Chi Lin Nunnery
Chi Lin Nunnery from the airTake my word for it. This gorgous place is the epitome of a happy ending.
The story is gorgeous too. You'll recall the Cultural Revolution in China, right? Well, these lovely Chi Lin nuns were among the millions of victims of China's Brutal "Modernising" Purge.
So was their temple.
Yup! In the 1970s, up on the Mainland, these ladies were thrown out of their wonderful 1000-plus-year-old temple and this priceless "irreplaceable" architectural treasure was bulldozed. They weren't allowed to be nuns anymore either and so, since they just weren't having that, they gathered up what they could save from the ruin and snuck themselves down the length of China and refugeed themselves over the border into HK.
Since what they saved was a singularly huge number of ancient Buddhist relics, including dozens of enormous and infinitely precious statues, I'd love to know the inside story of that "sneaking". It would have been such an epic journey ... and with a great number of "turned heads", I reckon.
How far do you reckon you
could "sneak" with this?
After their undoubtedly brutal and epic "sneak", Hong Kong, in its best role as The Conscience of China, welcomed them with open arms and the tycoons became their best selves and joined forces to offer to build them a new temple. "But it won't be like our old one." the nuns all moaned. "That was irreplaceable! It was a miracle of design - not a single nail anywhere - and of astonishing construction; put together like a monkey puzzle. It can't be duplicated and, even if it could, no one can build like that anymore. "
Well, if there's one thing you don't tell "The Capital of Counterfeiting" it's that something cannot be copied. Reputations are immediately on the line! Heaps of HKers appear to have tried. These days, there is a museum down in the garden - where you can't take photos - copyright reasons! - huh? - where there's a heap of scale models wherein HK folk tried to figure out how to put together a massive complex of temples based on a monkey puzzle.
And they got it too! Although I can't show you the scale models, you'll have to work out how they did it from life-size:
The story is gorgeous too. You'll recall the Cultural Revolution in China, right? Well, these lovely Chi Lin nuns were among the millions of victims of China's Brutal "Modernising" Purge.
So was their temple.
Yup! In the 1970s, up on the Mainland, these ladies were thrown out of their wonderful 1000-plus-year-old temple and this priceless "irreplaceable" architectural treasure was bulldozed. They weren't allowed to be nuns anymore either and so, since they just weren't having that, they gathered up what they could save from the ruin and snuck themselves down the length of China and refugeed themselves over the border into HK.
Since what they saved was a singularly huge number of ancient Buddhist relics, including dozens of enormous and infinitely precious statues, I'd love to know the inside story of that "sneaking". It would have been such an epic journey ... and with a great number of "turned heads", I reckon.
How far do you reckon youcould "sneak" with this?
After their undoubtedly brutal and epic "sneak", Hong Kong, in its best role as The Conscience of China, welcomed them with open arms and the tycoons became their best selves and joined forces to offer to build them a new temple. "But it won't be like our old one." the nuns all moaned. "That was irreplaceable! It was a miracle of design - not a single nail anywhere - and of astonishing construction; put together like a monkey puzzle. It can't be duplicated and, even if it could, no one can build like that anymore. "
Well, if there's one thing you don't tell "The Capital of Counterfeiting" it's that something cannot be copied. Reputations are immediately on the line! Heaps of HKers appear to have tried. These days, there is a museum down in the garden - where you can't take photos - copyright reasons! - huh? - where there's a heap of scale models wherein HK folk tried to figure out how to put together a massive complex of temples based on a monkey puzzle.
And they got it too! Although I can't show you the scale models, you'll have to work out how they did it from life-size:
Inside
Outside
Another outside.
Isn't it just incredible. Not a nail anyplace. Everything just sits inside everything else, all in perfect monkey-puzzle balance! Gosh, when it uses its powers for good and not evil, HK really does deserve mega-kudos for its ability to copy anything, doesn't it!
And here it is from a distance:
The happy ending! Sublime, huh!
And although I don't wish to add anything to Gavin Menzies' ridiculous claims, check out those roof filials. You've seen them before, haven't you! If you don't think so, here's one in close-up:
And here it is from a distance:
The happy ending! Sublime, huh!And although I don't wish to add anything to Gavin Menzies' ridiculous claims, check out those roof filials. You've seen them before, haven't you! If you don't think so, here's one in close-up:
Remember? In New Zealand? Down there on the roof of all the old Maori Maraes? Isn't that just odd!You aren't allowed to take photographs of the sacred relics either, but you are allowed to view them for yourself. They're back up the hill in the second and third tiers of the temple compex. Each statue has its own room and they're just lovely ... but you'll have to take my word for that. Those nuns are brutal about enforcing "no photos" and they have security guards to follow you to ensure you don't!
These dudes have the power to arrest, so don't take photos where it's forbidden.
