Breakfast was Chinese style, Chinese food, but usually there are boiled eggs for those who do not want Chinese food for breakfast. Most of the travelling has been done on highways (G30 has been the main one) and every so often the truck stops at toll booths. The toll varies with the distance travelled and type of vehicle and appears to be on average £2 per toll, which adds up when we go through six or more a day. Until midday it was cool and dull then it became hot again. Travelling past Lanzhou there was more than normal the amount of road works (and what looked to be an elevated train track under construction) with huge parts of the country and mountains being flattened out also larger than normal brickworks and quarries. There was miles of terracing on the mountains with what looked like scrub bushes having been planted to hold the mountainsides in place.
It was quite picturesque travelling alongside the Yellow River especially as it had turned out to be a sunny afternoon. We arrived at a place called Yongjing at 6.15pm and put up our tents. This was on the side of the Yellow River and where it had been dammed for a reservoir. There was a bit of a kerfuffle with the local people who wanted to be paid for the use of the land, which they were. Then the local women became involved with the result that our guide telephoned his boss who then spoke with the local people by phone and the money was handed back. Later that evening some of the local girls paid the camp a visit and just wanted to dance. It was thought that they would show us Chinese dancing but it was not to be so though they did promise to do that the following evening. It rained a little during the night but most of the water that was heard was at 4am when the pumps were started and the fields watered.
The following morning we went by boat across the reservoir to the Bingling Cave Temple, or the Thousand Buddha Caves. This is a series of grottoes filled with Buddhist sculpture carved into natural caves and caverns, with frescos as well, in a canyon along the Yellow River, the carving and painting of them taking place over 1000 years and beginning in 265 AD. The Maitreya Buddha stands more than 27 metres high dominating 183 niches, 694 stone statues and 82 clay sculptures. I could not understand how this temple had anything to do with the Silk Road as it is quite in-accessible with fast flowing water on one side and very steep hills on the other sides. It seems that in the past the river at the end of the valley was not as big and a dam with a road on top had been built to allow access to the Temple. Today the Chinese are building a road from Lanzhou to the Temple which will really spoil the place with the increased number of tourists. This seems to be the governments policy as access to the Magao Caves is being improves as well. The curators there have asked that tourism not be increased as the caves are being damaged so Increase the numbers, increase the revenue, that is all that matters so it seems. But, what if this the only way for the Chinese to see their own heritage? Who am I to say!
Further up the valley was the Upper temple where we were shown round by the Abbot (who spoke a little English) and were given tea and bread at the end of the visit. This part of the cave temples is only about 600 years old. The Bingling Caves were well worth a visit and with the surroundings were fantastic to see.
That evening the local girls did visit the travellers again, played tug-of-war, danced then went home. Not long afterwards it started to rain and it rained all night. In the morning the tents were packed up in the rain (a horrible job as they get slimy when wet) then with help from some Marsden matting the truck was helped to the road where we left for Xiahe, the rain keeping pace with us all the way and it getting colder also as Xiahe is at 2,900 metres (9,514 feet) altitude.
Xiahe is in the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Region and is home to the Labrang Tibetan Buddist Monastery, one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist monasteries outside of the Tibet. It is one of the six great monasteries of Gelukpa sect as well as the location of Gansu Provincial Buddhism College. The Labrang Monastery has tens of thousands of statues of Buddha made of gold, silver, copper, and aluminium, as well as many Buddha hats and many Buddhist treasures adorned with pearls, jadeite, agate and diamonds.The monastery was founded in 1709 and is Tibetan Buddhism's most important monastery town outside of Tibet. The monastery complex dominates the northern part of the village. The white walls and golden roofs feature a blend of Tibetan and Han architectural styles. The monastery contains 18 halls, six institutes of learning, a golden stupa, a debating area, and houses nearly 60,000 sutras (books). From a maximum of 4000 monks living there years ago only about 1800 monks live there now. No photographs were allowed to be taken inside the temples or halls, a pity really as some of them were fantastic, such as the main hall that could seat 1000 monks.
After the monastery tour four of us went on the prayer wheel circuit. This is a three kilometre route where one is supposed to turn 1147 prayer wheels. We managed to get two-thirds of the way round but could not find the other wheels. Tom was told off by an old lady for going the wrong way round a wheel as everyone has to walk clockwise round the wheels and turn them at the same time. An aching arm and sore hand was the result especially as we did the full circuit the following day. There were some elderly men and women with walking sticks doing the circuit and they were quicker than we were. I think the effect of the altitude was slowing us down by then.
I did a fair amount of walking around the town as apart from the Monastery there is nothing else here. The place is supposed to look like Tibet but apart from the monks and monastery it is a new town with Tibetan influence, not at all as i remember Tibet from a visit in 1996. We were to leave for the grasslands after two night here but the road is too wet for vehicles to get up the mountains. Also, we have been told that the area has become very touristy and not worth visiting now. There’s also an old village 25 miles from here but that is not accessible at the moment either. So our second day here was spent taking things easy.
