Bus Station in Baoguo Village

It was a really interesting stay here in Mount Emei. However, we can’t stay here forever, we still have a schedule to meet, it is already broken as it is since we were supposed to leave for Chengdu the previous afternoon. Anyway, our schedule was flexible enough to accomodate delays like these. Early morning the next day, we checked out of Teddy Bear Cafe and head off to the nearby bus station.

This was the same bus station we took to the top of Mount Emei. It also has destination to other parts of Sichuan. I thought this is very convenient for tourists. The bus station itself is quite unlike the other bus stations I have been to in China. This one actually feel very modern. It is clean and spacious. It is also brightly lit. What’s more, there are not a lot of people.

Ticket Counters

There were a lot of ticket counters so there was no problem purchasing tickets. I found it interesting that instead of electric fans which I was used to seeing in South East Asia. Electric fans are of course used to keep one cool during times of warm weather. However, the ticket counter ladies were using some sort of appliance that I have never seen before. It looks like an satellite dish but it actually radiates heat. This is of course because of the cold the experience in this part of the country.

Departure Gates with Ticket Inspectors

There were hourly buses that depart from the bus station to Chengdu. The bus station was a pleasant place to wait so it wasn’t really uncomfortable. The toilets were also clean and well maintained. Unfortunately, Western style toilets are still quite rare. Happily enough there was a drinking fountain at the bus station and they have hot water. People would come with their water bottles with tea leaves and fill it up with the hot water. I also have a water bottle but I didn’t have any tea leaves. I really wanted to buy that time. Anyway, I also filled it up with hot water. And it was really hot!

Finally our bus arrived and we were on our way to Chengdu. The provincial capital of Sichuan is around 3 hours away from Emei City. We should be getting there around lunch time. The night before, we bought some snacks to eat on the journey, so we shouldn’t get going hungry during our journey.

Floating Tea Pot

Again, we travelled on excellent highways. I was thinking that we would be getting there in no time. The highway passed through picturesque rapeseed fields. They really seem to like that plant, since it is really all over the place. After couple of hours on the road, we were at our first stopover. The stop over had a big tea shop. Now that I think about it, I wonder why I didn’t go buy some tea leaves. We quickly went to their bathroom to relieve ourselves after the long journey.

Tea Shop At the Stopover

Just outside the tea shop, is a huge “floating” teapot which appears to be pouring tea. It was an amusing scene which I had to hurriedly take a photo of since the bus was about to leave. Just as we hit the outskirts of Chengdu, our pace slowed down to a crawl. It seems like the city is building a mass transit system and the construction is causing the slowness in travel. This went on for an hour or so until we finally got past the construction and into the city of Chengdu. Hopefully when the construction is finished it will be a more comfortable ride entering Chengdu.

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Fish Fragrant Meat Slivers 鱼香肉丝

I woke up from a nice rest from the dizzying ride back from Mount Emei. It was already dark and it was raining. Fortunately, we are already checked in at the Teddy Bear Cafe. My headache was almost gone and I was now hungry. I wanted to go out and find some restaurant to eat in but my friend preferred to stay at Teddy Bear Cafe and find some food there.

Fortunately, Andy, the owner of Teddy Bear Cafe, is a good cook. He showed us the menu of what they serve. Somehow I recognized the menu to be the same menu as from our dinner the previous night. The prices were exactly the same. So it really was a cartel here. So there is nothing much we can do about the price, maybe they gave bigger portions. We picked a few dishes from the menu and headed to the second floor of the cafe.

Pork with Mushrooms

You get a nice view of the cafe from the second floor. This is a great place to sit back and relax after an exhausting day of exploring Mount Emei. Finally, our food came. The first one was fish-fragrant meat slivers 鱼香肉丝. The curiously named dish is just slivers of meat with some vegetables. The sauce is sweet-sourish type of sauce which supposedly reminds the one eating of fish. I’m not really too sure about that. However, supposedly the sauce it quite difficult to get right. I haven’t had a good fish fragrant meat slivers before, so I wasn’t really sure what is a good one. Of course to my untrained taste buds, this one tasted great, it was a little spicy, but nothing deadly.