However, you can photograph all you want in the courtyard. That's lovely too. There's four koi ponds that are supposed to be mathematically amazing supposedly to represent something or other, but you'll have to find that out for yourself since, once you mention the word "maths", I tune out!
One of the four mathematically something koi ponds.
In close up
The complex has recently been completed with the addition of an amazing garden. You can see from the aerial photo above that this garden is across the marble sky-bridge from the temple complex. Here, HK has gone to the extreme and attempted to out-Kyoto Japan.
Although I totally approve of the up-the-hill temple copying, I find the garden a little too "thumb-nosing" for my taste. Like, I know HK feels they are in competition with Japan as The Best Asian Destination (hey, HK got me with their totally sublime Mass Transport System!) but this goes a tad too far. Like, they've even built themselves their very own "Golden Temple":
Chi Lin Nunnery isn't decorative, and isn't a regular tourist spot (the only tourists you ever see are Buddhists from other lands). It's a working complex, and here in this gorgeous space they have an Old People's Home and a school for the mentally handicapped. Most of the place is out of bounds, but I've been into the closed-to-the-public sections because Keith helps the nuns out. Any resources he develops for teaching English in his own Mentally Handicapped School, he shares with the nuns. They therefore annually invite us to inspect the school.
Oooh, have to tell you: afterwards they always provide food and the table they set up for us looks exactly like the regular spread always put on by The Australian Country Women's Association! Not kidding! The only thing missing is the plate of iced vovos. Although they obviously went to a lot of trouble to find out how "to do this thing right", especially since neither of us are Australian, and we detest this stuff anyway, it's so kitch-y charming it's a hoot!
Oh, and the kids are great. They're all lively and naughty and are totally into robotics. Can you believe it? These kids are supposedly exceptionally low IQ - like, there's less than 1000 spaces for the entire population of HK's mentally handicapped so only the most-so get them - but they can design some seriously amazing machines that can do seriously amazing stuff. (I've written a feature film script set in here if anyone's interested.)
Oooh, have to tell you: afterwards they always provide food and the table they set up for us looks exactly like the regular spread always put on by The Australian Country Women's Association! Not kidding! The only thing missing is the plate of iced vovos. Although they obviously went to a lot of trouble to find out how "to do this thing right", especially since neither of us are Australian, and we detest this stuff anyway, it's so kitch-y charming it's a hoot!
Oh, and the kids are great. They're all lively and naughty and are totally into robotics. Can you believe it? These kids are supposedly exceptionally low IQ - like, there's less than 1000 spaces for the entire population of HK's mentally handicapped so only the most-so get them - but they can design some seriously amazing machines that can do seriously amazing stuff. (I've written a feature film script set in here if anyone's interested.)
The complex has recently been completed with the addition of an amazing garden. You can see from the aerial photo above that this garden is across the marble sky-bridge from the temple complex. Here, HK has gone to the extreme and attempted to out-Kyoto Japan.
Although I totally approve of the up-the-hill temple copying, I find the garden a little too "thumb-nosing" for my taste. Like, I know HK feels they are in competition with Japan as The Best Asian Destination (hey, HK got me with their totally sublime Mass Transport System!) but this goes a tad too far. Like, they've even built themselves their very own "Golden Temple":
HK's Golden Temple.
And there are all sorts of moss gardens ....
Moss garden
with gorgeous rock accents.
... and mondo-grass gardens ...
Mondo grass garden
with petrified wood accents.
... and bonsai gardens ...
... and koi ponds ...
... and lovely vistas ...
... and fabulous details ...
Check out those
fabulous downspouts.
Moss gardenwith gorgeous rock accents.
Mondo grass garden with petrified wood accents.
... and koi ponds ...
... and lovely vistas ...
... and fabulous details ...
Check out those fabulous downspouts.
And just look at this shot taken from inside the petrified wood museum. You tell me if that isn't pure Japan!
... and lots of other stuff I'd previously seen in Kyoto. But, hey, those Kyoto gardens are acknowledged as the seriously best in the world, and if you're going to model stuff on other stuff why not go for the very very best!
Have I talked you into wanting to come here to see it all for yourself? It's off the beaten track for tourists - non Buddhist tourists that is - but why should you let that stop you.
you can see the various
interchanges here
... and it's halfway along the green line at the top right. Then, in Diamond Hill, skirt around the outside of Hollywood Plaza and VOILA!!! Chi Lin Nunnery!
Have I talked you into wanting to come here to see it all for yourself? It's off the beaten track for tourists - non Buddhist tourists that is - but why should you let that stop you.
If you indeed want to check it out, it's not a problem in the slightest, given HK's sublime MTR system.
Here's what you do: take the MTR to Diamond Hill ...
you can see the variousinterchanges here
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