Leshan Giant Buddha

Buddha Buddha Buddha rockin everywhere part 3.

During our busy jammed packed day in Chengdu, we managed to ventured out and see this UNESCO World Heritage Site!

We arrived at Chengdu determined to see both the Pandas and the Leshan Giant Buddha statue, however, we had a little bit of a set back because we learned upon arrival that the hostel no longer offers the Panda and Buddha Day tour. We only had ONE day in Chengdu… and we were counting on that tour, but we did not frown and give up! We tried our hardest to make it to both.

So, in Danielle’s blog- you can read about our first half of the day, which we spent visiting the Pandas! To have things even harder, Chengdu was one of the cities where we struggled the worst with the language barrier.

The Leshan Buddha is located 2 hours outside of Chengdu to get there you can take a bus or a train. The bus takes 2 hours, I’m pretty sure the train takes a hour but you have to get your tickets in advance because it sells out! Danielle and I went to the train station, we found out that the train tickets were sold out. We went to the bus station, and had numerous conversations, and could not buy a ticket to Leshan. We talked to some taxi drivers but they were charging waaaay too much for a ride. So, with sad faces, we went back to our hostel, we talked to the hostel worker and he said “ you still have time, go back to the bus station and show them this note”. So we went back to the bus station, showed them the little note written by the hostel guide and got on the bus!” …. Without the language barrier, it would have saved us 2 hours, but travelling is all about the bumps and curves in your journey.

We got on the bus and took a little nap before reading Leshan. Once you get to Leshan, you can take a local bus, but we just opted for a cab since we didn't have that much time to see and walk around the statue. (There is only one bus to get back home and we cannot miss that…)

So, we got to the location and had to climb for about 20 minutes to reach the top. This is where you can see the head of the Buddha and the whole body from a bird’s eye view. It is crazy how big this thing is! A little history about the Leshan Giant Buddha! It took 70 years to complete the construction of the Buddha, a Monk ordered the construction in 713 and it was completed in 803. The reason the Monk ordered the construction of the Buddha was because of the river. The river had very dangerous rough waters and threatened many boats. So, the Buddha was made to protect the boats passing through the Minjiang, Dadu, and Qingyi.

This statue is carved out of a cliff. It is the largest stone Buddha in the world!!!!! It is also the tallest pre-modern statue in the world! How big is this Buddha? BIG. I mean 71 metres tall, that's 233 feet. 233/5.2 (my height) = 44! Wow. 44 x bigger than me!

Apparently, there was so much stone removed from the cliff by the construction of the Buddha that it altered the water to allow boats to pass safety. When we went to the Buddha, there were boat tours driving in the waters no problem. ;) So, for all I know, that is true!

When the Buddha was built, they also built in a drainage system- they legit thought of everything. This allows the water to leave the stone reducing weathering. When the statue was built, a 13 story wood structure was also built to shelter it from rain and sunshine, but it was destroyed when the Mongols invaded the area.

To go to the bottom of the Buddha, you have to wait in a line that goes all the way down the statue. This is because there is only a certain amount of people allowed on the bottom. The Giant Buddha is being affected by air pollution, weathering, and tourists causing degradation.

At the top of the Leshan Giant Buddha, there are other things to explore.There are temples, tea shops, and other buildings. It’s a very spiritual place when you find a quiet spot (away from the line) or just shut your eyes for 30 seconds.

Whenever I am travelling and we come to places that have so much history. I try to imagine myself at here at the time where it was so significant to the people who lived in the community. How the statue was built and the temples. It is just a mind-blowing experience to think about!

The Leshan Giant Buddha is located in the Mount Emei location. The first Buddhist temple in China was built in this area. China has so much history and so much to learn, I am so glad I got to understand a tiny tiny tiny tiny / 233 feet slice of the history.

Ahhhh the taxi ride back to the station. So, after seeing this amazing beautiful site, we had to get in a taxi to go back to the bus station. What is different about China is that if you are in a taxi and it is not full they will stop and pick up other passengers. A taxi driver picked us up and it already had 2 people in it. We told him that we only had a certain amount of time because we had to catch the bus back to Chengdu, he said no trouble no trouble. We got in and he was a crazy driver, weaving in and out of the traffic. (which was terrible.)

We got to the so-called bus station, and he left, but Danielle and I realized nothing looked familiar! He dropped us off at the wrong bus station. We only had 30 minutes to make it to the other bus station and we had NOOO idea where we were going. We tried to ask the people in the bus station for help, but the language barrier and stubbornness made it useless. We walked around and finally found this taxi driver that would take us to the other bus station.

View from the top- a little smog...

People were washing their hands in this flower like sink

Danielle and I were so stressed out, we were also starving because we didn't eat ALL day because we were constantly moving. We finally got to the bus station with 10 minutes to spare. We picked up some snacks and were on our way to Chengdu. AHHH what a crazy day. I’m out of breath just typing about it!

If you go to China, put this location on your must-see list because it is truly an amazing sight.

BUDDHA BUDDHA BUDDHA ROCKIN EVERYWHERE

ROCKin EVERYWHERE ROCKin EVERYTHING.

Can’t wait to see more Buddhas- I should keep a list going!

Unfortunately, Danielle and I didn't make it all the way down- so I borrowed this picture from Ariel Steinter- (Wikipedia)

Yes, it sucks that we didn't get to go down all the stairs.. and go to the bottom and see it from there; but I am so happy I just got to see it because things we not looking so good at first. You can't see everything right.