Chengdu, Day 27

 

 

 

The cultural visits that we had today are a tour around the more practical sites that is essential to the lives to the Sichuan people. From that ancient dams created by the forefathers of the Chinese culture to the sacred temples of Taoism, we were able to learn the struggles that the people of Sichuan had to endure to develop their province into what it is today.

 

 

 

 Entrance to the river dams

 

 Fish-Mouth Dividing River Dam

The visit to the ancient and newly made dams located at the river literally shows the ongoing efforts of the Sichuan people in their effort of create a better life for the people. I was astonished to learn of the great strides that the people took to create the dams. Since the whole river is virtually mountain run-off from the snow in the nearby mountains, the local residents had to manually heat up the entire river and slowly carve their way through to divert the river and prevent floods from occurring. Simply learning of the history of the creation of these dams is enough to raise interest and respect for the Sichuan people.

 Boat shuttle service

 

 View from cable car

 

Highest temple in Lao Jun Tu

 

 

The second visit is a tour around the Lao Jun Palace. It is a sacred place in the Taoism religion, with temples dotting the mountain tops. The relaxing visit turned out to be a long hike up the mountain to get to the cable car station. Obviously, being my size, the short hike is really a challenge for me and a task that I was eager to accomplish. Although tough, I took it as a personal challenge that I undertook to achieve something more in this trip.

The cable car journey, although short, was an experience that I will surely treasure; being the first time I rode on one. The view of the surrounding from the top of the cable car is enough of a reason for the high climb.

The temples of Taoism on the mountain tops are something new that I have never had the privilege to see up close. Although similar to Buddhism, in terms of the architecture, there are distinctive differences between the temples; mainly the idols. Taoism has many idols of past Taoist monks that has reach a high level of enlightenment and a focuses on the harmonious living with the Tao. Buddhism, however, is a practice of the Buddha that promotes peace amongst all living things and strives to reach Nirvana. By knowing the differences, I will be able to better appreciate the beliefs of the people here and not simply stereotypically refer the religions of the Chinese people to be similar while being more sensitive to their culture.