Day Twenty-One

Leshan - The Giant Buddha

Extremely early start, up at 5.30am & out by 6am. There was 6 of us in total (us 2 & 4 Dutch people) all squashed on to this little minibus. As there were a few of us that wanted to go to Leshan but because of the distance (about 2.5 hours away) & getting there (many different buses) it was cheaper & less hassle to all throw in & hire a private driver & bus instead of trying to get there ourselves.

We had no breakfast or anything but we were that tired we jumped on to our small seats & off we drove. The streets where pitch black, it was that early & the roads where very quiet so fingers crossed, less chance if an accident. After about 30 minutes in to the drive we got on the motorway. The most scary experience ever!!! The mist & fog on the road was that bad we couldn't see the car in front even though most drivers where driving along with their hazards on. There were cars & lorries coming past at all angles & our driver was just as bad, in & out & then back in - scary business so I just tried to close my eyes to go asleep & hopefully wake up in one piece at our destination of Leshan. We felt so sorry for the poor Dutch guy sat in the front seat next to the driver experiencing it up front.

Yipee, we finally arrived in Leshan. A bit stiff & sore we all piled out of the minibus. It was just after 8am so we all agreed to be back at our minibus for around 2pm, hopefully that will give us enough time to do the Great Buddha Park properly. Off we set to the entrance. We tried to blag the entrance desk using our passports as student passes that we were students but they where having none of it - surprisingly the Dutch managed their discount tickets. Inside & we went in a different direction to the Dutch people, we where finally on our own.

We walked up some steps & we came to a mini waterfall. Up some more steps & we came to a Buddha statue. The statue was set in the wall & he was big & fat & made of stone. It was great because we had got there so early there was nobody around what so ever. We hiked further up the cliff side as we followed the signs for the giant Buddha. We came to an opening of a temple & there was incense burning on a big golden trough like box. We by passed the temple & headed straight for the Giant Buddha. We came to some metal railings & we could see it's head. The Buddha is so big & it has been carved out of the cliffside. After seeing it's head we had to take the staircase which led right down the side of the cliff to get to the bottom by it's feet. The cliffside was a shear drop & the stone staircase carved in the cliff was no better. I was shattered each time we got to the next platform. Have these people not heard of lifts?! As we climbed down the steps the river looked beautiful but the air was still extremely misty & you could hardly see to the other side.

After the 15 minute climb down to the Buddha's feet you could then appreciate the enormity of it. It's big toe nail was probably the size of me if I lay down. It was so peaceful as nobody was around. In between the Buddha's feet there was also a gold box which had incense sticks burning in it. At the front of box was round yellow decorative cushions which are used for kneeling on to pray. We watched the ripples on the water for a while in the river & we tried to take photos of the whole Buddha from bottom to top but with the air being that misty it was like the buddha's head was in the clouds.

Now for the climb back up to the Buddha's head. We thought that we would have do the small stairs leading up the side of the cliff again but there was a different exit. The exit led us through these red caves which had big steps that not only went up the cliff but it also led us around & we would see more of the river. Out on the river where men on these tiny wooden boats & they were fishing. When we climbed back to the top on the other side of the Buddha we decided to follow signs for the fishing village.

We walked through lots of grassy areas until we reached these massive steps which led down to the water so we had to go & check it out. In the distance we could see fisherman on bamboo rafts with their rods in the water. We sat peacefully for a while by the waters edge & enjoyed the scenery.

Back up & on another path we followed through to the fishing village. There where small shops all along the pathway & if you were hungry you could go in to the small restaurants & get freshly caught fish from the river. Passing through the fishing village we came to some steps & at the top we could see the most magnificent looking bridge that had arches & it led across the river to the other side. The bridge was one of the most beautiful sights we have seen in China.

We rushed down the steps & on to the bridge. We were desperate to get on the bridge to take a better look. The bridge was beautiful & it's design was lovely & traditional. We walked over the bridge & to the other side of the river, the view from the other side of the river was beautiful. On the other side there was a lovely temple & a monastery. We climbed up these steps which took us far in to the grassy area & we climbed higher & higher. The sun was shining & I was roasting, my knees were beginning to hurting with all the walking as we seem to have trekked quite a way in to the woodland area.

We reached the monastery & the temple so we spent some time looking around. The place was extremely quiet & there was hardly anybody around only monks or workers. The further we got in to the monastery the more peaceful it became. We walked around the gardens & without noticing we had climbed really high. We walked around the monks garden area & there where a few ladies dotted around who were gardening & looking after the plants that made the area look so beautiful. Walking around the gardens we stumbled on some incredible views & we soon realised that we were looking across the river & down to where the fishing village was.

