When monkeys attack: the Temple of Ten Thousand Buddhas.

Note: this is chronologically out of sync, as this past story occurred before some of my other posts. It's a big story with lots of hysterical moments, so stay tuned.

On Sunday, after we had dim sum at that amazing Michelin starred place, we decided to stop on the way home at the Temple of Ten Thousand Buddhas in Sha Tin. One of our friends is Buddhist, so we make sure to do well and respect the temples and stuff, but this whole incident was in a word, hilarious. But for the first part of the trip, we got out of the train, sauntered down some streets into a more "rural" area of town, and went through this pristine entrance at the bottom of a mountain.

What is it about grand attractions and having to haul up mountains to see them here? Goodness.

Well anyway, the trip began by walking through a very aged stone path, essentially at a 45 degree angle plus the whole way, and on either side of the walking path were life-size Buddha statues. Tons of them. Each one of them unique from the other. It was quite the artistic feat. Considering this wasn't even the main attraction, we had plenty of spectacle before us.

 And that whole walk was pretty special. Given the strong Buddhist influence here, and my relative lack of knowledge of their rituals... I had to say that I was impressed by the devotion they put into some of their hallowed grounds. Different, absolutely. But on an aesthetic scale, definitely something that I can appreciate more. The entire style was very, very appealing: respectful, calming, and powerfully symbolic. These virtues definitely seep into some aspects of the culture.

But, as we walked up the trail, just before reaching the main attractions, we were caught by a pretty happy surprise: monkeys.

That's right. Monkeys. Wild monkeys. A huge pack of them. Had to be 30 or so of them in the trees and running around the area.

Not only were they adorable, but they did well to wreak all kind of monkey havoc on any passers-by with food. Solemnly, I looked down and wondered how I ended up carrying the bag of chestnuts for the group. I had to have been within 5 feet of some of these monkeys, while my friends Matt and Noah inched closer for even better photo opportunities (and whose photos I am undoubtedly stealing).

It was quite the interesting phenomenon here: as more and more monkeys of progressively smaller and smaller sizes came down from the trees to wreak monkey havoc on people and look through trash cans for sweets, the males in the group grew progressively more effeminate.

"MONKEYS. Look at the monkeys! LOOK AT THAT ONE IT'S THE BABIEST! His name is David," Matt cooed at some point.

It wasn't our finest moment. The girls were smarter, edging back toward the temple uphill, while we waited and snapped myriad photos of the scene before us, children living out some sort of wild jungle fantasy through our camera lens.

Somehow, we were pulled away from the sight. 

And from there, we were able to really see the best points in the series: the Temple of Ten Thousand Buddhas. They weren't kidding, either. Lining the walls of this temple, amongst a massive stone plaza and a collection of fountains and a pagoda was the festive coloring of the temple, with a view that I can only describe as "wowing". My jaw dropped. Ten thousand tiny Buddha figures, each adorned with a small light, circled in rows upon rows on the walls. Take a look.

 The dedication into seeing this temple through was beyond anything quite like this. Despite it not being a massive structure on the outside that I've seen with the glamor of, say St. Peter's in Vatican City, this small, but famous temple was an amazing showcase of Buddhist culture. And no souvenir stands, either. It was still a functional temple.

Next, we walked across to view the pagoda. In fact, we were able to travel to the top of it. Though I constantly seem to take photos of every view I've seen, these following, showing Sha Tin and the surrounding suburb, was simple gorgeous. Perhaps even more calming and external than the view from Victoria Peak, I'd say.

And from there, we continued upward.

But wouldn't you know it, look who showed up? That's right, the monkeys. This time, mother monkeys, their babies wrapped around them as they hopped from statue to tree, were in the midst.

Noah and Matt were in the fray again, taking ample pictures of something we'd never see in the States.

Super baby monkey! His name was Rick.

So, here's where the drama ensued, in a flash... Noah, fully engaged in his photography of these trespassing monkeys, gradually funneled closer and closer to the crossing, unaware of his edging. All of a sudden, Ainhi yells "Noah! Watch out!" to which he turns sharply, and Rick, the baby monkey makes a noise and runs by. All of a sudden, a huge, massive granddaddy monkey (that Matt named "Jumanji") jumped to the rescue of the little monkey. "NOAH! WATCH OUT!" And Noah finally breaks away from his photos. Jumanji grunted and swiped his arm at Noah, showing his teeth. Everyone bolted back in horror. He just missed the swipe by the monkey (and didn't even see the swipe because he was so focused on the teeth), and we bolted upward. Chaos ensued as we bolted backward. And yes, it was caught briefly on camera.

Ha.

Anyway, Noah's incident was not met softly by the group. From that hour on, every joke typically involved a scream of "NOAH WATCH OUT", Noah flinching violently, and everyone laughing at his expense.

But, hey, it's deserved. Don't pet the monkeys. Don't look like you're going to pet the monkeys. Don't even think about petting the monkeys. Just don't.

Or else you're the punchline of a joke for at least a week.