Writer. Traveler. Tea Drinker.

I’ve never taken a kung fu class (or karate) and I’ve only seen one Bruce Lee flick yet I have always wanted to go to Shaolin Temple. I’ve read Matthew Polly’s book about training at Shaolin (twice) and even he desribes it as touristy and yet I and have always imagined it as a serene mystical place where the body and mind combine to make the perfect peaceful, but dangerous monk. Imagine my surprise when I realized we were only a couple of hours away from the temple and I would get my chance to see it in person.

The history of Shaolin Temple is mixed with lore and big empty patches so fleshing out the facts is quite difficult.

What is known is that the original temple was built around the year 500. But it was a normal temple, with pudgy meditating, book-loving monks in the beginning. It wasn’t for another 30 years that things began to change with the arrival of a monk from India named Damo. Much myth and legend swirls around Damo. Most famously he is said to have meditated in a cave for 9 years without moving or speaking. Today, the cave is a sacred site (and major tourist attraction).

Anyway, he began to train the Shaolin monks because he felt that to be a good monk, you had to have a sharp mind and a strong body. The exercises were based on the movements of animals, such as the snake, praying mantis and so on. Originally they were just exercises, nothing more. But at some point they became a martial art. Some people theorize that the Shaolin Temple was in the secluded mountainside and was probably the frequent victim of bandit attacks and so the monks had to learn to defend themselves.

Whatever it was, Shaolin kung fu flourished, and with it so did the temple. It is said that during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) some Shaolin monks saved the life of the emperor through their smooth moves. More and more monks learn of this new form of martial arts and it begins to travel to new temples and new areas so that people outside Shaolin were practicing Shaolin kung fu.

But despite the popularity, things didn’t always work out for the temple, or the inhabitants. One legend said that 128 Shaolin monks, at the emperor’s command, defeated 10,000 attacking warriors. As soon the war was over the monks were invited to join the emperor’s guard but declined choosing to go back to Shaolin instead. The emperor became afraid of these powerful warriors who weren’t under his command and he decided to wage war. With the help of a renegade monk (who knew all of the temple’s secrets) he managed to attack the temple and kill almost all of the monks. The 5 surviving monks went into hiding and are now known as the 5 Ancestors. But eventually the temple was rebuilt and repopulated.

The 1900’s proved to be another bad time for the temple. War ravened China and Shaolin Temple was just another victim. In 1928 a war lord set a major fire to the temple. At this point the temple housed hundreds of ancient sacred texts which were destroyed. (Only a few manuscripts were saved.) They were going to rebuild the temple, but then the Japanese took possession of it in the early 40’s wreaking further havoc. Then Mao took control and we all know how cultural relics flourished during his tenure.

So the temple was pretty destroyed, never recovering from the 1928 fire or the Cultural Revolution. By 1978 only 9 ragtag monks lived in the crumbling temple, and they were half starved and poor. Then a funny thing happened. A little movie called Shaolin Temple came out in 1982 (staring a young Jet Li in his first feature film) and people began to take interest in the temple once again.

The government, which had been responsible for the destruction in the past, was now responsible for the temple’s rebirth. Local officials realized that money could be made from tourism to the temple, so they went about fixing it up, getting monks to come back, and even bringing back some Shaolin masters from other parts of the country to teach kung fu.

That means that most of the buildings in the complex are new, brand spanking new. Many have been built within the last 10 years which was a bit of a disappointment to purists. The place is now far more than a temple. It is a complex with a giant entrance gate (and a giant ticket price to go along with it) a performance hall (with shows every hour) and electric cars to whisk you from the gate to the temple. There are of course some signs of the past such as finger-sized holes in trees from hand kung fu, and depressions on a stone floor in one room from decades of standing poses.

But the temple is now mostly a tourist attraction. You could barely see the trees with the finger depressions from the hoards of tourist and tour guides milling around taking pictures. Also it was a bit disappointing to see that Shaolin Temple was, well, just a temple. I have seen dozens of temples in my time here in China and I just expected something, I don’t know, different at Shaolin. Ryan and I kept hoping we would find a group of monks in orange robes and shaved head doing kicks and lunges in a dusty courtyard.

In fact, it wasn’t until we were on the way out we saw some kung fu (aside from the show in the performance hall that is). We noticed a group of tourists behind one of the buildings and went over to check it out. It was a group of 20 or so small children practicing their poses. Real kung fu! Kids in robes! Shaved heads!

