'''Leshan''' (?_R ''lesh?n'') is a city near in Sichuan Province. Sitting on the confluence of the ''Dadu'', ''Min'' and ''Qingyi'' rivers it is most famous for its huge riverside cliff-carving of Buddha and nearby Mount Emei; which together are a World Heritage Site.
Get in
Public bus
Arrivals from Chengdu, Chongqing, Emei, Jiajiang, Kangding, Ya'an, Yibin, Zigong and most other surrounding towns and cities.
Central Bus Station
(___S?__ ''zh?ngx?n ch?zhan'')
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Also long-distance buses to Dujiangyan, Guanghan, Jiuzhaigou, Mianyang, Nanchong, Shanghai and Shenzhen.
Lianyun Bus Station
(???__ ''lianyun ch?zhan'')
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Xiaoba Station
(__?__ ''xiaoba zhan'')
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Train
The nearest train stations are in Emei and Jiajiang, both about forty minutes away by bus. These stations are on the Kunming-Xian railway line and this can be the cheapest way to reach Chengdu. :)
Ticket Offices
<listing name="Official Ticket Office" alt="" directions="" address="49-53 Jiading Zhonglu" phone="" email="" fax="" url="" hours="" price="">Sells bus, train and aeroplane tickets with \5 commission per ticket.</listing>
Understand
History
Leshan city has a history of over 3000 years.
Links
Leshan's official English-language tourism and news website. [http://www.leshan.cn/lsnews/yingyu/]
Get around
Navigation
Maps of the city are: available for \4 from street kiosks, printed on every bus stop and online [http://knows.jongo.com/res/article/12487].
Public transport
'''Pedicab''' - Leshan has many pedicabs that are cheap and convenient for short journeys.
'''Public bus''' - Buses are regular and uncrowded in Leshan. Most are fairly modern and charge \1 per journey which you normaly pay to the conductor. You may have to request your stop.
'''Taxi''' - During the day the first two kilometres are charged at \3 and after at the rate of \0.70/km. A fuel surcharge of \0.50 is currently added at the end of the journey and is explained by a white sticker in front of the front passenger seat.
See
'''Leshan Grand Buddha''' (?_R____ ''lesh?ndafo'') - One of the main attraction to see is the Leshan Grand Buddha. The Grand Buddha is a 71 meter (230 feet) high sculpture carved into one of the large cliffs by the river. In addition to the Grand Buddha, there are also numerous smaller carvings of various Buddhas on the Grand Buddha Cliff Road. Other than carvings, there are also various temples and shrines scattered about, the beautiful Haoshang bridge, and some wonderful small waterfalls. thumb|Leshan Grand Buddha The Buddha was carved into the mountain face to watch over a part of the river that while very busy for transport was claiming the lives and stock of many boats. Upon completion of the now largest Buddha in the world the river became safe, and thus Buddha saved "us all". You may speculate about this and modern scientists will quickly point out the rock displacement to the river bed would have changed the currents, and killed off the eddies that were pulling boats down. Why the river is now safe i shall leave to you. There are two ways to see the giant Buddha: on foot and by river ferry. To see the giant Buddha Statue by ferry you can take one of the ferries from the dock for 50 rmb. The ferry will cross the river and stop in front of the statue for 10 minutes for everyone to go to the top deck and take pictures and then return to the dock. The total trip will take around 40 minutes. An alternative is take a taxi or bus to the statue and climb up and down on the cliff surrounding the Buddha. Costs 70RMB (35RMB with a valid student ID) to enter the park. There is a staircase next to the Buddha to take you down to its feet. In the afternoons, long lines develop to walk down the cliff to the base of the Buddha and you can expect to wait for around 2 hours. It may be best to arrive early to avoid the jostling and lines. Taking the ferry allows you to view the two guards carved into the cliff face which is not visible by foot. There is a third alternative in winter. When the water level of the 3 rivers is low, there appears a rubble island on which you can walk towards the buddha. The island ends maybe 200 metres in front of the statue, but it's a nice panorama from there. You can get to the island with a ferry from the south bank of the city (1RMB per passage) and walk about 2km from there. Entrance to the mountain, though not expensive to most, can be reduced in price if you pester them for Student or OAP discounts, both available, though a quick grasp of chinese is useful. Food in this locality is very expensive and is best avoided unless you are very hungry in which case any of the cafes nearby will do, given you will pay through the nose anyway, best chose one with air con. For more information see: UNESCO [http://whc.unesco.org/archive/advisory_body_evaluation/779.pdf].
