Leshan | Day 1

We got an early start today, beginning with breakfast at the hotel. The staff had kindly comped us the buffet after a minor issue with noisy neighbors the previous night. It was a nice gesture, and the breakfast spread was solid.

After eating, we took the metro to Chengdu East Railway Station and boarded the high-speed train to Leshan, where we’ll be spending the next few days.

Leshan is a small city located about 120 kilometers south of Chengdu, famous for its natural beauty and cultural significance. It’s most well-known for being the home of the Leshan Giant Buddha, the largest stone Buddha statue in the world. The city sits at the confluence of three rivers—the Dadu, Min, and Qingyi—making it a scenic area with rich historical roots.

Once we checked into our hotel, we grabbed a taxi into the city to find some lunch. After eating, we headed straight to the main attraction—the Leshan Giant Buddha.

Upon arriving, we made our way to the ferry terminal and booked a cruise along the river to get a view of the Buddha from the water. This turned out to be a fantastic way to take in the sight without having to deal with the heat or the large crowds. The river vantage point gave us a perfect perspective of the Buddha in its entirety.

The Leshan Giant Buddha is truly an awe-inspiring sight. Carved directly into a red sandstone cliff, it was built during the Tang Dynasty over 1,300 years ago. The statue overlooks the meeting point of the three rivers and was originally constructed to calm the turbulent waters that often caused shipwrecks. Standing at 71 meters tall, it’s the largest stone Buddha in the world. Just the statue’s head is 15 meters high, and its ears alone are seven meters long. It’s so large that a person standing next to its feet wouldn’t even reach the height of its toes.

After the ferry cruise, we headed back to shore and caught a taxi back to the hotel. The sun was strong today, so we decided to take it easy for the rest of the afternoon, relaxing at the hotel to recharge. In the evening, we went for a quick stroll around the local area and grabbed a light dinner from a nearby convenience store.