140610 - Day 7

We started the day with a delicious buffet breakfast – the first on our trip. It was a unique mix of Western and Chinese delicacies where there were French fries, nuggets, Chinese sausages and buns to name some. With a full stomach, we boarded the bus to head for Jie Xi. We learnt from the tour guide that today we would travel about 150 kilometres to 200 kilometres. On the way, we were lucky to chance upon a local market for the first time. People set up stalls along the road and their stall selling their ware with a small canvas tent that serves as their shelter. It was an eye-opener and certainly different from Singapore market.

# Arrival at Jing Ming Holiday Resort

Our first stop in Jie Xi was the Jin Ming Resort. Upon reaching, we were received warmly before being divided into three groups. Each group got onto a budgie for a tour around the whole resort. The budgie was very environmentally-friendly as it ran on electricity instead of oil. As we drove around the tranquil and elegant surroundings of the resort, the turquoise lake, rubber plantations, pagoda and mountains were a feast for our eyes. The driver was very polite and understanding. He stopped several times to let us take pictures at fantastic angles as everlasting memories of the place. The guide was very friendly and introduced the various spots like the floating tea-houses, hot springs and golf course with much enthusiasm. A cool refreshing breeze ruffled our hair as we drove around and the chirping of the birds around the whole place was very soothing. This resort was a very good place for those with busy and stressful lives in the city to relax!

# A surprise temple that we saw during our rounds (:

Shortly, we left to visit San Shan Guo Wang Zu Miao (San Shan Mountain King Ancestral Temple). We were introduced to its history and learnt that in the past, there were three mountain gods that often protected the town from harm and after a terrible plague, the people were so thankful to the gods for blessing them that they worshipped them and addressed them as “Kings”. Dating back to the Sui-Tang dynasty, the bulk of the tourists visiting the temple were from Taiwan and they often would invite the gods back to Taiwan to worship them.

# The San Shan Mountain King Ancestral Temple

Afterwards, we had a delicious lunch with 17 different courses. We tasted many new dishes as we were in a different city and their cooking methods and ingredients were very different from Guangzhou and Shantou. This lunch had a special touch as there were dumplings and the Dragon Boat Festival is around the corner. We were hosted in a room called Good Days (Hao Ri Zi 好日子) and they had other names for other rooms such as Little Panda (Xiao Xiong Mao 小熊猫). After we finished, we hopped back onto the bus and set off for a long ride to another city – Pu ning.

# A temple in Pu Ning.

A couple of hours later, we arrived at a temple in Pu Ning. The monk burned joss sticks for us and we prayed to the deities earnestly. The place was very windy and it had a serene and peaceful atmosphere. We viewed a hall with several statues of different deities such as the Sleeping Buddha before making our way to another tower on top of the hill that hosted a thousand Buddha.

# We finally got to pray (:

We had to climb a steep hill and a long passage of steps to reach it. The view at the top was breathtaking and we could see several mountains and a clear view of the entire area around the temple. Though it was tough making our way up, we all felt it was worth the while. The tough way up was very meaningful as you would need will and motivation to reach the tower at the top. It can be said as a test of the religion. Once again, we captured photos and some of us even took a picture with the monk showing us around. Then, we said our goodbye to the seraphic ambience of the temple.

# The calm monk posing for a picture ^^

Next, we stopped by a memorial hall of Zhuang Shi Ping (1911 – 2007), a man who had contributed greatly to China. He lived in Hong Kong but never forgot about his home country, being a patriotic man. For example, he set up the Shantou University, which we visited on our first day here. We were all touched by his selfless giving to his homeland while living a simple lifestyle, even when he could have afforded a luxurious lifestyle. He was such a respected man that when he visited Hong Kong, a performer who did the Sichuan face-changing performance, used Zhuang Shi Ping’s face for his performance.

# Statue in memory of Zhuang Shi Ping.

An influential man, Zhuang Shi Ping was know to love wife who was 2 years old older than him. From Zhuang Shi Ping, we can learn that we should always give back to society and our country. No matter where we are, we must always remember our roots and country. Luck was shining on us and coincidentally, there was an art exhibition of drawings by a famous artist at the Zhuang Shi Ping memorial hall..

