Chengdu to Leshan

---

Well we survived the Sichuan banquet - the dishes weren't very hot at all and some people on the tour complained and asked for some actual spicy food!! We were told that our stomachs couldn't handle real Sichuan spices but our guides promised us a spicy dish added in to the menu for lunch and dinner today!

Today our tour is to Leshan, the site of the tallest Buddha in the world. He has been cut into the rocks over 900 years ago at the confluence of three rivers to placate the river demons where a lot of boats were sank because of the whirlpool. Amazing to think that the monks carried out this work that long ago with limited tools and equipment and managed to get features carved into the rock that really look realistic from across the river.

When we arrived in Leshan the river tours had been closed because of the fog so we sent for an early lunch. One of the dishes was spicy as promised which was good. We went back the river and the fog had lifted enough for us to board the boat and visit the Buddha. The trip downstream wasn't very long but the water was fast flowing and we motored quickly past the Buddha, then it was a turn around downstream and we slowly motored back against the current and had plenty of time to view. From the river we had a good view, we were told that it was a 3 1/2 hour walk into the site itself and we could see people walking in but we felt that we had the better view of him from that little bit further away.

On our way out to Leshan we stopped at a tea farm - we got to try a lot of the local teas as well as taste green tea snacks, both savoury and sweet. We bought some which were quite interesting - green tea nougat! On our way back to the city Chengdu we stopped at the town of Huanglongxi - apparently it was build 1700 years ago in the Qing Dynasty but only a small part of it was genuine, the rest was very commercial. Every alleyway filled with shops - the only positive was being able to see the old architecture. The traffic coming back into the city was horrendous because it was a Friday night and we got stuck in a traffic jam which meant that we were late for our dinner. The dinner was excellent though and we got to try another spicy dish. Then it was onto the Chengdu theatre for some culture - mask changing, a special show particular to this region. Amazing to watch (I couldn't work out how they did it in the blink of an eye!) There was also puppeteering, a chinese instrument that sounded like a violin but made excellent music with just two strings and more dancing and acrobatics.

---

Photos

The Giant Buddha
73 metres high over the confluence of 3 Rivers