This day we got up super early! Well, at like 6:30 AM which
to some is not early, but it really is! We were heading out to LiShan for the
day, to see the giant Buddha! The sun was barely peaking up, if at all, as we
walked out of our Hostel. By then, as Abby tried to get any more directions
about the bus station, we ended up getting three more people to join us! Kachin
and then a duo of Chinese backpackers who were heading out there already. We
had to wake up a security guard to let us out of the back gate, then get on the
bus stop, where we stood for about half an hour before reaching the bus
station. Our new friend Kachin already had his ticket, but we didn’t have ours.
Which was not very smart, because there were a lot of people in line! A ton.
But we worked with the duo to get our tickets and eventually got it sorted out.
However, Abby and Greg had wandered off to look for food. We
had only so much time until our bus left [there are certain times], and they
were still nowhere to be found! We hurried around to look for them, and finally found them back a ways. We hurried
back, got through security and into line.
They had gotten us baby dumplings, little ones in bowls.
Mostly filled with chives. I personally thought they were delicious, except
there was absolutely no way for me to eat and not burn my hands on the bowl.
That was my main problem. But everyone else didn't seem to enjoy them very
much. In the end, as we were about to head onto the bus, we had to toss them.
We got on the bus, though! Yay! It’s about a two hour drive
so we all ended up dozing off. Then we got there, and had to take another bus
just outside the station, bus 13 or 30, whichever, for another 30 minutes or so
to the Big Buddha park. Lots of vendors to one side, huge nature park to the
other! We got off, and I was feeling
crappier than ever. No, I have no idea what it was, I just wasn’t doing great.
And no, I didn’t want it. Katie and I think it might be
something psychological because it happens whenever I’m out in the city here,
you know? But we can’t sort it out. I was close to tears while we were in line,
so they let me go sit down as they bought the tickets. The tickets were about
90 RMB a person. Which is okay if you spend all day there, but we were there
maybe three hours and possibly not enough.
Still, and through my sickness, I really liked it. It was a
bit chilly then hot, and it was SO crowded which sucked. But there were
carvings all over, statues, and a few old monks’ caves. Way too many stairs,
but overall really cool! There was a huge line to get to the bottom of the
mountain to the feet of the huge Buddha statue. It would have taken hours to get through that
line. We had a hard enough time going around the edge to try and get any
pictures. These people love to push!
Kachin was so friendly and nice but I was too ill to say
much or even try to include myself, so Katie made up for that. He ended up
telling her some cool stories and such, which she passed along to me. These
included the fact how the Buddha was cracked in the forehead and at the eye at
one point, because of a nearby bomb that went off. It was eventually fixed, but
it still looks like the Buddha is crying. So now they say the Buddha is crying
because there are still people fighting and at war.
He also asked a few things about America, and said that if
you are rich enough, you can get away with murder. Well, moreso than America,
haha. But if you have money, then you can get away with killing people because
everyone really needs money. He asked if that’s what happens in America. Since
we don’t actually know of any literal stories, Katie of course said no. He was
a bit surprised at that.
Money is so important in China, it’s crazy and so hard to
believe how lucky we are. Kachin is able to afford a visa to Hong Kong, but not
America, which is a huge bummer. He wants to do more with his life- he’s 25 and
does his family business. He is the only son so he has to take care of the
family mines because of the family honor. Which is important, but nowhere close
to America’s idea of respect, if that makes sense. It’s just crazy how different these two
countries really are. There’s so much to learn from!
Anyways, after a bit of walking around, I had to stop and
urged them to go on ahead. I know they had energy still, and wasn’t about to
stop them. So I let them go. They ended up on an adventure with a TON of stairs
[hallelujah for not being there for that], through a fishing village, and a few
more cave tombs. Which I was actually very disappointed about, but I was in no
condition to follow them up. If I tried moving at a normal speed, something bad
was sure to happen.
While they were off exploring and chatting about countries,
Abby and Greg joined me after I watched a kid totally go in the streets and
have his parents toss the tissues into the bushes. Normal occurrence, I didn’t
even flinch. Abby and Greg were worn out and very anxious for Katie to return. Eventually the other two friends returned to us,
and we started for a way out.
The stairs back down were long and arduous for me and my
stomach, but we prevailed! We headed out at a different end of the park so we
started walking around down the trail back to the bus stop. Kachin
bought Katie some cold noodles and I got a large English muffin thing stuffed
with spicy herbs and a bit of meat. Pretty good, for the little that I was able
to eat [it was eventually left and forgotten in the long bus ride, oops].
Kachin was also a sweetheart and helped us pay for the bus ride back since we
didn’t have any 1 RMBs.
To the bus station!
And yet, too late.
Our bus pulled out just as we ran in the doors. Talk about
frustrating! Usually in China you don’t have to pay for switching buses, but
since we missed them we had to pay half price or something, I think, not too
much. Anyways, we paid for the next buses. Kachin bought the next one out, so
we said good bye to him first, then we stepped outside for some street food
since we wouldn’t be stopped for the next two hours.
Abby got this hard-boiled egg thing inside a muffin, she
likes those. Then Katie got some other noodle bowl, but they wouldn’t let her
on the bus with it so she shoveled down half of it before having to toss it and
climb on in. Luckily we sneaked some snacks in!
There was also a Chinese movie on the little TV ahead, so
that kept us a bit busy. We had snacks, and watched the movies and slept for
the next two hours.
After that exciting excursion, we pulled ourselves together
and headed off to: dun, dun, dun, Ikea! It’s a favorite American place of Abby
and Greg’s, and they wanted sweedish meatballs and I wanted to see Katie enjoy
her first Ikea trip so we all headed over.
A bit confusing but we eventually found it! Katie bought
spaghetti which was close but not quite American style, so that was a bit
disappointing. I didn’t buy anything at first, I just used the bathroom before
joining them to wander around. It was above their big parking garage, but it
was basically all on one level, unlike the one at home. So it seemed a bit
small…
But Katie loved it! I’ve been trying to get her in an Ikea
for a while, and it was just the reaction I was looking for. Greg kept
convincing us to get up from the chairs and couches, which was totally lame. We
were ready for a nap, again and again and again! The décor was awesome and I
was thinking about everything I want in an awesome house and chairs just to
keep spinning around on, and there was this amazingly soft, super soft blanket
that would be too expensive even the states… ugh it was awesome.
We returned to the food before it closed so I could grab a
little loaf of bread and a bit of salad, which was nice. I definitely needed
some food in my system! And by then, we were definitely tired and after that we
all headed back to the hostel for a good night’s rest!
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