141. SICHUAN PROVINCE
Every province in China has at least one majestic waterfall - Sichuan has a few. They are so rich in natural resources that generate hydro electric power but they find it necessary to use their wealth, power and influence to plunder the earth in other countries to meet the demands of their rapid development. Poor little rich dot Singapore does not have neither a mountain nor a waterfall...every damn resource has to be bought...
These spots are like someplace out of Canada...it's azure waters is what has made the Jiuzhaigou scenic park well known and in the Fall, it changes to reflect its Autumn colours...
These terraces are peculiar to the Huanglong San area but not to Jiuzhaigou - I can imagine what it must be like during the rainy season when the flow becomes a cascading rush...what a sight that must be!
This would be Sichuan's pride and joy and Chengdu's mascot. The country's major panda research base and breeding center is located here and they've been quite successful at breeding these animals. A pair is on loan to Singapore's Zoo for the same purpose...
......and in downtown Chengdu, there's this fibreglass version...
The Mongolian yurt is a common sight in this part of hilly Sichuan...
A paddle attached to the wheel of samsara...the swirling water keeps the wheel turning constantly...
The Tibetans are a misplaced community. They've integrated into the mainstream starting mini Tibets elsewhere in China, India and Nepal...
The Leshan Giant Buddha is a 71-metre tall stone statue, built in the 8th Century during the Tang Dynasty. It is carved out of a cliff face that lies at the confluence of 3 rivers near the town of Leshan. The sculpture faces Mt. Emei with the rivers flowing below its feet. It is the largest and tallest pre-modern stone Buddha in the world and together with Mt. Emei is a UNESCO World Heritage site...
The Leshan Buddha is accessible by boat...thereafter, down a flight of stairs to get around it...more walking to explore the area and up another flight of stairs to leave...
Places covered in Sichuan spread out over a wide area with long distances by coach. The public toilets along the way are China's legendary squat type with open door policy, dirty, smelly, perpetually wet...those in restaurants and shops were a little better with doors with broken hinges. They are all squat types, most city slickers have lost their ability to do so. India's restaurant toilets are far cleaner, with seats and paper.
I'm even more convinced now, I need to be very selective where I go in my exploration of China - but I can see too I'm too late as the Chinese worship materialism too much to be able to take a breather. All I can appreciate now will be what Mother Nature has blessed the land with...
The summit of Mt Emei was an anti-climax. It's a trap for Buddhist pilgrims, most of whom are women who are far too devotional. It comprised man-made edifices of images and 3 large pavilions painted silver, gold and bronze and a centerpiece of a 10-face 'buddha'.....it gets more bizzare - my next encounter somewhere else may just be a 14-face 'buddha' totem...sigh, the corruption of religion and charities...go hand in glove...
Very quickly, the weather changes as fog descends suddenly bringing with it a drop in temperature with the possibility of rain...I shudder as I thought of survival stories in which folks were lost in the wild for days, maybe weeks, in unforgiving conditions...
The clouds enveloping the mountains is like the mirror reflection of the frothy waterfalls I just saw in Huanglong scenic area and Jiuzhaigou National Park
The climb might be too much for some even for this sedan chair carrier - so during lull in business, he snoozes on his sedan...few local tourists use the service, most complete the climb to Emei's summit, even their tough elderly who are chiefly rural small town folks - it's the city slickers who may pay for a lift but happy to report, the Singaporeans did quite well...
On the climb up Mt Emei, it's nice to see wild orchids. These days orchids are hybrids - they're stunning but.....
Huanglongxi Ancient Town - another favourite movie location...
Literally....the Wide and Narrow Alleys...comprising old structures which have been refurbished into restaurants and shops, used too for movie locations...
One declares one's love for another by padlocking these sweet nothings - what happens should they split? A trip might be necessary back here to cut all ties in order to be able to move on...!
With my limited Mandarin vocab, I understood this to be glutinous rice with a sweet bean filling...
With so much land and money floating around, they do everything big, bigger, biggest. At this gargantuan complex (the Chengdu New Century Global Center), the only thing I was interested in was this atrium with its huge chandelier and some typical but beautiful Chinese paintings...I spent the afternoon with my head on a table in this enormous foodcourt where I fell asleep, joining the staff who do likewise during their breaks!
Such buildings leave me cold. Most up and coming Chinese cities have the same development plans, Chengdu is no different been one of the fastest growing and getting wealthier and Singapore is involved in a joint project to develop an industrial park/satellite township...
With this much land, they are greedy for more in the South China Sea...
This 'Changing Faces' show is really something. My camera can't do any credit to it but it had me wide-mouthed as to how quickly they could change their many masks right in front of my face - whilst I'm so focused on their faces, their hands must be somewhere tugging at some strings - but where did all the masks disappear to, crikey!
Innovative - this roadside food hawker uses this as a trash bin
They change a brand name, get an icon and they get away with it....!
posted by shirley @ 9:36 pm
0 Comments
