JOSH SNIEGOWSKI (film and video major) writes:
This was the first day that we did not have an extremely full day of activities already planned. We did wake up as early as always, however, and head out for what we had planned. Our first stop was the Jade Buddha Temple.
After walking for a while, we reached our destination. This temple is one of the few remaining Buddhist temples in Shanghai, and it is very impressive. One of the first things that I noticed when I entered was that people were doing the same rituals as in the Taoist temples with the smoking sticks. I was told that many rituals were shared by multiple religions in China. While here we were also given the opportunity of seeing the Jade Buddha. This was amazing and the statue was beautiful. I will remember seeing it for the rest of my life. Also while at this temple, I got the chance to see a man who painted intricate landscapes using only his hands. The pictures were beautiful, as was the entire temple.
Once we were done walking around the temple, our group got the opportunity to see a traditional tea ceremony. This blew my mind, as they mixed different herbal teas, meant for specific purposes right in front of me. I don’t like tea that much, but the tea here was very good and I was glad to take part in the ceremony. After this, we were all allowed some much-needed free time.
The first thing everyone thought to do with their free time was to get some rest. The jet lag was still getting to people at night, and a short time to just sit was exactly what everyone needed. Nobody sat for long, however, as everyone almost instantly wanted to go out and explore Shanghai on their own. A small group of people and I decided to go out and get a meal of our choosing. After eating some skewers of steak, we got a huge meal for extremely cheap. The food was prepared in front of us and again everything was very good.
After this I planned on going out with everyone again, but as soon as I sat down for a few minutes I fell asleep. The remaining jet lag, mixed with the amounts of walking we had been doing, put me out instantly. My day was cut short here, but the sleep helped a lot for the next.
Josh Sniegowski is a sophomore in the film/video department.