We had our last dinner in China, which was delicious once again. The food was good and the mood joyous. There were traditional Guangdong food and fruits to follow. Certain dishes were presented in interesting and creative ways such as there was a soup that was served in a tea-pot and we drank it like tea.

# Chicken Soup served in a teapot!!

Back onto the bus, it was a 30 minutes trip back to the hotel in Jie Yang for our last night in China. I hope that our flight back tomorrow will be smooth and we will land on our home ground.

It is certain that we would promote the Teochew culture and Shantou when we get back, to our friends!

今天的早餐是我们到中国以来的第一个自助餐。各色各样的美食，摆在眼前。例如：有薯条，香肠和馒头。填满了肚子后，我们便马上出发到揭西。从揭阳到揭西。路途遥远，听说两地相距大约有150到200公里。沿途，我们看到了当地的菜市场。人们搭着帐篷，在帐篷低下摆卖着各种新鲜的蔬菜和瓜果等。这让我们大开眼界，因为这种景象在新加坡已经不复存在了。

到了揭西，我们的第一站就是参观京明度假村。我们分成了三组，乘搭度假村内的专用车绕了度假村一圈。车上的导游很细心的向我们介绍了那里的设施，例如高尔夫球场，温泉和水上餐厅。司机也很善解人意，常常停下车来让我们拍照留念。如果生活太紧张，压力让你喘不过气，不妨来这设备齐全，风景优美的京明度假村享受一番!

之后，我们便去参观三山国王庙。我们也了解了那里的历史。以前，当村子有灾难时，三尊山神都会保佑他们。之后，为了感恩，他们把山神称为王，并且建了一座庙来供奉祂们。

午餐时间到了，我们来到了特美思餐馆享用午餐。那里的菜肴同汕头及潮州的不一样，也很特别，不同的菜色令我们垂涎三尺。因为端午节即将来临，他们特别准备了当地的粽子让我们品尝。那里的厢房各有其名,而我们用膳的那一间厢房名为“好日子”。吃饱后，我们再度回到旅游车上，前往路途遥远的普宁。

两个钟头后，我们抵达普宁盘龙阁。我们从和尚手中接过了一炷香，然后跪下来，诚心的膜拜。我们在参观庙宇的当儿看见了睡佛和其他的神像。之后，因为我们还有时间，和尚便带我们到山丘上参观一座千佛塔。要到千佛塔，除了需要爬山之外，还需要爬上无数级的梯级。路程比我们想象中的艰辛，但我们并不气馁，继续往前走。到了山顶，大家异口同声的说，那些小小的辛苦是值得的。我们趁机同陪伴我们的和尚拍几张纪念照，然后就和古色古香的盘龙阁告别了。

我们启程前往揭阳的华侨中学里的庄世平纪念馆参观。已故大慈善家庄世平先生(1911-2007)虽然和大他两岁的妻子居住在香港，但不时会返回他的家乡---中国揭阳。他为了家乡付出很多心血和作出极大的贡献。虽然是一位有钱又有名望的大人物，但他的居住环境却简单朴实，日常生活也很节俭。庄世平先生把毕生赚来的钱都回馈社会。例如：汕头大学就是在他大量的资助下于1981年建成的，他让我们领悟到做人应该饮水思源。刚巧，当天那里的展览厅有名画家的画展，我们也走马看花，观赏了一回才离去。

终于，我们品尝了在中国的最后一顿晚餐。和平常一样，那晚的食物也很丰盛，餐桌上的气氛也非常和谐。那间餐馆的食物摆设非常精致有趣，特别是茶壶里的鸡汤，让我们误以为是茶。

吃完丰富的晚餐后，我们乘了30分钟的车回到了特美思酒店。真的很希望明天的一切可以顺顺利利，让我们平安的回到新加坡。当然,我们也会尽一分力，把所了解到的潮州文化知识带回新加坡和朋友们分享!