Pork Slivers with Noodles

The next two dishes weren’t really anything to write home about. They were certainly quite un-Sichuan food, and they probably are. One dish was pork with mushrooms. While the other was just pork slivers with noodles. Really nothing special about them.

Water Boiled Meat 水煮肉片

What came next was something I am familiar with and love. To the uninitiated, it can be downright scary. It is water boiled meat 水煮肉片. The name of the dish sounds like it is a tame dish without the spice. But the opposite is actually true. The “water” part is actually mixed with Sichuan spices of bean paste, chili and the Sichuan pepper giving it that red and deadly look. The meat is then put in this deadly broth and served. Inspite of its deadly looks it is not really that spicy. You just need to be careful of the pepper if you do not like the sensation of numbness. At the bottom of the bowl are vegetables and some bean sprouts. I really liked this dish, and I’m really happy to be able to eat it at the province where it was invented.

I was really satisfied with the meal. Although not all of the food was spicy, they were all very tasty and the ambience of eating in a log cabin-like atmosphere also helps. Service was fast too. For those who cannot take the local food, you can always ask the staff to prepare something for you. But then, it would be such a waste to miss out on such excellent food.

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Bedroom in Teddy Bear Cafe

Just before we left for Mount Emei, we checked out of the mediocre Li Min hotel to our intended accomodation – Teddy Bear Cafe and Hotel 玩具熊酒店. Fortunately, they let you leave your bags at their place while you go around touring Mount Emei. Now that we are back, we can now check in.

The Bathroom at Teddy Bear Cafe

The original plans was to catch a bus to the provincial capital of Chengdu, but we were too tired from the tour of Mount Emei. Somehow, on the way down the mountain, I developed a headache. I wasn’t sure whether it came from the bus ride or it was symptoms of altitude sickness. If it were really altitude sickness, it was good that we went down the mountain or things could have gotten bad. My friend and I agreed that we go to Chengdu the next day instead, since he was also experiencing headaches.

The Cafe Area

We got a room at the ground floor near where they prepare the food. Their room was amazingly clean. Just like their lobby, it had a wooden theme and amusingly enough they have a teddy bear in the room. The bathroom was big and hot shower. I’m really impressed with this place. This is certainly a far cry from the Li Min hotel we previously stayed in and now we were sorry that we did not stay here the previous night.

Entrance To Teddy Bear Cafe

The owner Andy, speaks great English. And for once, my friend was able to converse with someone other than me. I can see my friend enjoying by asking Andy questions about the place. We told him where we stayed the previous nights and how they essentially herd off tourists from Leshan to their hotel. He was surprised to hear this and said he wouldn’t do such a thing. I would agree, he didn’t need to. With a place like this, word would spread far and wide in the backpacker community about his place. This has already landed him a mention in the Lonely Planet China guide book.

What's A Teddy Bear Cafe Without A Teddy Bear?

Although the air is still cold, at least it isn’t freezing like the top of Mount Emei. We preferred to stay indoors this time though. But our headaches made me go back to the room to get some rest. It has been a very exhausting day.

To get to Teddy Bear Cafe, facing the main bus station at Baoguo Village, it is to the one of the nearest side streets to the left of the bus station. There is a sign with Teddy Bear Cafe, you can’t miss it.

Teddy Bear Hotel
43 Baoguo Road,
Mount Emei, Sichuan, China

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Snow Covered Slopes of Mount Emei

Well, it is time we head down the mountain, I’m really reluctant to go down the mountain because I just want to appreciate the scenery here on the summit of Mount Emei. The sun is already high up in the sky but it is still quite cold on top. I don’t get that much cold weather aside from air-conditioned buildings. This kind of weather is really something new to me.