STREET VIEWS
I had my face drawn on the street while watching the cobbler working. The lady was actually sketching the buildings opposite when I noticed that she was watching me and obviously drawing my face. After indicating that it was aright for her to carry on about half the school children on their way home stopped and watched her sketching. When it was finished she gave it to me and indicated that she did not want any money for the sketch.
It was quite picturesque travelling alongside the Yellow River especially as it had turned out to be a sunny afternoon. We arrived at a place called Yongjing at 6.15pm and put up our tents. This was on the side of the Yellow River and where it had been dammed for a reservoir. There was a bit of a kerfuffle with the local people who wanted to be paid for the use of the land, which they were. Then the local women became involved with the result that our guide telephoned his boss who then spoke with the local people by phone and the money was handed back. Later that evening some of the local girls paid the camp a visit and just wanted to dance. It was thought that they would show us Chinese dancing but it was not to be so though they did promise to do that the following evening. It rained a little during the night but most of the water that was heard was at 4am when the pumps were started and the fields watered.
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| Views along the yRllow River |
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The following morning we went by boat across the reservoir to the Bingling Cave Temple, or the Thousand Buddha Caves. This is a series of grottoes filled with Buddhist sculpture carved into natural caves and caverns, with frescos as well, in a canyon along the Yellow River, the carving and painting of them taking place over 1000 years and beginning in 265 AD. The Maitreya Buddha stands more than 27 metres high dominating 183 niches, 694 stone statues and 82 clay sculptures. I could not understand how this temple had anything to do with the Silk Road as it is quite in-accessible with fast flowing water on one side and very steep hills on the other sides. It seems that in the past the river at the end of the valley was not as big and a dam with a road on top had been built to allow access to the Temple. Today the Chinese are building a road from Lanzhou to the Temple which will really spoil the place with the increased number of tourists. This seems to be the governments policy as access to the Magao Caves is being improves as well. The curators there have asked that tourism not be increased as the caves are being damaged so Increase the numbers, increase the revenue, that is all that matters so it seems. But, what if this the only way for the Chinese to see their own heritage? Who am I to say!
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| The entrance to the cave tmple |
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| Add caption |
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| Niche figure |
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| Niche figure |
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| A view of the valley |
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| The large Buddha |
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| The large Buddha |
Further up the valley was the Upper temple where we were shown round by the Abbot (who spoke a little English) and were given tea and bread at the end of the visit. This part of the cave temples is only about 600 years old. The Bingling Caves were well worth a visit and with the surroundings were fantastic to see.
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| The Upper Temple |
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| A monk |
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| A temple painting |
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| Inside the temple |
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| Shrine |
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| Cemetery |
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| A three faced temple painting |
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| Us together |
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| Looking out at the river |
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| The boatman saying goodbye |
That evening the local girls did visit the travellers again, played tug-of-war, danced then went home. Not long afterwards it started to rain and it rained all night. In the morning the tents were packed up in the rain (a horrible job as they get slimy when wet) then with help from some Marsden matting the truck was helped to the road where we left for Xiahe, the rain keeping pace with us all the way and it getting colder also as Xiahe is at 2,900 metres (9,514 feet) altitude.
Xiahe is in the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Region and is home to the Labrang Tibetan Buddist Monastery, one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist monasteries outside of the Tibet. It is one of the six great monasteries of Gelukpa sect as well as the location of Gansu Provincial Buddhism College. The Labrang Monastery has tens of thousands of statues of Buddha made of gold, silver, copper, and aluminium, as well as many Buddha hats and many Buddhist treasures adorned with pearls, jadeite, agate and diamonds.The monastery was founded in 1709 and is Tibetan Buddhism's most important monastery town outside of Tibet. The monastery complex dominates the northern part of the village. The white walls and golden roofs feature a blend of Tibetan and Han architectural styles. The monastery contains 18 halls, six institutes of learning, a golden stupa, a debating area, and houses nearly 60,000 sutras (books). From a maximum of 4000 monks living there years ago only about 1800 monks live there now. No photographs were allowed to be taken inside the temples or halls, a pity really as some of them were fantastic, such as the main hall that could seat 1000 monks.
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| Monks |
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| Looking at the back of the monastery |
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| Monks at the living quarters |
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| A view of the monastery |
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| A Monastery column decoration |
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| Meditation |
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| Monastery building |
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| Monastery building |
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| Festival costume |
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| Carvings in yak butter |
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| Walking the prayer wheel way |
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| A large prayer wheel |
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| A row of prayer wheels |
STREET VIEWS
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| A pilgrim |
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| School children |
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| An old lady carrying twigs |
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| Seen in the town square |
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| Buy your apricots here |
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| Dumplings (momos) for dinner |
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| Add caption |
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| Choosing my robe |
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| Lady barber |
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| Cobbler |
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| Street key cutter and blacksmith |
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| Xiahe High Street |
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| The artist sketching me |
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| The result (It's not what I see in the mirror) |
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