This morning we once again had breakfast downstairs as it is
a veritable feast. Everything you can imagine, plus more. Jesus could have fed
the millions with the amount on offer. Had Jane bursting at the seams when in
an attempt to get some honey for my toast I did an impression of a bee with
sound effects. Worked first time so couldn’t have been too bad.
We dropped off the laundry bag with a couple of things for
same day service as we would be on the train for the next couple of days and
this was quite an effort as we had the bag in the room, but not the form to
fill out. Eventually got there and were assured it would be back later today.
Peter and the driver were waiting at 9 and it was straight
off to the Yungang Grottoes which was only about 30-40 minutes out of town. We
went past a couple of large coal mines with housing for approx. 10,000 miners
and families. All underground, no open cut mines here. The large mine closest
to the Grottoes had been closed by the government after the site was declared
by UNESCO to improve air quality as the coal dust was having an adverse effect
on the caves. This is now a mining museum which given the size looks like it
would be very interesting.
Got to Yungang and set off to explore. The exterior temple,
gardens and everything else were only built after the Beijing Olympics, but in
usual fashion, totally in the old style which makes it sometimes hard to tell
what is original and what is new.
The Grottoes are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and there are
45 caves of varying size and various size Buddhas carved into the sandstone,
one as small as 2cm. These date back nearly 1500 years and many have eroded
away due to the sandstone and others stolen by the Japanese during the
occupation period. The caves 5 & 6 were magnificent and are to Buddhism
comparable to the Sistine Chapel. The ceilings, statues and paintings are just
superb to see; well worth a visit. I’m sorry but the photos do not do the site
justice as in the flesh they are just magnificent. On the way out there were
some other amazing sculptures as well, mythical characters made out of
discarded car tyres, very clever.
After a couple of hours we then headed back into town and at
12.30 we stopped at EastWheat (seemed to be a noodle chain) for traditional
Datong noodles which we ate with Peter and the driver. It was excellent but the
soup is sooo hot when served (maybe a good thing) it takes for ever to cool
down.
It was then on to the Huayan Monastery within the city wall
which survived from 1000 AD and another couple of buildings only 300 years old.
Similar to the Grottoes, the whole Buddhist complex was rebuilt so it was hard
to tell which ones were not authentic. Once again the workmanship and
complexity of the build is just amazing and the artwork delightful. Sorry but
like many of the temples, not allowed to photograph inside which is a pity,
even without flash. Starting to work out if interior photos allowed, NOT
original 😉.
We then climbed the new Pagoda, only built around 10 years
ago which gave a lovely view of the Datong city. The steps up were not as steep
as the drum and bell towers in Beijing but still steep enough and with such
small width treads it was not an easy climb. Here you could see where there
were still some of the old areas still standing, or in the process of being
demolished and the new high rises that have replaced them. Apparently there is
a BBC program on this rebuilding of Datong and the social implications, it
would be an interesting documentary I think. It was then on to the Nine Dragon
Screen which dates back to the Ming dynasty and used to stand in front of the
Palace which no longer exists; burnt down centuries ago, however don’t worry
the new one is being built right now 😉
This is the largest dragon screen in China, even bigger than
the one at the Forbidden City but not quite in the same condition as it was
moved in the 50’s or 60’s for a new road, which meant they chopped it up and
then reassembled it. The colours however are still vibrant and beautiful.
That was the end of the tour so we were taken back to the
hotel and dropped off. An excellent choice and really glad we made the 6 hour
train detour to Datong to see these magnificent sights. I think Datong will
become a much greater tourism destination once the bullet train opens in
December this year and is only a 90 minute trip from Beijing. We then dropped
some gear off in the room, and had a little half hour rest after checking the
laundry had returned; which it had, and then off downtown for a little shopping
expedition for supplies for the six hour train trip tomorrow. Stopped at
Walmart, Chinese style and then at a little lolly, nut, fruit store; Chao M
Weng, where we got a number of little goodies, some no clue what they were but all
beautifully individually wrapped of course. Trust me there is more packaging
and plastic in China so far than anywhere else I have seen. Then back to the
hotel for a little Tsingtao before gabbing the camera for the 8pm water and
light show again at the City Wall South Gate.
Once again we seemed to be the highlight of the night for
many people and children especially who obviously rarely get to see a Caucasian.
The show was different to the previous night and went for almost an hour.
During that time we spoke to a young local woman who was visiting her parents
in Datong and studied Urban Planning in Beijing,. She had just been offered
three different placements in London for her Masters and was very happy about
this.
It was then back to the room, a quick bite of the leftover
pizza from last night, pack the bags and off to slumber land ready for the
5.40am alarm.
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| Part of the Great Wall |
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| Signal Mound predating Great Wall |
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