Cable Car Down the Mountain

Alas, we did not bring any stuff to overnight in at the top. There were are lot of inns at the top but we didn’t really didn’t go around asking for the rates. I would have wanted to see if could get snowfall. Maybe some other place then. We’ll have to plan it early enough such that there is enough time to go up the mountain.

Snowed in Forest

The cable car ride down was just as spectacular. Along just as we entered cloud level a fellow passenger mentioned that there were Buddha Halos, but I didn’t get to see them since the cable car was moving too fast. At the bottom, we started our long trek down the mountain. Just past the Jieyin Temple, we saw a father and son team just reaching the Jieyin Temple. We actually saw them at the parking lot of the tourist buses. Well, it will seem that they would be spending the night on top of the mountain.

Zero Visibility At the Car Park

By now, the whole place is all fogged up again. The ground, still as wet and as slippery as ever. But this time I know how to walk on it. Very carefully. The railing are your best friend. We passed by some shops selling tea made in Emei. I don’t know how authentic they are but they didn’t interest me.

After much struggling, we finally reached the parking lot area. It was really fogged up here, and one cannot see more than a few meters ahead. I wonder how the driver can drive like this. On second thought, maybe I shouldn’t think about it too much.

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Emei Shan Amid the Sea of Clouds

While the man-made temples on top of Mount Emei have been really impressive. The best is yet to come. Something that is completely natural. As we walked past the Golden Summit Temple, what unfolded before our eyes is the amazing view from the summit of Mount Emei. The mountain just drops off into the chasm below. The clouds swirling below give that really mystical experience.

Closer View of Wannian Temple from the First Photo

What we are seeing is another one of the must-see sights in Mount Emei – the Sea of Clouds. And true to its name it really is a sea of clouds below us and as far as the eye can see. It is totally impossible to see the bottom of the cliff. Fortunately, visitors are protected from any unexpected falls by the guard rails. However, if one leans far enough, it is certainly possible to fall to one’s doom.

Welcome to King Kong's Mouth

There is a phenomenon here that ranks as one of the must-see sights in Mount Emei known as Buddha Haloes. They are actually illusions much like a rainbow is. The mist refracts the light from the sun and comes out like a halo which the Chinese have called Buddha Halos or 佛光. In ancient times people would see Buddha Haloes and believe them to be calls from beyond and would throw themselves down the cliff in ecstasy. Nowadays, people don’t fling themselves from the top anymore (I think there is a fine for that). Unfortunately for me, I didn’t not get to witness the Buddha Halos, it happens in certain times in the day and in certain conditions.

Monk Meditating on King Kong's Mouth

Off in the far distance is the Wannian Temple 万年寺. But there didn’t seem to be any way for us to get there since there was no clear path to it. They said it was under renovation. It is too bad since we were already there. However, the view of the temple with the mystical looking clouds is certainly something I would remember.

See The Little Ants on Top?

Near the Silver Temple, is a nice viewing spot called King Kong’s Mouth 金刚嘴. I’m not sure about why it was called that but I guess the gaping chasm below would resemble King Kong swallowing anything that happens to fall through it. There is a rock where visitors can stand and take in the view. This rock is totally unprotected, it doesn’t have any fences or rails to prevent people from falling from the rock. At the time, there was a monk meditating on the rock itself, but soon a lot of young teenage kids came and probably ruined his meditation. These kids would climb and jump on the rock. I was totally surprised how much nerves these kids have just jumping on the rocks, apparently disregarding the fact that a wrong step would mean certain doom. I actually tried stepping on that rock but it was too much for me so I just sat on it. Chicken.

Padlocks As A Sign Of A Couple's Love For Each Other

On the way out of the summit, was another temple like structure but it seems no one visits these. In the end we just took some shots of the place. Bought some instant noodles for lunch. It may be worth remembering that it is expensive to buy food on top of the mountain but we didn’t really have much choice since we were already starving.

