A trip to the old city

- What ticket? - I asked- I don't have a ticket. - No ticket, not allowed going up. - But where can I buy a ticket? - It is late. Come tomorrow.

What a pity, I came but I haven't got a chance to see the details... Never mind I just kept walking. One museum was just about to close, they didn't let me in. One monastery also closed just before my eyes, “Come tomorrow“- said the man. So I just keep walking, saw a lot of ordinary people coming back home after a long day. I saw a lot of strange views in the backyards, near to the wall, such as garbage, solar panels, little vegetable markets on the streets. I walked it all and decided to take the last path in the main road.

I reached an old building resembling a gate - a very old one, sure back to around 1400. The scenes, the people, the horses ornamented on the gate were so realistic. I shot a few photos. Few lions were waiting as guards, one of them was quite strange, with a scar on his mouth. One old lady stared at me and asked.

- Do you know the story? - What story? – I looked at her expectantly. And she began:

Long, long time ago, in one family house there was a man who was making tofu, and he realized that every morning he found less tofu powder than he left the other night. So one night he hid himself in the dark room and waited to see who is stealing his tofu. The midnight came but nobody was entering the room, and then in a flash with the speed of a thunder one lion came in and started eating the tofu. The owner was so angry that he took shovel and hit the lion in the head. The lion jump from the open window and never showed up again. The lion was hurt badly and was bleeding all night and when it came down it became a stone lion. One old woman saw the blood near to the stone lion one day and saw his pain grimace and his smashed mouth. She felt sorry for poor little animal and started helping him by scrubbing its wounds with hot salt. The old lady was living nearby, but she was suffering from back and leg pain, yet every day at sunrise she came and treated the lion with salt. One night, the old lady had a dream, she was dreaming that the stone lion was in her home, she was shocked. - I’m healing your wound, will you go to bite the hand that helps you? - I was suffering and you saved me, I will return you the favor!– said the lion - How are you going to do that? – asked the old lady - Tomorrow at sunrise, when you came to me just touch me, touch the part of my body that hurts you, and I will take your pain away. That was all, the lion disappeared as he came and the old lady was wondering about her chimera. In the morning dew, she woke up and go to the lion. She touched every part that she felt any pain, the waist and the legs, and the back and she was healed. That happens to be exactly on the fifteenth day of the first moon month. From that day on, all the people knew the story of the stone lion that can heal.

- This is the story – said the old lady before me. - Thus, emerges the tradition in Xingcheng to touch the stone lion on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month every year…

What a story! I thanked the old lady and continued on my way. What a wonderful day I had. Scent of lilac...Day dreaming at sunset...

By Elizebeth