Also, on our way out of the complex we saw hundreds of kids in matching outfits out in the fields practicing kicks, standing at attention, boxing etc. It looked more like activity hour at summer camp then kung fu training, but seeing as how it was summer, the whole thing was probably some Shaolin summer camp that charges you twice the price to be close to the temple.

It’s not that I hated the place, I had a lot of fun. But I had the tourist type fun that comes from going to Sea World or Graceland for the day. I mean, we even spent $3 to get our picture taken with some monks that pose for you (and I love the picture). Tourism saved Shaolin Temple, but at the same time, maybe it destroyed a little bit of it as well.

Kaifeng has some ancient buildings, historical pagoada’s and astounding sculptures but that the people really come for is the night market. Held in the middle of the city every night the night market is overflowing with skewers of meat, pounded peanut cakes, breads cooked in small charcoal ovens and lots and lots of unidentifiable stuff.

Here’s a little peek at some of the food available in the market.

A year ago all we had was a few books and big blank walls. Now the whole desk is filled with mementos from my time teaching and traveling.

One year ago today I was getting off a plane in Shanghai to begin my Chinese adventure. One year ago I was waking up only an hour after I fell asleep, feverish and confused in my surroundings due to extreme jetlag. One year ago today I was walking into stores and marveling at all the “strange” things on the shelves. One year ago today I didn’t even consider Chinese to be a language, but rather a sort of art form that communicated something, but I didn’t know what.

And here I am today, sitting at the computer my walls filled with pictures and mementoes of my first year, full from a big meal that I ordered myself (in written Chinese) getting ready to welcome the new foreign teachers and begin the school year. I’m at ease, relaxed and *gasp* and really looking forward to getting back to work.

This past year has been a big one, with a lot of up’s and down’s and….aw, who am I kidding, there were a lot more up’s then down’s. Even in my darkest hour (like the day I spent on the toilet) I never regretted coming here for a second.

Everything is so different and strange here yet I feel oddly comfortable. Even when I get stared at, even when someone comes up to me speaking energetically yet I have no idea what they are saying, even when I pick up a piece of food don’t know if it is animal, vegetable or mineral, I feel, I don’t know, relaxed? At ease?

I still sit in wonder that I live in a different country. There was a time when I thought the word “expat” meant “expatriot” and referred only to older men who had left the country after serving in a war. Look, I was 12 give me a break. (It actually stands for “expatriate” and means anyone living in a country different from their home country.) I’m an expat! How crazy is that?!

I remember, many years ago, finding an ad for “English Teacher Wanted” on the internet and dreaming about what it would be like. Now I find my living in that dream. It’s a whole lot messier in real life of course, but that’s part of the charm as well.

If there is anybody out there that is stuck in a rut and dreaming of an escape to a mobile lifestyle, well all I can say is to go for it. Work towards achieving your dream, whatever it might be, and keep it in the back of your head every day. It may take awhile to come true (coming to China took me two years of dreaming and one year of 80-hour workweeks) but the payback comes eventually and it will all be worth it.

And if the one year anniversary wasn’t enough today also marks the 14^th anniversary of Ryan and being together. Happy anniversary to my favorite traveling partner.

In the middle of Kaifeng stands the Temple of the Chief Minister. And in the middle of that temple stands one of the most amazing statues I have ever seen. The Four-Faced Thousand Eyes Thousand Hand Statue of Guanyin.

It is an amazing statue, towering at 23 feet and in the center of an octagonal room. You can enter the room from any side and walk around the statue to see the details.  The statue was hidden during the Cultural Revolution (which was likely hard due to its size and 3 ton weight) but the statue was unscathed and now shines. It’s wood, but painted in gold to make it glow from far away. It’s made from a ginko tree, one giant ginko tree, and it is estimated, due to its size, that the tree was over 3,000 years old when it was cut down.

Guanyin is also called the Goddess of Mercy and is sometimes represented as having 1000 hands and eyes so that she can see and reach out to those who need her help. This statue goes a step beyond and actually has 1048 hands and eyes. Each hand is individually carved and the fingers are slightly different. Little details like that make you appreciate the work the artist put into it.

It took the artist, one man, 58 years to carve. Imagine spending 58 years of your life carving the statue. Even if he started at age 10 he would be past retirement age when he finished (and I’m sure he started way after age 10). Unfortunately the artists name has been lost in the pages of history and no one knows anything about him.

Jason, our tour guide, told us a story about the statue. He said a long time ago (or maybe I should say “Once upon a time…”) there was a king. The king was very sick, but his illness was a complete mystery. He called for the best doctors, but no one knew what was making him sick, and no one knew how to help him. It looked as if he would die.