Overall, Mount Emei is one of the most memorable places I have ever visited. The proper way for me to visit this is to overnight on the mountain and watch to see the sun rise. This would a compelling reason for me to come back here. For people who haven’t been here, I would seriously recommend visiting Mount Emei. It is not UNESCO World Heritage listed for nothing.

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The cable car ride up to the summit of Mount Emei is truly scenic. I can say it is one of the most amazing views I have ever seen. But that is not only what Mount Emei has to offer. There is a bunch of temples on top. Immediately obvious to the visitor is the huge golden statue ten-direction Buddha statue. Incidentally, it is also the highest in the world. It is a wonder how the Chinese have managed to construct this statue way up here.

Massive Ten Direction Buddha Statue

To the right of the ten direction Buddha statue, is the Golden Summit Temple 金顶. As the name implies, the Golden Summit Temple is indeed golden. The golden roof of the temple shines like the sun, reflecting a wonderous golden color. We are lucky that we are above the clouds, the sky is now a nice shade of blue, it seems I haven’t seen the sky so blue in a long, long time. Visitors need to be careful, although it is still cold on top of the mountain and the sun isn’t hot at all, the sun can still cause sunburn, so it is best to have protection like sun block or protective clothing.

Golden Summit Temple

Right in front of the Golden Summit Temple is a rack of candles where worshippers offer their prayers and incense sticks. It only serves to remind me that the Chinese people are still a religious lot despite the prosperity that they have attained.

Candles In Front of the Golden Summit Temple

Just across the Golden Summit Temple is the Silver Temple. And just like the aptly named Golden Summit Temple it is a silver colored temple house Buddhist artifacts. More people were at the Golden Summit Temple though.

Silver Temple

Around the temple areas are patches of snow still left, with the sun shining like that, it won’t be long before it all melts away. At least it is not hot here. It feels kind of funny because I normally associate the shining sun with heat but here on top of the mountain, I am shivering from the cold. Actually, I wasn’t really that prepared for the cold up here. I only brought along a jacket I bought from Hong Kong, and I wasn’t sure whether the jacket can stand up against the cold. Fortunately, it was effective in blocking out the cold wind, so although I wasn’t warm, at least I wasn’t freezing, except for my hands and face.

This is really turning out to be a great destination. I’m surprised the there aren’t too many foreigners here on Mount Emei. Then again, the hordes of Chinese tourists are already quite a handful for me.

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Jieyin Temple Marks the Start of the Cable Car

The walk up Mount Emei is not an easy one. Actually, there was supposed to be a cable car station but it is still a 30 minute walk away. A 30 minute climb up stairs is not really a problem for me. It is just that the conditions of the stairs make it a little more difficult than usual.

Need to Watch Your Step

Apparently, there was some snowfall the previous night, but now it is melting away into a mush of water an ice. As I discovered, this is quite dangerous combination. The stairs became very slippery, with me losing my balance several times. I have learned to cling on to the rails for dear life. I don’t want to have a bad fall now that I have reached this far in China. So I would take each step with utmost care making sure my shoe has grabbed on to the step. Now I remember why I didn’t like snow that much.

Cable Car Up the Clouds

There were a procession of tourists going up the stairs slowly. Along the way, enterprising businessmen would sell grass sandals, apparently these are quite good for walking in these types of conditions. We decided to just slug it out instead. Another way up the stairs is by sedan chair. Two people would carry a bamboo chair on their shoulders with the tourist up the stairs for a fee. I wouldn’t want to subject myself to such humiliation either, but I think it is perfect of older folks.

Spacious Cabin of the Cable Car

At the end of the stairs is the Jieyin Temple 介音堂. It is a wonderful little red temple that marks the start of the cable car ride. Just beyond the Jieyin Temple is the cable car station. Unfortunately, you need to pay to be able to move further. That is, if you don’t want to punish yourself. The cable car’s cabin was very spacious and modern, which surprised me, since I was expecting small cars. Nevertheless, once the were enough passengers, we were off.

