Friday, Nov. 20
Longmen Grottos were on the agenda today, which are a series of man-made caves all devoted to Buddha. The largest is the size of Mount Rushmore/Stone Mountain and the smallest is about 2cm. Our guide said few were carved out of devotion, many of them were carved for political reasons (the Mount Rushmore Buddha is said to have the face of an Empress). Only the oldest were carved by the faithful.
I've been a bit of a celebrity in China. This is off-season for tourism and many Chinese visit these places because of lower prices and fewer crowds. As a result, I'm just about the only Westerner around. My coat is blue, so my eyes aren't their normal grey. They're blue and the provincial Chinese haven't seen much of that. Smiling is considered foolish, juvenile or unseemly and the Chinese are giving me a lot of blank-faced eye contact. I've had my picture taken half a dozen times by young Chinese and at the Longman Grottos there were a few Red Army soldiers who waved at me like schoolchildren.
The oldest Buddhist temple in China is nearby, called the White Horse Temple. Originally called the White Horse Bar and Inn, the first monks stayed at the Inn at the request of the Emperor. In time, the Emperor remodelled the tavern and made it into a temple. Every summer, the monks here save turtles and carp from the market with their spare change. They release them in the temple pond.
Our hotel is by far the most Western we've had, with all the amenities like recessed lighting and a sit-down toilet. However, the shower had a sign that reads:
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