunch and a short walk to the bus station, we began the 2 hour journey up the mountain. Despite its lovely scenery it does become a bit samey after a while. However, it did distract us from one of the scarest drives I have ever been on. Buses were not built for mountain roads and turning was an "experience"!

The bus stopped near the top were a 30 min hike up steps brought us to the cable car. Walking up the steps, I was confronted by a monkey trying to grab the water from my bag buckle. This was certainly a scary experience as the monkey attached it's self to my leg and was not willing to let go. I think overall I was rather lucky, after detaching the bottle and dropping it the wild animal let go, grabbed the bottle and pierced it with his mouth. We were told this was not uncommon and had the bottle been in my hand I may have been bitten. Oveall it was certainly wasn't a nice experience!

This set the stage for what was to come. At the top of the mountain the hotel room we were given was the most disgusting room I have ever been in. We were told to come back and the room would be changed. We walked up to see the great buddist monuments while our new room was assigned. Arriving back at the hotel we were offered a choice of 3 rooms, all of them were filthy with thick grey dust on the red carpet and the bedding was damp, it was truely disgusting. The guide agreed with us and argued with the staff who responded by laughing at us. By this point we were tired and becoming increasingly frustrated. Our guide called his manager and we were evetually upgraded to the newer building (where our guide was already staying!). The new room was nicer and slightly cleaner and was welcomed after almost a 2 hour battle.

Hopefully the sunrise will make it worthwhile, because we can't wait to get down from here!