My Trips to Luojiashan, China -Day 12 on 12/5/12

Woke up at 4.00 a.m., packed and ready to go to Luijiashan. This morning daren't go for my morning walk due to we are to take the first ferry to Lujiashan. There are only 2 ferry trips daily to there. One is the 8.15 a.m. and another is 9.30 a.m.

Left the luggages with the receptionists.  We bought chinese dough fritters and soy bean drink for our breakfast.

The ferry ticket and entrance fee to the island cost about $60.00 rem, entrance fee to the temple is extra. Been told that we only  have one and half hours to visit the four temples here. Similar with the other 2 days, it was too crowded and all the way uphills to the top, which about 200 to 300 m above sea level and downhill to each individual temples and then rush to take the ferry back to Putuoshan.

Luojiashan is an island and is accessible by ferry only. Beautiful scenery unfortunate, we don't have any time to appreciate the scenery due to we must rush back for the return ferry.

In fact, this trip is not so happy due to all the mad rush and the locals don't  want to queue and just cut queue by taking your place even you are standing in a row.

During the prayer, my elder sister was queuing at the spring well for the prayer water, a man just rushed up in front of her and put both his hands  above hers. My sister was quite angry and told the man off: "Can't you see I am in the queue and there behind is a row of people patiently waiting in the line."  After that, the man's wife was so embarassed by the incident.  The couple were quarrelling at the temple in front of the crowds.

Reached back to the harbour of Putuoshan, Lian Heng and Robert headed back to the hotel to arrange the delivery of our luggages to here for us. The  ticket back to Shenjiamen cost $25.00 rem and once we reached here and have our lunch and took a taxi back to the coach station. Booked our coach ticket to Hang Zhou and it cost $86.00rem for a one way ticket and took about four hours to reach there.

This was a posh coach with a television screen in front of every seat. You can watch movies, listen to songs or play games. We arrived at Hang Zhou coach station and queue for taxi to take us to the West Lake. Half an hour queue for the taxi and the fare for the taxi was cheap only cost us $38.00 to reach the hotel there.  Booked 3 hotel rooms for and each room cost $480 rem with 2 free breakfast.

Left our luggages at the room and went strolling on the West Lake for half and hour. Enjoy a cup of coffee and went to the food court for our dinner. At the food court, you have to purchase the vouchers first and then you go and get your food with these vouchers. Unused vouchers can be exchange back to money.

Took our dinner then went shopping at the shopping Malls. The West Lake Shopping Centres are almost similar as  Cannes,France  where all branded designers shops and high street shops are  around here.  "Oh! Oh! the prices for the branded goods are 50 to 100 times more expensive than in United Kingdom.'

It had been raining quite heavily, my sister bought an umbrella, my nephew bought some T-shirts and shorts  and my friend, Lay Choo, bought some trainers shorts  for her children.  Finished our shopping at 10.00 p.m.  It was still raining so we went back to the hotel to watch our chinese drama shows.

My friend was surprised why I graded the Putoushan only 1 star.  After explained to her that this holy place have become money trading centre. The island had been listed as public company,  for last year the profit of this island and some of the holy places where the buddhism believers  go and worship their god had gone up 1.8%.  They also forecast that the fore coming year the profit will be even higher. I know these island depend on tourism for their income but not to the extend as listed public company earning profit.  Especially for fellow buddhism believers, we expect that the teachings of buddhism to be pass from generations to next generations but unfortunately it seem this concept have been overlook with profit which the tourists could bring to the island.

Scored for Luijiashan : 1 star - unfortunately it is too rush and we simply don't have time to appreciate this island and take a single photo of this place.

Scored for Hang Zhou:  5 stars for this place

Places of Interest: Luijiashan and Hang Zhou
Photos: by Robert Suen and Catherine Tan
Dated:  12th May 2012

My Trips to Putuoshan, china -Day 11 on 11/5/2012

 The Eco Garden lake is still and not with moving water but covered with green algae.

 The foods and vegetables are delivery by the ferries every day for the locals and tourists usages.

Same as usual, woke up at 6.00 a.m. and went out to take photo again.  Been to the harbour and garden. But unfortunately, I had no idea where the beach as I had gone in a different directions instead of the way to the beach. This Longtou Ecology Garden is a beautiful garden with a still lake which all covered up by green algae.

 This is the Goddess Yuanyin where all the believers come here to pay their respect to her.

We took our breakfast which consist of chinese dough, seow long pao and soya bean drink. The tourist guide was already here to start our day.

 Beautiful idols where the Yuanyin change into so able to pass her teaching of buddhism to the followers.

 These special chairs only for the monks whom achieve the highest level of Buddhism teachings so that they can pass their knowledge to the monks.

Going up hill to take a cable car to the top of the hill. The ticket for the cable car was $50.00 rem for to and fro. "Oh!" this is not included the entrance fee to the temples, that is extra.
Foding Hill and Western Heaven Gate and Guanyin Cave are the 3 temples which we are to visit first.

 My 2 sisters where this was the 2nd times where we were able to travel together since we are grown up and married and each have their families.

The map of Putuoshan Island where every directions were indicted so that you will able to go without any tourist guide.

Been to 3 temples and stop for our lunch which cost us about $480.00 rem. after that we go to the last 3 temples.

 This is newly built temple so there weren't lot of crowds around here and the people whom looking after the temple are not the monks so I am able to take more shots of this temple.

After all the prayers were done, we had dinner. As usual we had the seafood dinner again and it cost us $680.00 rem.

 Thousands of lotus flowers were bought to present to the Goddess Yuanyin then the caretakers or monks will immediate took them down. How they dispose of these or resell them again? I have no ideas.

 The new temple still in the progress of completion and every stone cravings and done by hands.

Oh! Before we are back to the hotel again, we went to the Eco Garden Lake.
Back to the hotel to carry on our chinese drama movies, then went out to get some snacks which were skewers of chicken, cuttlefish and vegetables. We enjoyed ourselves with the snacks and wine right through the night. We have to get up early the next day, as we are leaving this island, and going take another ferry to another island for another last prayers to be done. Also, aware that there were only limited times for the 1st ferry to leave this island is 8.15 a.m. and there is another another leaving the island at 9.15 a.m.  and we only allow an hour to do the prayers in this island as we have to take the ferry back at 9.15 a.m.

For the travel in this island, Putuoshan, China, you don't need a tour guide. There is small mini buses will ferry you to most of the hotels and temples but you have to pay about $20.00 rem for every trip. Also hotel provide free services to ferry your luggage to the harbour when you left the hotel.

 This is the only temple where they allow the believers to burn the joss papers to The Goddess.

Today, we pay a $503.00 rem and $370.00 rem each for the 1 day adventures in here.

This tree is King of Fragrant Camphor Tree and it is more than 2,000 years old.

 Also the most important thing is that if you want to pay your respect to the Goddess by using the joss-sticks  to pray to her. The joss-stick where you can buy before taking a ferry to island cost only $15.00 rem but at here it cost $150.00 to $300.00 rem per packet. the following picture of Kwanyin is embroidery in diamonds.

The houses were built and allotted to the citizen living in the island. The following photo was the army training stations to protect  the island

There are beautiful beaches surrounding the island but the local don't go there or appreciate the beaches in here. You can take your times and wander any places which you like with signboards showing all the directions  in Chinese characters and in English wordings.

Scored for this place:  1 star only. Not a place I will recommend anyone to come here unless you are Buddhism believers and want to do your prayers here.

Place: Putuoshan, China
Photos: By Robert Suen and Catherine Tan
Date: 11/5/2012