Helper 2. Buddhist temple

Noon and evening of the second day

I want to ask you a question.
Have you ever been to a Buddhist temple?
Have you heard the sound of bells that ring in the wind? Have you tried to throw a penny into the very center of the iron pagoda to make your wish come true? Have you enjoyed the smell that flows in the wind from lit incense sticks? Yes? No?
As for me, I have been to such temples many times, but I just can’t get enough of this atmosphere. I can hear your question about my religion. No, I do not profess Buddhism, I am a Christian. But for me Buddhism is not a religion. I come to Buddhist temples to saturate my eyes with beauty. The architecture of these temples, the colors, sounds, sensations, smells - this is exactly why I come there. Actually, to be honest, Buddhism was brought to China from India. The original religions of the Chinese are Taoism and Confucianism. One day, a Chinese monk traveled along the Silk Road to India. This monk lived in India for either eight or eighteen years. After that, he returned back to his homeland. Everything that he absorbed and learned over the years of wandering, he brought with him to China. The Chinese still worship this monk, or rather his memory and his relics, as the founder of Chinese Buddhism. Like any alien religion, Buddhism took root in China with difficulty. However, time passed, and over time Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism became intertwined. In any Chinese Buddhist temple you can find echoes of all these three components.
We return to the afternoon of the second day in the city of Suifenhe. Yes, you guessed correctly, my introduction means that I am going with you now, following the wave of my memory, to a Buddhist temple. The Buddhist temple of Suifenhe is located near the city center. Some 20-30 minutes and you are already standing in front of a beautiful gate, behind which there is a Buddhist temple.
I have never been to a Buddhist temple in Suifenhe in the snow. And I was wondering what he would look like in snow clothes. As I expected, it was beautiful! The last time I was in the city of Suifenhe was in April of this year, however, we then got to this city through another border crossing - through Poltavka. So, in April I also visited this temple, but I couldn’t go around the whole thing. I was very tired then, I was hungry, and, most importantly, my phone went off. And I don’t like to walk when I don’t have the opportunity to take photographs. In April, I promised myself that I would return to the Buddhist temple and get to where I didn’t get in the spring. And now I was here! The main roads to the pavilions and statues were cleared of snow, but the side roads were untouched by a shovel, and I walked in waist-deep snow. It was fun! When I reached the central statue of Goddess Guanyin, the sun came out. I still can’t believe it, but it was exactly like that. I even have a photograph of me standing near the statue of the goddess and looking at the sky in surprise. However, the sun that illuminated the goddess and the pavilion that was next to her did not shine for long. Just a minute or two. Then the sky again became clouded with snow clouds, it got dark, and there was light snowfall and even a blizzard. By this point, I had been wandering around the temple for about four hours, and I realized that it was time for me to return. I felt warm, calm, my eyes rested, admiring the surroundings, but I knew it was time to return. It will soon start to get dark, I will have to walk through the park near the lake, and at dusk I don’t want to move around this city - it’s just dangerous. About 5-7 years ago, even before the pandemic, a Russian tourist was killed in the city of Suifenhe. The girl was returning from the bathhouse, of which there are many in this city, and she was attacked by the Chinese. I don’t remember all the details, and I don’t want to remember, but I know that God protects those who are careful, and so it was time for me to return to the cold hotel room. By the way, the Chinese or Chinese who killed the Russian girl were executed long ago, and China is strict about this. I don’t know what the Chinese bandits were hoping for in a city where everything is visible far and wide with the help of cameras.
Having had my fill of impressions, I headed back to the city center. Of course, I didn’t want to go to a hotel room where no one was waiting for me, so I decided to do a little shopping. However, the places I visited had fixed prices, and I was still afraid to go into small, private shops. So, I went shopping where prices are fixed. I mean the Chinese supermarket and shops where all goods are sold for 2 yuan. The Chinese supermarket is cleverly built. To buy what you came for, the lift belt will take you to the very top. You will have to visit all four floors of the supermarket, starting with the fourth, where many wonderful goods are sold. I understand the logic of this supermarket and all supermarkets built in this way, you go, go, go for a certain product, and your eyes cling to goods that you initially did not need, but suddenly you remember that somethingthen in fact you need it vitally and... You buy it! Unfortunately, I could only carry 3 kg of my own weight over the limit. and so the temptations of this supermarket passed me by. I bought what I came for and left the supermarket. Oh my goodness, how quickly it got dark! However, the city center was brightly lit! The city center of Suifenhe was seething and gushing. Russian speech was mixed with Chinese advertising. Blue from the cold, but absolutely happy Chinese men and women touched you by the sleeve and in a whisper offered to sell you anything! Do you want a Chinese phrasebook? Yes, for God's sake, 20 yuan and it's yours! Do you want a massager? Do you want curtains? How about fixing your teeth?
On the street they sold everything - frozen strawberries, combat boots, bright, artificial flowers, Chinese buns with fillings that looked like large dumplings, boiled eggs with green shells, electric blankets, candied fruit on a stick and hundreds of other things, fruits and small things. I went out onto the shopping street, which Russian tourists call Arbat, just like in Harbin.
Looking at my watch, I was convinced that it was still very early, and I went to visit the shops with signs all for two yuan. If you don’t know, in these stores you can buy everything from food to household goods. There are stores where everything really costs two yuan, but most often behind such a sign are hidden stores where goods vary from two yuan to twenty.
Returning to the hotel room, I saw a pile of snow on the windowsill and a second blanket on the bed. The snow was white, and the blanket was gray and washed out.
Like last evening, at first it seemed to me that the room was not so cold, but all these sensations lasted no more than half an hour. Half an hour later I was shivering again from the cold. There was nothing to do. I couldn't even hang on my phone. My hands were freezing, I could only hold them under the blanket, and under the blanket, or rather, under two blankets that press with their weight, it’s not very convenient to communicate on the phone physically. Gradually I began to feel sleepy, but I couldn’t sleep. At 10:00 pm I had to go to where the leader of our group lived. This was necessary so that I could see with my own eyes the things that I would be carrying across the border tomorrow. Do you remember where I started my story? I started it by listing the things that I had to carry across the border. I don’t even know if it’s worth listing again what was supposed to fit in two huge bags? Probably not worth it, I’ll just say it in general terms. The bags contained: shoes, jackets, bags, jeans, pants, various T-shirts and sweaters, as well as towels and tablecloths. I was asked to remember all these things by heart, this was necessary in case the customs officer suddenly doubted that these things belonged to me. Only in this case will I have to tell the customs officer a fairy tale that I have a big family and I am bringing all these things specifically for my family. After touching, smelling and absorbing the color, volume and colors of the things lying in the huge bags, I went back to my hotel room. I’m ashamed to admit, but this time I was rushing for time so that this miserable and meaningless trip would end quickly and I would be home. This is how the second day of our stay in the city of Suifenhe came to an end.