Changzhou Pagoda and Buddhist Temples

Since I’ve been in China, I’ve been updating my blog in the morning. I think it’s going to be kind of confusing to all of you and myself to be talking about two different days every post so just for today, I’m writing two posts. From now on I will update at night and it will be for the whole day.

Today, Sunday, was so fun. First off, we were served popcorn chicken and fries in the cafeteria. What could be better than that?? Granted it was all that I ate today, but delicious nonetheless.  Most of our group decided to go on an adventure today and I’m so excited to share these stories with you!

The adventurers consisted of me, Kate, Megan, Laurra, Rachel, Aimee, Paul, Sam, Jamesen, Alec, Amber, Beebs, and Allen. Can I just say how much I love this group that went out today? Everyone is so cool and we have an awesome time together.  We decided to go to the Pagoda and Buddhist Temples here in Changzhou.

After lunch we headed to the bus stop, about a 15 minute walk from the school. But when it’s 95 degrees with 97% humidity, it sure does feel a lot longer. While walking down the street, nearly everyone honked at us and waved. They think Americans are the best things since soy sauce. When we got to the bus station we tried to figure out where we were going and didn’t have much luck. One of the guys in our group, Sam, is fluent in Mandarin. How have we been so blessed? He is amazing! So he’s able to communicate with the locals really well. Some of them give him really funny looks, though, like “How is this white blonde kid speaking my language?” Since we couldn’t figure out where we were going, this Chinese guy tried to help. He was calling all of his friends that spoke English to try to help and eventually he just said he would take us there. Chinese people- for the most part- are so nice and helpful.

Me and my roomie walking to the bus stop!

Once on the first bus, this Chinese guy started talking to me and Rachel. His English was so good and he acted all flustered when we complimented him on it, it was adorable. His name was Sonny and he asked me where we were going. I said I didn’t know, and it was just an adventure. He said, “No preparation? You’re not afraid of getting lost?” I said that we didn’t prepare much, and if we got lost we would find our way back somehow.  He smiled and said, “Americans are so crazy. I like it.” Then he told me how he would love to go to America one day and watch the NBA play. It made me realize all the different opportunities we have in America. Even the simplest things, like going to a basketball game, they don’t have here in China. I will always remember Sonny and his friendliness to us. It was one of those defining moments in my life.

Sonny :)

By the way, there's no room for claustrophobia on these buses.

We changed buses and headed towards the Pagoda with the help of our Chinese friend. His name was something like Has but I don’t remember exactly and I’m not sure how to spell it. We saw some interesting things on the walk. One of them happened to be a shaved squirrel doing backflips. Another was a man who tried to give me a bag of dead fish. Only in China.

We arrived at the Pagoda to sound of gunshots. Turns out it was just some ten-year-old boys setting off firecrackers with gunpowder. Jamesen went over to talk to them and they were so excited that he was interested in them. It cost us 20 yuan to enter the Pagoda, which is three dollars and some change in America.

The street outside the entrance.

The Pagoda is basically a huge tower with wind chimes in it. It’s absolutely beautiful! We walked around there and then also toured the Monastery/Temples. We saw a few Monks while inside and lots of different statues.

Buddha wears lipstick.

Me in front of the Pagoda.

People put coins on a lot of the Buddha statues.

You write a prayer or wish on these ribbons and tie them to trees.

On the way back, we took a quick tour through an underground mall. It was crowded, like everything in China! Since we didn’t have our own guide this time, we weren’t sure which bus to take. We hopped on one that seemed familiar and rode for awhile. When we got off, we still had a ways to go to get back to the school. I felt like my feet were going to detach at any moment. We did a ton of walking today, but it was so fun and I can’t wait for our next outing!