14th Day of Training...well, not really...went to Luoyang.
Woke up at 6AM today to get ready and catch the earliest bus I could to Luoyang. I got out to wait about 645am and I caught a bus around 650. I swear, this has got to be one of the dirtiest buses I have been on in China. Just bad. The trip to Luoyang, the ancient capital of China for the early dynasties, was pretty hard. Bumpy roads dirt everywhere, constant stops where the driver disappeared for 5 minutes at a time. But that's China. Also, outside of the Songshan Mountains, Henan really stinks. I mean, the smell. Its like rotten food, trash, and horsepies all wrapped into one. At times it smells like Greenfield Village...by the horseshit areas. Its also the same smell by the Tagou cafeterias. Yuck.
YOu would think that the ancient capital of China would be a huge metropolis of culture, but it really isnt. Apparently, back in the day, it was sacked big time and never recovered. In the 60s, the communists put back in some new red life with industry and now 6 million workers/comrades live there.
There are a few things that they have though. They have:
1. Longmen Shiku (Dragon Gate Grottoes)
these were cave and rock carvings of Buddhas and religious sculptures that dealt with the stories and disciples of Buddha. I can't remember the exact number, but there are like over 7000 carved scenes or individuals. THere is some amazing stuff there. I got lots of pictures. Its a shame that the weather wasn't a bit nicer, it was overcast. Some of the most memorable stuff was the 10,000 Buddha cave. It was carved out room with 10,000 buddhas carved into the walls. Really amazing. There was another one that was quite amazing that I forgot the name. There was also a couple huge statues of Buddha and protectors and stuff. Giant. I mean, huge.
There was also a temple that was quite nice. It was on a hill. THere was also the White Gardens, which was nothing really. Just a place in a bunch of trees. It was nice, but nothing special.
2.Guanlin Si
This is the location of the tomb of Guan Yu, the chinese Lord of War. There were also other Taoist Temple buildings here too. Guan Yu was a general during the 3 Kindoms period and many stories have been fabricated of him and in the Qing Dynasty, the emporer labeled him as the Taoist Lord of War. You may recognize him at the chinese resturants. He is the fat guy with the long fu-manchu mustache that always carries a big Gwan-Dao. He usually has incense sticks burning in front of him. The chinese pray to him alot for eveything. He was considered a wise and powerful general, he isn't seen as a bad man, eventhough he is the Lord of War.
The temple area was, eh. I was let down by his tomb. It was just a big mound of earth that was enclosed in octogonal wall built during the Qing Dynasty. I was expecting something more symbolic, like trumpets and fanfare and statues of him surrounding his gravestone which would have a giant Gwan-Dao stuck in the headstone with the chinese name as a translation of Exaliber, and there would be a prophecy written that said when a person was able to remove said Gwan-Dao from the headstone, that person would be the reincarnation of Guan Yu and would bring about the glorified future of the Chinese and march it across the world. Thats what I was hoping for. I just got a load of grass and trees. So lame.
3. Baima Si (White Horse Temple)
I didn't see it, didnt' have enuff time, but it was the first ever Buddhist Temple on Chinese soil. The story goes that the monks went west and in Afghanistan about 100AD, met two monks and they brought back a bunch of stuff on white horses and built the temple there. Hence the name. The original temple is gone, but it was rebuilt or had more things built on the area since then in different dynasties.
I got to Luoyang around 9AM and inquired on some people about the location of the hidden rebel base...whoops, i mean, bus #81 that will take me to the Longmen Shiku. I found the bus and it took us almost 45 minutes to get to the temple. It would have been quicker, but it had to stop all the time and I picked the bus up at the start point, and Longmen was the end point. It was only 1RMB though. Can't complain. But it was hot. Outside of the Songshan mountains, its hot and humid. Yucky.
Longmen was great.
Guanlin Si was eh.
I tried to shop a little at Longmen, but all the stores were selling the same junk that I knew no one I knew wanted.
I grabbed the bus back to the bus station and hopped a bus back to Shaolin at 415pm. I was walking alot and I was tired.
I didnt eat much today. I did have some awesome tomatoes and eggs though. The guy ripped me on the price though. Cheats. Oh well. It was just a couple rmb more.
The bus ride back was better, but hotter and more crowded. I got back to Tagou and pretty much chilled the rest of the night. I am spent. I am "nekid". Ask a british person what that means.
Goodnite.