We were up early (that’s an understatement) for an early flight to Mt. Putuo. This is the essence of our tour, our pilgrimage. From Shanghai, we took a 40-minute flight out to Mt. Putuo. The ride was fine, imagine the shock I got when I learned that we would still need to ride a boat to get to the island!
Now, I really haven’t gotten seasick. I was apprehensive about riding a boat because the last I rode one was during an outing I had with my barkada in Batangas. To get to the other side that had a beautiful shoreline, we rode a banca and crossed the sea. In the middle, there was an upright rock which you really have to pass by to get to the other side. Unfortunately, the waves were so rough, it was one hell of a ride. Then, the front part of the banca went up in the air when it rode a really big wave and I was scared to death! That really did it for me and boat rides. But I couldn’t be left behind so I had to do it. I guess they saw the fear in my eyes and Jackie kept asking me if I was alright. I was (meaning I didn't feel like puking) but I must’ve been as white as a sheet. I chose a seat that didn’t give me any view of the sea. It was a very short ride, 10 mins. max. But I was really nervous, I was clutching Ricky’s arm, hanging on for dear life. Wala syang magawa kahit alam kong nasasaktan na sya kasi, I was white-knuckled so imagine the grip I had on his arm! Luckily I didn’t throw up or anything. I survived that. (Please look forward to the other boat ride the following day…)
As both my feet were firmly on land, I heaved a sigh of relief. To my surprise, mas hilo pa yata si Ricky kaysa sa akin but he was okay. Then the coaster brought us to the hotel where we would stay for the night. We unpacked our things then we were to meet in the lobby and the tour guide (a Bayani Agbayani look alike) was going to take us to Puji Temple. Tony was still with us but since this isn't his territory, he was like part of our group.
Visits to Chinese Temples are always something I look forward to. There is something about the burning of incense, saying your prayers on the kneelers and waving the incense sticks infront of you that intrigue me to no end. I have no idea about the religion and rituals but it fascinates me. This particular “compound” has several nooks where you do the ritual, if memory serves me right, we did it 7 times. (Jen, I missed you so much during this part.) I wanted so much to ask Ricky what do I do, what should I say? How do you know what to pray for? Does one altar represent something? Are you allowed to state personal intentions? My dearest husband couldn’t help me out because he couldn’t explain it to me. He just told me to do what they do and I was really frustrated. I am so sure the Buddha Gods were frowning upon me because I was so lost. It took about 2 altars for me to decide to just burn the incense sticks, pay my respects to the Buddha in front of me, give Thanks and say my own prayer. I feel that prayer and worship are universal even if whom we Worship and the Dogmas we follow are so diverse. I really hope the Gods forgive me. Hopefully next time I go there, I could ask someone to help me sort things out and make me understand how to pray and what can I pray for.
Another fact that really made me nervous was that I was the only person who wasn’t Chinese. I don’t look Chinese, I can’t speak Chinese. It made me so self-conscious I was half-expecting someone to come up to me, ask me what I was doing there and usher me out. Thankfully no one did.
It was a humbling experience to stick out like a sore thumb but in the face of our God or their God, you are humbled and I know deep down in my heart, they were all proud that I made the effort to take part in this pilgrimage.
there are about 100-150 monks lined up; the line leads into the main temple (in the background)
After this, we were off to another temple. If I'm not mistaken, it's the Purple Bamboo Grove Temple.
There weren't as many halls as in Puji but fascinating as well. Here, an added attraction was the "Wishing Well". I was told that you make a wish and toss a coin up into the pagoda. The higher the level your coin goes, the better chances of it being granted. On my second try, it went in the third level. Pretty Good eh?
be careful of what you wish for...
by the way, there are some photos in our webshots account, just click on the snapshots link on the right and view the Holy Week 2005 album
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