Hangzhou, China – March 24 – Part II

This post is an attempt to recreate the two hours worth of writing I did the Sunday before last and which was lost forever into the great unknown. I think it might be in the cloud. After all, “no one understands the cloud.” The problem is that the prose that flowed through my fingertips that day lives on in my memory as the best thing I have ever written. I am fairly certain that it was witty, entertaining, educational… and never to be replicated. Hence I am already disappointed by what I am about to write, but I hope that you will enjoy it anyway.

The truth is that Hangzhou was a stunning city and deserves two posts. The Lingyin Temple and the Hall of Five Hundred Arhats are among the most incredible places I have ever visited. I am glad that I will get to write about them more in this post than I did in the last in order to keep it shorter.

Last week I left off after we had left the West Lake. Our trip took us through the outskirts of Hangzhou, where there green tea was cultivated on every open scrap of land. It was beautiful sight.

When we arrived at the Lingyin Temple I was not prepared for what I was about to see. Normally when I travel, I am on my own and therefore I research each locale in depth to decide where I am going to spend my precious time. This trip was arranged as a group tour, and therefore I had read very little about all of the places that we visited. This turned out to be the most incredible surprise.

The hillsides surrounding the temple are literally covered with carvings of the Buddha. The Feilai Feng or Flying Peak is an outcropping of limestone set into sandstone mountains. Because it is so different from its surroundings, the legend is that it flew to China from India, hence the name.

Over 330 statues of the Buddha were carved in the limestone between the 10th and 14th centuries. Each one was more impressive than the last.

The entrance to the main cave reminded me of the mouth in a craggy face. I felt as though we were being swallowed as we entered.

This cave is dedicated to the bodhisattva Guanyin.

The hole at the top illuminates the cave on sunny days and is known as the one thread of heaven.

Here are more views of the cave.

Outside we were greeted by more Buddhas in every direction we turned.

I also appreciated the wildlife in the streams that ran beside the cliffs.

I could have spent all day at the Flying Peak, but alas our time was limited. I rushed to see as much as I could before we were hurried on the next destination.

The Lingyin Temple means the Temple of the Soul’s Retreat. My soul was refreshed by the surroundings, and one day I hope to return to spend more time there.

From the Feilai Feng, we went to the main temple. Everything competed for my attention. From the walkways to the people, everything was of interest and I lacked the time to take it all in.

Lingyin Temple is beautiful.

I took these pictures while standing in front of the main hall.

Inside the temple is the statue of Sakyamuni. It is prohibited to take pictures inside the temple, but I was able to get some from outside.

All the buildings of the temple were impressive, but the most stunning for me was the Hall of the Five Hundred Arhats. Arhats are humans who have achieved enlightenment or nirvana, and their statues line both sides of the aisles in the shape of a Buddhist swastika. It is one of the most amazing sights I have beheld. Again, I could not take pictures inside, but I borrowed this one from here. If you google “Hall of the Five Hundred Arhats” you will find more images.

I must return to the Lingyin Temple to wander the grounds at my leisure, but I am happy to at least had the opportunity to view them briefly this year.

From there we traveled by bus to Longjing Village famous for its green tea. Along the way we were again surrounded by tea fields.

We went to a tea garden to experience the notorious beverage ourselves. While the tea house was beautiful, the experience was disappointing. It was mostly one long pitch to get us to buy really expensive tea.

As we were served tea, the hostess explained to us why Longjing tea was far superior to any other green tea produced around the world. She regaled us with the many reasons that we should purchase not just any Longjing tea, but the Emperor’s Cut, because to buy anything less would leave our loved ones feeling disappointed with the gifts that we would give them. She arranged an incredible deal for us. If we would purchase just two large tins of the Emperor’s Cut for a mere $290, she would throw in a small tin for free. She would even allow us to charge the purchase on our credit cards.

Douglas almost fell for the spiel. Luckily for him, I am known for being a bit of a tight wad. I was able to find Longjing tea a few days later in a grocery store where we bought a couple of tins and several large bags of tea for less than $30.

One thing that did impress me was the demonstration of how green tea helps to clean toxins out of your body. First the hostess poured white rice into a clear glass and then added Coca-cola. When she extracted the liquid, the rice was stained black. Then, she poured green tea over the dirty rice, the green tea became dark as well, but as she stirred it, it began to clarify. When she emptied the glass of the liquid once again, the rice was white.

Longjing means Dragon Well, so it was fitting that the wall of the tea house should be adorned by a dragon. The head was at the gate and its body stretched along the top of the wall. I want a dragon wall around my house!

On the ride back to the city, I could not refrain from taking more pictures of the fields of tea. They are so striking.

Longjing Village lies across the river from the city of Hangzhou.

We arrived back in rush hour traffic, and there were a multitude of motorbikes.

After a dinner near the train station, we returned home on the train.

This is a picture that Douglas took in one of the train stations.

I hope that you enjoyed this virtual visit to the Lingyin Temple and Longjing Village. If you would like to read any of my other posts about China or other travels, visit the Travel tab at the top of the page or click here.

Happy Travels!