One day a wandering monk entered his kingdom. He took one look at the king and told him he knew what was wrong and what he needed to cure him.

“The only thing,” the wandering monk said, “is I will need a special ingredient: The hand and eye from one of your children.”

The king had three daughters who were brought before him and told of the monks words. The oldest daughter had just had a baby and she begged the king to choose another sister.

“How can I take care of my child with only one hand and one eye? It is impossible and my baby will die.’

The middle sister had just gotten married and also begged the king.

“I am a new bride. How can I face my husband without an eye and a hand?”

Then the youngest and most beautiful sister stepped up.

“I have no child and no husband. I will gladly give up my hand and gouge out my eye if it will help you get better, father.”

Soon, the arm was cut and the eye was taken and the young princess bled all over the ground. She couldn’t stop bleeding in fact, and soon was dead from her injury. The king recovered, but the whole kingdom grieved for the young princess and her sacrifice. They only said good things about her, and her courage of spirit and character and how she embodied fealty to her father and king.

Everybody talked about her and eventually so many people were talking about her the Buddha couldn’t help overhearing and was also moved by her actions. In honor of the girl he planted a seed from a ginko tree in the ground that she had bled on. That tree grew strong and healthy and thousands of years later it was chosen by a sculpture to be the thousand eye and hand statue we were standing in front of.

China had some pretty rough years where their great sculptures and buildings were either looted or just outwardly destroyed. It’s amazing when you find a hidden treasure in an unexpected place.

In Kaifeng, one of the 7 ancient cities located in Henan Province, our very sketchy hotel offered free breakfast. Much to our disappointment breakfast consisted of a basket of cold, hardening mantou (steamed bread), over boiled eggs and a salad bar with tiny scraps of pickled vegetables. I might have been able to choke down the mantou (I do love the stuff) but they didn’t even offer tea to wash it down. We took one bite and took off.

We decided to hit the streets to find something for breakfast but we didn’t get far. As we approached the entrance of the hotel a friendly voice greeted us. “Hello! Where are you from?” Being a foreigner you get accosted by all sorts of people trying to sell you something and inwardly I groaned. It wasn’t even 9 am, way too early for this shit.

Turns out the man that stopped us was named Jason. Code name “Golden Phoenix.” He immediately whips out a journal type book and starts reading off entries people wrote about his service. “I have taken 615 foreigners on my rickshaw. I’m Jason the rickshaw driver,” he said proudly.

He showed us entry after entry (and read them aloud though clearly he had memorized them) and talked about how great his service was. Unfortunately he didn’t even describe his service and I spent the first few minutes totally confused as we tried to needle our way out of there and get something to eat.

Eventually, I figured out he was a tour guide (his bicycle rickshaw was behind us) and he wanted to show us the sights of Kaifeng. We asked how much and he said 200 yuan ($30) for the entire day. He had a pass to all the sites and so we would only pay for our own tickets. (He did mention that the German family from the day before invited him to eat lunch with them. Okay Jason, we got the hint.)

To be honest we didn’t have much planned for Kaifeng as we never even heard of the place until a few days prior when we were planning our next stop. We chose it because a) it was a short train ride and b) it had some interesting sounding sites. Soon Jason’s silver tongue worked its magic and we found ourselves climbing into the rickshaw for a day of sightseeing with the “Golden Phoenix.”

Turns out the day was great, and Kaifeng way more interesting then I ever thought due to Jason. We went to look at “daily life of Kaifeng people” and ended up at this cool park we might not have seen otherwise in which people were twirling dragon kites, and snapping giant whips (all for exercise.)  Jason even got involved a few times such as when he found a bunch of Christians singing hymns (he’s a proud Christian), and when we found a calligraphist practicing on the ground with mud water.

He also explained a lot of things to us we had been wondering about, such as the meaning of different statues in Buddhists temples. He also taught us the proper way to walk over a threshold in a temple (left foot first for the men, right for women.)

Jason’s favorite sight, the oldest surviving monument In Kaifeng, is the Iron Pagoda built in 1094. It’s not actually made out of iron, rather glazed bricks, but it looks like iron from afar. Kaifeng has a history of major floods several times in the past. The only reason the pagoda survived is because it was originally built on the top of a hill. Currently the land around it is flat.

One of the nicest aspects of the Iron Pagoda is the park it is in. There are of course a number of temples, but also just nice sitting areas. Senior citizens get in free, and many locals were just relaxing by the water. We also sat down and soon, with Jason translating, we found we had many new friends.