On our way back & out of the garden we approached a building & we could hear chanting so we went to further explore! Inside the monastery building there where lovely shrines. In a special looking building there were monks in orange robes chanting & playing a tiny drum on the table. As he was chanting prayers he & other monk would tab the drum. It was fascinating to watch. We headed back towards the direction we had come from. I was starting to feel shaky as we had walked for hours but we still hadn't had any breakfast. On route back we came across lots of steps down on to a pathway which we had not seen before so out of curiosity we followed the steps, possibly this could lead to the river & boats where maybe we could take a ride on the river in order to see the Buddha in all it's glory. The steps were not so steep but you could tell it was a long way down. God knows how I'm going to get back up.

Down either side of the big stone steps were nice colourful potted plants & there must have been hundreds of them. Climbing further down there were more workers that were gardening & making sure the plants we preened & looking nice. At the bottom of all these steps was another part of the monastery & more pots of plants. Again as we walked closer we could hear all the monks chanting. The building didn't look like a normal monastery so we think that maybe its where the monks sleep.

We were still looking for a boat of some sort to take us on the river so we walked in the opposite direction of the monastery & there was an a pathway leading to village. We entered the small village & it was like nothing that we had seen before. The houses were more like shacks & there was lots of people just milling around. As usual we got looked at every step of the way through the village. It felt like a scene out of The Good, The Bad & The Ugly. The only difference was that the village looked good, the people lived bad & they sure looked ugly. Lots of people were sitting around playing cards & as we walked by they would all stop & stare. Walking further in to the village it looked like an old dusty place. There were dogs running around & not to mention chickens everywhere. It was a definite certainty that these people in the village do not see western people especially western women like me, that's for sure. It didn't seem to be a place we could get a boat from so we turned & headed back. On the way back we saw a Chinese man squatting outside his house, he had a tin bowl in one hand & he was brushing his teeth with the other hand. It was great to see & this is how I imagined China to be like.

We had to march all the way back up the steps to the top & then follow the path back over to the bridge. We walked for ages when we began to realise actually how far we had walked. We managed to tackle all the steps back down & over the bridge. Again we started to follow the directions for the Great Buddha as if we got there then we knew our bearings. On our way along we came across a platform which we walked up to. On the platform was a beautiful waterfall that fell from the top of a cliff & trickled down in to a pool where there were fish & turtles basking in the sun. On the other side there were rows & rows of Chinese writing & places for people sit down & relax. We got to the Buddha's head & the place was now heaving!!! The little staircase down the side of the cliff edge was full with people right the way down. There was no way that we could be crammed on that staircase as it looked mayhem so we were glad we went early.

We took a different route back towards the entrance of the Buddha park where we first started & there were many other things to see. We went passed the Buddha & we took a quick look around the temple we by passed earlier. Inside was lots of people mainly all visitors & this place wasn't peaceful. As there were so many people we didn't hang around too long. We went back down the path toward where we came in but we couldn't get out. In order to get out we had a short walk passed lots if Chinese tourists with their guides & through under a lively laid out walkway which had a lovely a decorative bamboo archway. Through the archway we came to a big square & that was the exit. We headed outside & on to the street & we decided we would walk along the river front to see if we could get a boat.

We walked for about 15 minutes & we where back at the entrance. Further passed the entrance we continued to walk right along the river front. There were lots of people coming from that direction & when we looked over the river barrier walls we could see tourist boats so we headed down to take a look. Yeah, we had finally found the boat that we had trekked all around for. Getting closer to the ferry terminal we realised the price to get on the boat & it was only to get on & linger in front of the Buddha for 10 minutes so we thought sod that. For the extortion prices we would want a proper boat trip so we decided to head back towards where the minibus had dropped us off to see if we could get some food.

Walking back along the strip we found this semi ok looking restaurant so we went inside to eat. The restaurant itself wasn't too bad it was just a shame about some of the Chinese people that were eating in there. The table next to us had a big group of people on it & every single person stared at us. Some even slightly turned the chair around after they had finished eating to get a better look. They were all smoking at the table & the worst thing that was knocking me sick though was the fact that whilst they were enjoying a meal they would take it in turns to get up to the bin next to us & violently spit in it. Proper dirty disgusting tw**ts, that's all we can say. I couldn't finished my meal after watching them so I hurried Andy along so we could leave. There was just no need for what they were doing!!!

We all got crammed back in to the minibus & headed back towards Chengdu. as we drove we passed little villages that looked really poverty stricken. They were selling items but not on a stall but on the floor. All the items were laid out across the street. It was China looking it's poorest. We finally made it back in one piece & we decided to head straight to our room for some well earned shut eye.

We had slept for hours without realising & we woke up mega hungry so we decided to head out & go back to the nice cheap restaurant we found the night before but this time only ordering meals for 2 not 4 people. After eating we headed back & seen the dancers in the plaza again all shaking their thing to the Chinese music - it felt a bit like déjà vu! We bought some ice-creams on the way back to the hostel & just strolled back along the streets taking our time to enjoy our last night in Chengdu.

We now needed to be all ready for the longest train journey of our life's tomorrow as we where heading for Yangzhou......