The ride to the top of Mount Emei was spectacular. We practically left the level of the clouds and were soon way above them. It was the first time I have seen such a sight, apart from a plane ride. I was really mesmerized by the sight of the clouds. This is one of the must see sights in a visit to Mount Emei – the Sea of Clouds. I’m really looking forward to seeing what the summit holds in store for us.

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Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Ok, I lied. We didn’t actually climb Mount Emei, we took a bus. Just along the main road of Baoguo Village, there is a bus station. It has destinations within Sichuan, but most importantly, Mount Emei. We bought the tickets to top of the mountain and waited. While we were waiting at the bus station, all of a sudden there was this huge commotion from one of the buses. It seems like there was a fight going on. The men were shouting at lot. I didn’t want to go any closer lest they turn into a riot. It thought it was amusing since people usually go to Mount Emei for a pilgrimage and yet we see fighting right here. It is like queueing up for enter St. Peter’s Basilica and picking a fight along the way.

Mount Emei's Famous Residents

Fortunately, the commotion soon subsided, I never really knew what it was all about. At least they didn’t start throwing stuff around. Our bus soon arrived so we quick hopped on board. There weren’t a lot of people yet, since it was just past 7 in the morning. We needed to beat the crowd or our shots will be ruined.

Tourist Getting Divested of Her Snack

It seemed like another typical cloudy day in Sichuan and I didn’t have much hope of getting blue skies here. So we just have to make the most of what we have. The way to Mount Emei is along a road snaking around and up the mountain. The mountain is more than 3000 meters high, so I think it will take a while for us to get there. Just before we left the bus station, the bus attendant distributed small plastic bags, I was wondering what they were for when I realized they were for motion sickness.

Foggy Path Up the Mountain

I have read about stories where travelers got sick from the bus ride up to Mount Emei. I usually get motion sickness. but fortunately, I didn’t get one here. I guess the driver was quite good. Toward the end of our journey near the top, the grey skies started to give way to patches of blue sky. It seems like we will have some luck after all. Our bus then pulled over a parking lot. This is where everybody gets off.

Parking Lot for Tourist Buses

A blast of cold winter air made me realize how cold it was on top of the mountain. There were strange splotches of dirty white stuff along the highway and I couldn’t figure out what it was until we saw it up close. It was snow! At least, it was snow from last night now the morning sun is starting to melt them all away. However, it was still not warm enough to take it all away from us. It has been a while since I saw snow again, too bad it was all dirty white now. Now, I’m sorry we didn’t make it to Baoguo Village the previous day before the last bus to the top left. Snowfall would have been a wonderful experience. Maybe some other time.

Strange Signs Along the Way

On the way to the stairs going up the mountain, there were a couple of macaques eyeing all the tourists. The macaques are part of the Mount Emei experience, but it seems that the macaques have been too used to the sight of humans that they don’t seem to be afraid anymore. Worse, they have been more and more daring, even taking stuff away from the hands of tourists. So it is best not to get too close to them. It is definitely not a good idea to show them food, whether intentional or not.

The path ahead of us is fogged up from the clouds below. It really looks great as I don’t really get to capture a lot of winter shots. I’m getting really excited about this trip.

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Golden Pavillion in Baoguo Village

Baoguo Village 报国寺 is the gateway to the sacred mountain Emei Shan. There are a lot of inns here for travelers to stay in. There are also a lot of hotels too, so obviously it caters to a lot of budgets. Fortunately for us there is no shortage of budget accommodations here in Baoguo Village. After the nice dinner we had, we needed to walk off the food we just ate. We decided to a little exploring.

Food Street Near the Hotel

As I have described previously, the restaurant was along a food street which was a row of restaurants in one street. There are however other restaurants not on food street. There wasn’t really much activity on the streets here in Baoguo Village since the air was quite cold and most of the people were already indoors. There were some shops still open but most we just either restaurants or grocery shops.