All the Chinese people we speak to are mostly young, or middle aged. We don’t get to talk to the elderly often because of the language barrier. And honestly, we weren’t sure what they thought of America as in the past we were once “foreign devils.” But this old, wrinkled lady started reciting some English words she knew (and sang the whole alphabet song) and people were interested in what we thought of China and Kaifeng.

One old man, who would fit into any retirement home in Florida, whipped out his fan so it covered his face and whispered Jason a question.

“He wants to know if you two are a couple.”

“Yes,” we said.

The old mad whipped the fan to his face again.

“Do you have any children?”

“No,” we said.

One older man came up to us and asked how old Nixon was.

“He’s dead,” we had to inform him. That didn’t stop him from singing the praises of Nixon (who was the first U.S. President to open up relations between China and the US) and all he did for the two country. At one point he was saying something about a long handshake reaching across the world. We had to break it to him gently that in America many people only remembered Nixon for his corruption. But to this guy, it didn’t matter.

The day ended up great and we were happy to spend the day with Jason as our guide. We even tipped him assuming that since he deals mostly with foreigners he probably gets it often (tipping is uncommon and oftentimes unwelcomed in China. Jason didn’t mind though.) We even took a picture and signed his book singing his praises that will now be brought out for the next foreigners to see.

What I liked most about Jason was his way of thinking. He just liked speaking English and so taught it to himself while in the army. He worked at a factory, but it closed and he found himself without a job. Instead of finding more factory work he decided to buy a rickshaw to peddle people around. After doing that for awhile he decided to start peddling foreigners to practice his English and soon Jason the Rickshaw Driver was born.

Even though he isn’t living a grand luxurious life he still is doing something he loves (speaking English and meeting new people) and he did it all by himself. In China, as in the west, people often fall in the traps of doing what they have been told. Go to school, graduate college, get married, get a job, work at a big company, retire in your 60’s and take care of the grandkids. But Jason kind of broke out of that path and now he spends his days peddling around, writing calligraphy and talking to new people all while earning a little cash (and eating a free lunch).

Thanks for the great day Jason!

There is suppose to be a looming mountain behind me but you can't see it through the clouds.

Got your hiking boots on? Good, you may want to make sure your laces are tied tight because we have quite a ways to go. There are over 6000 steps from the bottom to the top. Why are you looking so pale? Don’t worry, we’ll take the bus to the halfway point. It’s already 4:00 pm, too late to start at the bottom and arrive at the top before dark. There’s a cable car that goes from the halfway point to the top, but really, what’s the fun in that?

Tai Shan is the most sacred Taoist Mountain in China, which is no mean feat as pretty much every tall mountain in China has some claim to being sacred or meaningful. But this one is the real deal. Emperor Qin Shihuang (the first emperor) climbed to the top of the mountain and proclaimed China one united country for the fist time ever. Confucius climbed the mountain and was suitable impressed (he was quoted as to saying “The world is small” at the summit) and even Mao managed to make his way up top to proclaim communist glory. (He said “The east is red” while admiring the sunrise.)

The gods rule on Tai Shan, as the mountain is an actual god itself. In fact, the ancient emperors thought the mountain was the son of the Emperor of Heaven. A successful climb meant an endorsement from the god to rule.  We have the same pressure you know. If the god doesn’t approve of us, we won’t get to the top. Of course, if we do make it to the top it means we will live to be 100 according to legend. Unless either of us are a relative of the goddess Bixia. She is powerful up here too and beautiful yet frightening. If you are a descendant of hers and climb the mountain she will not let you return to earth.

Here we are, at the Midway gate to Heaven. Let’s start tackling those steps!

This isn’t so bad. The steps are broad and wide and there are even a bunch of flat patches. There are also a bunch of shops selling souvenirs and walking sticks. I’m not sure why you would need a walking stick on a stone staircase, but they seem to be a popular item for climber. Luckily, since it’s 4:30, the hawkers seem tired and aren’t bothering us much.

Hey check out that calligraphy! I think we’ll see a lot more of it on our way up. I wish I could understand it because it supposedly is clever word play and some of the finest examples of calligraphy. Looks cool anyway!

Can you see the top yet? No, me neither. It’s too cloudy up there. It’s hot here, but I can tell that it is a little cooler than in town. They say the summit can be very cold any day of the year. Actually, with this heat wave going on I could use a cold night.

