Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,

There are temples and there are theme parks;
This park pretty much combines both.

Situated forty kilometers from Sanya City is the Nanshan 'Disney Temple’ which is happy to be the largest Buddhist preaching site established since the founding of the People's Republic of China. The temple was completed on 12 April, 1998 which coincided with the 2,000th anniversary of Buddhism in China but like most ‘theme parks’ they are not just built for your enjoyment but also to have you partways you’re your money.

The Kwanyin Bodhisattva statue surely is a big bugger and once you finally get away from the ‘carnival’ section of the park it actually does turn into a peaceful and enjoyable day but it is in no way worth the 150Yuan entrance fee.

It would have been nice to have visited the viewing gallery on the Kwanyin Bodhisattva statue but for a mandatory ‘donation’ of an extra eighty Yuan (or was it eighty eight?) it was really more of a joke than an actual temple. I actually explained the word ‘donation’ to the two Money Monkeys (Monks) at the door but they insisted that it was a ‘donation’ and no donation, then viewing gallery.

They wouldn’t even consider changing the wording from ‘donation’ to ‘admission fee’.
Nor did they like my parting ‘Nice Money Monkeys’ for that matter.

Anyhow, as I said above once we left the main theme park area the afternoon changed into one that was much more peaceful in comparison to that of watching my wallet like I was at a packet train station. The park is beautiful and comes with its own beaches that are actually clean along with a variety of parks and gardens. I can’t say though that I enjoyed the atmosphere of the new temples and I nearly died when I was asked to pay twenty Yuan for a can of coke and a further forty to fifty Yuan for a bowl of noodles.

In the end I lost my appetite and thought it best to wait until we got back to Sanya where I could pay six Yuan for the same noodles and three Yuan for a can of sugar.

My day at Nanshan Temple Theme Park was one of mixed feelings as I did love the gardens but hated the fact that it wasn’t a real temple. Yes I know that it is actually a temple but when it comes with many Money Monkeys (Monks) all with their hands on your wallet it quickly loses any templish atmosphere and I was surprised they didn’t come complete with their own portable Visa/Master Card machines. So in the end you pay far too much money to enter, you want to take a ride on the little train and you must pay more money, you want to enter Guanyin and you must pay far too much more money and if you want to eat you must once again pay a further far too much more money.

I never advise people what to see and what not to see but if you are interested then eat prior too getting on the bus and also remember to purchase any drinks you’ll need.

There was one part of the day that had Judy and I almost rolling on the floor laughing, we wanted to grab some fresh fruit juice and the lady continually told us what the fruits were in Russian and in English I told her that I was actually from Australia.

What did she do then?
She said, oh good and started talking to us in Chinese.
But all was well because I know my fruits and juices and they were so delicious!

When we started to walk back to the entrance/exit I suggested walking all the way back along the beach and what was Judys reply? I can’t, I’ve got sandshoes on. I replied with a rather amused look and then said yes, they are sandshoes Jude and then nearly wet myself laughing….argh you had to be there!

The Big Bugger of a Statue

Guanyin of the South Sea is a one hundred and eight meter (354 feet) three sided statue of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (better known as Guanyin in East Asia) which faces inland and the other two face the South China Sea. One aspect depicts Guanyin cradling a sutra in the left hand and gesturing the Vitarka Mudra with the right, the second with her palms crossed, holding a string of prayer beads and the third holding a lotus.

It is currently the fourth tallest statue in the world and is the tallest statue of Guanyin in the world. It took six years to build and was enshrined on April 24, 2005, with the participation of one hundred and eight monks from various Buddhist groups in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macao and Mainland China and the delegation included monks from the Theravada and Vajrayana traditions.

Beers N Noodles toya…..shane
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The soundtrack to this entry was by Daft Punk
The album was ‘Discovery’
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