Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Sightseeing - the Golden Temple

OK - this one is from yesterday, but I couldn't resist.

At the entrance from the road, halfway up a mountain. I wonder if the friendly neighborhood roofer back home knows how to do one of these roofs.
The locals all think Cassie is adorable. Smart people, these.



This gate protects the entry to the temple. Stone and wood construction.
These flowers bloom eternally. Cassie and Sherry, that is. Coincidentally, so do the flowers on that tree behind them. Kunming is the city of eternal spring. Everything is in bloom, year-round.
This dragon stands guard at the gate. Look closely to see the baby dragons on momma's back.
And then on the other side of the gate, an elephant watches over the temple.
More dragons, carved in stone. This is a big barrel of water. A wishing well of sorts.







Inside the wishing well, a fish waits with its mouth open to catch your coin. If your coin makes it into the mouth of the fish, it is said that you will have good luck. It's not clear whether this would also be lucky for the coin, or for the fish. :) By the way, the fish's mouth is about 2 feet under water, so getting a coin into its mouth is no easy task.
This is the inside of the Golden Temple. The entire temple appears to be made of brass. Most of it has turned black from oxydation. They keep the statues polished clean.

This is a piece of the temple. Again, this is all brass. Most of it is oxydized. The symbols stand for longevity. The locals like to touch them in order to obtain longevity. Constant touching keeps them somewhat polished.

This is one of 6 stone etchings. Each tells an old Chinese story. This one is of a boy who dressed up as a deer so that he could sneak into the deer herd to get some deer milk. But a hunter encountered him and shot him, thinking he was a deer. Then he took the milk. Great. One more thing for me to worry about during hunting season.

Mommy, Daddy, and Cassie standing in front of a rice-paddy pond.
Now here is something you don't see every day. Two leopards attacking a pig, while a big snake tangles with all of them. "I saw me a mermaid once, but I ain't never seen me one of these."
By the way, the guy on the left is Jerry, our guide. He tells us a little story about everything we see, including this statue.

Later in the day, we visited a tea merchant. Two young ladies prepared samples of 5 different kinds of tea. We ended up buying some Oolong tea. By the way, the table you see here is made from a great big tree trunk.

Naptime - my favorite time. She's decided to sleep upside down today. Feet up on the pillow, and head pointed to the foot of the bed. Whatever works. She is SOOOO cute.

Same pose, different camera angle.
Nothing like putting your feet up on the pillow after a hard day.

9 comments:

Cynthia said...

Sherry - Patti asked that we pass along the following she can't log onto blogger) - She loves seeing you with Cassie and that Greg and she think Cassie is adorable. More pictures please...more of the baby that is :) She is sooooo excited for you.

Cynthia said...

I love the pictures. Especially those of Cassie. She is so cute. She looks very relaxed when she is sleeping...a little angel. Your sightseeing looks like fun and the pictures are beautiful. Have a great evening and keep blogging. Much love to you all. Give Cassie a big fat juicy kiss for me.
xxoo

Susan said...

Great post Sonny and wonderful images! By the way, the news just stated that two Americans have been quarantined in China for Swine Flu. Stay healthy and get your rest if you can. No fevers, please!

xxoo-
Susan & Maiya

LynnieB said...

You win blogger of the year! Great descriptions aand Cassie just gets cuter and cuter. I'm with Susan - take care of yourself so you can come home. :)

Sherry said...

Thanks everyone for all the wonderful comments. I'm going to post more about Cassie soon. Tonight she was a bit clingy and cranky -- hadn't pooped -- mommy 'fixed' that, at least got a little out. She seems better now. We'll be going to bed soon. We start our day with the guide at 9:30am tomorrow. We'll post again during nap time.

And we are doing everything we can to stay healthy. Cassie and I skipped dinner out with the guide tonight because she wasn't feeling too great and mommy was worried about taking her out again. We bought lots of juice and fruit at Carefour on Monday and are eating well. So far we feel good -- all except allergies and itchy eyes.

Nite everyone.
And again, thanks for all the wonderful comments.

Michele M said...

Love the new family of 3 photo!!

Looks like a nice outing. Love all the photos.

Pam said...

Great pictures of the Temple. It looks amazing. Love seeing the three of you together as a family and all of the locals crowding around you, admiring that precious girl.

Lesa said...

Sherry, sorry I'm chiming in late. I have had a very busy day.

Love the photos, but my two favorites are the first one of Cassie and the second one of the three of you.

Thank you for taking the time to post so much. It isn't easy keeping your fan club happy.

Hugs to all of you.

Drea said...

Hey Guys!
Great post, those sleeping photos are my faves! Can't wait to hear more about your great adventure! and Sherry, I know you are in American Idol withdrawal, Adam was awesome it was rock week! Hopefully you'll get to watch the recaps when you get home! Maybe you can see the clips online! Hope the night goes well!