In the last post, I spoke briefly about the wonders of the Yuyuan gardens and the Jing’an temple. Shanghai isn’t precisely China’s historical center as it has become a beacon for development and modernity in Asia. However, it has its moments (some water towns nearby possess much more of China’s history and… ‘eccentricities…’ that you may not see here in Shanghai proper). Historical Shanghai is, as such, very much a thing.
So this past week, on holiday, Ana and I also managed to see the Jade Buddha Temple. Unlike the Jing’an Temple, this is an active Buddhist Temple and Monastery. It wasn’t the most amazing temple I had encountered in my life. However, it was one of the most contradictory, sitting in the world’s largest city and one of its rising modern stars smack dab in the middle of a communist country.
That being said, the temple had its beauties and wonders. Specifically the intricacy of the varying deities around the temple, especially the humanist side, seeing the monks performing prayers and watching local Chinese come to offer their own.
We also managed to happen upon what we could only ever have come to believe by seeing with our own eyes. It was a full-blown marriage market. Desperate parents gather in the park with information sheets and umbrellas to post their children’s stats. This includes age, height, education, what kind of person they’re looking for, etc.
Suppose you thought your parents wanted to get you out of the house. In that case, it’s nothing compared to what these parents do…almost literally selling off their kids to be married. In what I can only assume is a last-ditch effort to rekindle a forgotten love with their spouse…. I kid, I don’t know why they do it, but it sure is hilarious to see! I didn’t have the opportunity to understand a lot as it was almost entirely in Chinese, but we did find one in English, so check it out along with pics of the market itself. Enjoy!