Artificial Falls in Baoguo Village

We headed off to the main square of Baoguo Village. At the center of the square is a golden pavillion with the words number one mountain 第一山 on it. It is dedicated to Emei Shan. At the center of the golden pavillion is a large ruby like jewel. The pavillion is lighted up nicely and really shows off its golden color.

Large Ruby Like Jewel in the Golden Pavillion

To the right of the golden pavillion, is an artificial falls also dedicated to the Emei Shan too. It is also here that I was reminded of the unique lighting styles of the Chinese. The falls was lighted in a variety of colors, sometimes it doesn’t look nice anymore. This is also true of caves and other natural monuments. Fortunately, Emei Shan is too huge to be lit up in funny colors.

Well, there really doesn’t seem be anything much we can do here in Baoguo Village at this time. So we just headed back to the Li Min Hotel and went to sleep. We need to wake up early, tomorrow is going to be a busy day.

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Spicy and Fragrant Smoked Meat

After short nap at the Li Min Hotel, we were hungry for dinner. The original plan was to spend the night at the summit at Emei Shan, but since we arrived after the last bus to the Emei Shan had departed, we had no choice but to stay in Baoguo village. It would have been interesting to sleep on top of the mountain though since there were a lot of places to stay there anyway.

Pre-packed Dishes

First order of business is to find something to eat. Our driver was at the lobby hanging out and asked if we wanted something to eat. Apparently, they also have their own restaurant. He kept telling us that their food was better than the others and that it all costs the same, but we wanted other shops to get our money this time, so we had to disappoint him.

Mapo Doufu

Just outside the hotel was a food street. There is a whole line of restaurants to choose from. Interestingly, they all serve the same food and the prices are all the same. Our driver was right. Cartel anyone? Somehow, the concept of competition doesn’t work here. I guess the competition is who can cook the better food. We eventually settled on a shop right in front of the Li Min Hotel. The name of the restaurant is Lai Feng Yu 来风鱼. Whenever I travel, I make it a point to eat the local food. China, is definitely not going to be an exception.

Chicken with Sichuan Spices

China, as you know, is a huge country. Likewise, there is a huge variety of food that comes from the country. Major cuisines in China are the Cantonese, Beijing, Hunan, Hangzhou and the Sichuan cuisine. I have already sampled some Sichuan cuisine before and I loved the spicy flavors of their cuisine. This was also one of the primary reasons why I wanted to visit this region in the first place.

The View of the Restaurant

I ordered a few dishes on the menu which sounded familiar to me. First one was spicy and fragrant smoked meat 香辣腊肉. As the name suggests, it is basically smoked meat cooked the Sichuan style, spicy and very fragrant. The smoked meat is usually pork and it quite resembles bacon. The next dish is mapo doufu 麻婆豆腐. This dish is found the world over and has its origins in Sichuan province. This is a bloody red dish of spicy bean curd. And true to the Sichuan spirit, it is also fragrant and quite salty. The last dish we ordered is the spicy chicken 辣子鸡, which is fried chicken cooked in Sichuan spices.

Other Side of the Restaurant

After all that waiting I would have to say, that the food wasn’t as good as what I had hope to be. It guess, I can’t just walk up to any restaurant in Sichuan and expect excellent quality food. I would say that it wasn’t even as spicy as I wanted it to be. Maybe they toned it down for tourists who they think can’t handle the heat. Most disappointing was the mapo doufu, it was only red in appearance but wasn’t spicy at all. The spicy chicken was okay, but it had bones, and the thing is, this is how it is supposed to be. The Chinese believe, rightly so, that the meat closest to the bone is the tastiest. I would agree, but I still don’t like to fish bones from my mouth every now and then.

Although it wasn’t as good as I hoped it to be, it was still a very satisfying meal. It would be the first proper meal we had in a day too. It was a great way to keep warm in the cold air here in Sichuan. In the meantime, I will have to keep searching for the Sichuan food of my dreams.

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