'''Chairman Mao Badge Museum''' - Being attatched to the Ebony Museum this is worth a visit. More amusing than interesting though.
'''Confucian Temple'''
'''Dafo Lake'''
'''Ebony Museum''' - This is well worth a visit if you are not familiar with ebony and the amazing carvings that can be made from it. Some of the displays are a bit tacky but there are some spectacular carvings of famous Chinese literary and legendary scenes. The Chairman Mao Badge Museum is also on-site.
'''Jinkouhe Grand Canyon'''
'''Luocheng'''
'''Moruo Opera Theatre''' - 119 ''dongda lu'' (?___X119__) -
'''Old City Walls'''
'''Oriental Buddha Park'''
'''Pingqiang Small Three Gorges'''
Do
'''Browse the markets''' at ''wuy?n ji?'' (?_`_X) and ''x?ngf? ji?'' (??_X).
'''Haitang Park''' (_C____? ''h?itang g?ngyuan'') - 520 ''h?itang lu''_i_C___H520__), Open 08:00-20:00.
'''Laoxiaoding''' is the tallest hill within Leshan's old city limits. Now it is a pleasant park with pavillions and teahouses. From Moruo Square take the road heading north to its end and then along the winding uphill path. The park gate will be to your right.
Buy
Eat
Leshan is well-known for its bean-curd and sweet rice cake (___h? ''s?qim?'').
'''Zhanggongqiao Jie''' - A fun and busy place to eat and drink at night.
Drink
There are hundreds of '''teahouses''' in Leshan. The best are those '''outdoors'''; especially those along the banks of the ''Dadu'' and ''Min'' rivers and in Leshan's parks. All great places to play Majiang or Leshan's unique ''erqishi'' card game.
?___V____? (''yangji? l?ozhai chagu?n'') - 52 ''g?lou ji?'' (___O_X52__). 0833-2115000. Open Monday to Sunday. An '''atmospheric''' teahouse set within a cluster of old buildings and decorated with '''old photographs''' of Leshan and the Grand Buddha.
Sleep
Budget
Taoyuan Hotel. ___?? taoyuan b?ngu?n, ?_]_H138__ 138 b?nji?ng lu. ext to Leshan Port. 833-2101188. conomical Room \80 (bargain to \50), Standard Room \230, Luxury Twin Room \260, Luxury Single Room \280, Luxury Suite \888. Probably the most convenient hotel for most travellers.
Mid-range
Splurge
Jiazhou Hotel. __B?? ji?zh?u b?ngu?n, _____X bait? ji?. ext to Moruo Square.. 833-213988. ieyunhua@163.com. ttp://www.jzhotel.cn. Three-star hotel.
Jinhaitang Hotel. __C_______X j?nh?itangdaji?dian, _C___H512__ 512 h?itang lu. ext to Haitang Park. 833-2128888. ttp://www.jht-hotel.com. Leshan's only four-star hotel.
Get out
Possible destinations after Leshan include the following.
'''Chengdu''' - Travel north on the ChengLe Expressway to the capital of Sichuan making stops at Meishan and Huanglongxi.
'''Chongqing'''
'''Dafengding''' - Dafengding is a China National Nature Preservation Zone.
'''Emei''' - Make the short journey west to see the famous Emei Shan and then take the train south towards Kunming or north towards Chengdu.
'''Jiajiang''' - Visit the Thousand Buddha Cliff and then take the train south towards Kunming or north towards Chengdu.
'''Kangding''' - Start your visit to western Sichuan from its capital.
'''Shawan''' - Former Residence of Guo Morou and Meinufeng Stone Forest.
'''Ya'an'''
'''Yibin''' - Famous for its distilleries!
'''Zigong''' - Salt mines and a dinosaur museum!