Emei Shan (Mt. Emei), Ganoderma

We left Leshan and our driver headed to Emei Shan. Emei Shan is 130km southwest of Chengdu and is one of the four famous Buddhist mountains (the others are Wu Tai Shan, Jiu Hua Shan, and Putuo Shan). Emei Shan rises 10,226 feet and is a Unesco World Heritage Site. We started off with a two hour bus ride up the mountain taking only small backpacks with a change of clothes. Our suitcases were left behind. The drive was beautiful with mountain streams and bamboo blending into the mountain scenery. We made a stop or two on the way where I took pictures of beautiful specimens of wild Ganoderma (Japanese: Reishi mushroom) that were for sale. Wild Ganoderma is rarely available in the USA these days. Almost ganoderma imported into the USA is cultivated and is of uniform size and shape so seeing wild ganoderma (and from a special mountain at that) was a real treat.

I also spotted fresh Pseudoginseng (Chinese: San Qi or Tian Qi) which is an important herb for stopping bleeding. Usually when we buy Pseudoginseng here in the US the color is dark black. There were lots of other specimens of herbs for sale in the store which made in quite interesting for me.

When we reached our stopping point we then took a half hour hike up the mountain until we got to the cable lift which took us to a hotel at approximately 10,000 feet. At the top the air was cool and fresh and we were glad to have brought our jackets. We took about 15 minutes to get settled in our rooms and then headed up to the top to see the Golden Summit Temple (Jinding Si).

Top Right and Left: Ganoderma (Reishi).

Bottom: Pseudoginseng (San qi or Tian qi).

For more information on Emei Shan, click on this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emei_Shan

Chengdu, Leshan Grand Buddha

When we arrrived in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, we asked our guide, Ying Ying, about the earthquake. She said it was very scary and that she (and probably the rest of the city) slept outside for two nights. We didn't spend much time in Chengdu but the city is very interesting. Here's a link for more information:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chengdu

We left Chengdu and headed south to Leshan to see the Grand Buddha. The Grand Buddha was built in the Tang Dynasty starting at 713 AD. It is 233 feet tall and an amazing work of art. You can see it two ways. One is to walk down from the top. The other is to see it from the river. I thought we would have a better view from the river so we took a boat on the river. The Buddha is at the confluence of three huge rivers and at one point we could see the muddy water of one river mix with another river. There is a distinct line in the water where the two rivers meet.

For more information see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leshan_Giant_Buddha

Top Right: The Grand Buddha. Note the people at the base of the statue.

Middle: The Face of the Grand Buddha.

Top Left: People walking down the stairway along the side of the Grand Buddha.

Temple Dog

We entered the last temple we were to visit in Taiyuan and saw a playful German Shepard trying to catch the water out of a hose and getting soaked in the process. After the game was over he sat on a bench while a man read his book.

After we left the temple, we had lunch and then were off to the airport. Our next stop was Chengdu. This city of 4.1 million was only 60 miles south of the epicenter of the May 12, 2008 earthquake. Over 80,000 people perished in the 8.0 earthquake. Chengdu did not sustain any damage but we weren't sure if we would feel any aftershocks while we were there.

Top Right: wet Temple dog.

Top Left: Incense Burner.

Bottom Right: Detail of Incense Burner.

Bottom Left: Temple Drum.

Taiyuan's Twin Pagoda Temple

We arrived in Taiyuan after a long drive. Taiyuan has a history going back to 500BC. We were taken to see the Twin Pagoda Temple. These ancient stone towers are 13 stories tall. You can climb up the dark, steep stairways to about the tenth floor. At each floor in the center is a small room and a window looking out. The center of the floor has a wood grate over it and you can look all the way down. The picture of our guide Guo Bao, Mark, and Hannah was taken in one of the rooms.

Top Right: The Twin Pagoda Temple.

Top Left: (left to Rt) Guo Bao, Mark Van Loan, Hannah Czehatowski.

Bottom Right: Hannah descending the stairs. The camera flash lights it up but actually there is very little light in the stairwell or the rooms and because it is so narrow you don't want to meet someone going in the opposite direction.

Bottom Left: Another view of one of the Pagoda's.

For more information on the City of Taiyuan, click this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiyuan

On the Road to Taiyuan

Driving in China is not for the faint of heart. As Hannah said one day (referring to the heart-pumping action experienced on a drive) "I don't know why they need amusement parks."

We had plenty of thrills but always arrived safely. It was not uncommon for our drivers to pass in a solid line zone (no-passing in the USA) or be in either lane on curvy mountain roads or for us to be on a road where two lanes are made into three or more. Chinese drivers must have some uncanny sixth sense about driving.

Here's an example.

Picture Top Right: We were on a heavily traveled section of bumpy dirt road with lots of big trucks on the road. Our driver wanted to get past the trucks so we started passing with the rest of the cars.

Top Left: In an instant it got pretty tight as we entered a curve and the space between the trucks coming and going narrowed quickly on both sides of us. Whew!

1,080 Steps Down the Mountain

We decided to walk down the mountain rather than take the chair lift down. Exercise is good and the challege of going down 1,080 steps appealed to all of us. By the way, the stairs, as well as all the materials for building the temples and objects in the temples, were all carried up by laborers - true men of steel. The porters who carry building stones up have calf muscles that look like iron. You can't help but think about how difficult it is as you take the long walk down and meet these men going up.

Our legs were starting to feel like jelly by the time we made it to the bottom and we just had light backpacks on.

Part way down we encountered a railing covered in locks. We learned that Chinese couples like to have their names engraved on the locks, make a wish for themselves, and attach the lock to the rail. The key is then thrown over the edge to seal their wish.

Our guide, Guo Bao, suggested that go to another temple this day because the next day we had a long drive to Taiyuan and had to catch a plane to Chengdu

Top Right: Michel Czehatowski, Mark Van Loan, Guo Bao descending the mountain by stairs.

Top Left: Locks on a rail

Bottom: The last temple tour of the day.

Wu Tai Shan Temple

After getting off the lift we toured a scenic mountain temple (top right. All temples have incense burners in front of them (top left). The designs and size varies and they can be square, rectagular, or round. All are intricate works of art though. Bottom right is a closeup of the artwork on the incense burner. The Chinese character in the center is fo (second tone or "fo2") which is the word for Buddha. On the sides are dragons columns and Lotus flowers (Botanical name: Nelumbinis) in vases.