The steps seem to be getting a little steeper. We’ll stop to rest at the God of Wealth Temple and the Five Pine Pavilion. This was the resting stop of the first emperor when he got stuck in a rain storm on his way up. As a thanks to the trees for the shelter he awarded them with a promotion to Ministers of the Fifth Rank. Crazy emperor.

Hey, we’re here. Check out the God of Wealth Temple. Pretty amazing.

According to my map, we’re about halfway. It’s been an hour and I’m tired, but it’s not so bad. The next bit is called Path of the Eighteen Bends. Sounds a little ominous, but how bad could it be, righ? Let’s go.

Well…..*gasp*…I guess this part IS pretty steep. Don’t worry, It’ll get better soon I think. *Pant, gasp* Have these steps gotten steeper and narrower? Yeah, I think so too. *Gasp* *Gasp* Okay, at the top of these steps it’s got to get easier. I can feel it. Just push through up this steep bit.

Ah yeah, that’s better. Look the clouds are breaking and I can see the top of the mountain! It’s not too far away.

Oh wait, the camera was zoomed in. $@%(*!^@$#%!@*(&!!**@^($&

It looks more like this.

Sorry, we still have quite a ways to go.

These steps just keep going on and on. There aren’t even many shops anymore and the ones that are here sell Red Bull and cups of instant noodles. I don’t think my body could handle instant noodles right now. I want to sit down, but as soon as I do my muscles seem to be freezing so I think it’s best if we keep going.

*Gasp* *Pant*

Hey wait, see that? I think it is the Gate of Immortality. All we have to do is walk through it and we will be immortal.

A mere mortal

Immortal!!

Okay, come on, keep going. Look up at the top. I think the sun is setting. Too bad we’ll miss it, but maybe it will still be light when we get to the top. Or I should say ‘if.” *Gasp*

What I find amazing are the porters. Since everything has to be carried to the top, these poor guys probably climb the mountain a number of times a day.

It looks like their sweating a lot, but their hardly gasping for breath like we are. And check out those muscles!

Of course I’ve noticed the price rising at about the same rate we are. I guess since things have to be brought up here by hand it is only fair that we pay a little more. What a job.

Anyway, we are almost at the top! Only one more push to the top. It’s getting pretty dark now, but maybe there will still be some light at the top. C’mon, only a few more steps now. 5 more…..3 more…..1 more!

We made it!! And we have sweaty shirts and faces to prove it!

We survived 22-hour train rides, bus scams and heat-index temperatures of 120 degrees during our summer travels and have arrived home with tans and bags full of dirty laundry to prove it.  It’s good to be back (especially in an air conditioned room) but had a great time seeing some amazing things. We decided to be a 100% spontaneous on this trip and do very little planning which made most of our destinations a surprise for us.

Many of the places we went were not international cities or traveled much by westerners. This had both positive and negative effects on our trip. I mean, we want to see all different parts of China, not just the big cities, but traveling in less popular places meant that English speakers were scarce, even in hostels catering to overseas travelers, which makes everything more difficult. All I can say is I am really happy that I had studied some Chinese because it came in handy several times. (We were also stared at a lot and now that I can understand a little more Chinese I could hear that everyone was talking about us which was a little annoying.)

Of course number one on my agenda was eating a hamburger (a real hamburger) and buying some English language novels as both are difficult to do in our hometown. Luckily, within the first few days we had achieved both and I was happy (for a few days at least until I finished all my books and couldn’t find anymore.)

Our travels also took us to some of the oldest places in China, many with spiritual meaning. We climbed the most scared mountain in China (all 7,000 sacred steps), we stood in the same spot as Confucius had taught, looked at the finger holes bored into trees over decades of Kung Fu training at Shaolin Temple and went to a number of temples, cities and caves that had been visited by emperors and dignitaries for thousands of years.

So while I’m sorry that we couldn’t go back to the US like we had originally intended I am not sorry that we had a great time seeing some amazing, ancient, mysterious places in our adopted country. Over the next week or so I’ll be posting some pictures and entries about what we saw and learned so make sure to check back!

Oh, one more thing to mention. While I was gone I was featured as a case study on Rolf Pott’s site Vagablogging. Rolf is one of the kings of the long term overseas traveling and his bestselling book, Vagabonding, is a must read for any serious traveler. His articles appear regularly in National Geographic Traveler, Outside, The New York Times Magazine and now he interviewed little ‘ole me. (Okay, I dealt with one of his assistants mostly, but he did write me an email!)  Anyway, it is a total honor to be featured on his site.

I kept expecting some Kung Fu masters to have an epic battle on the rooftops, but I left disappointed.