Having worked our way up through this huge temple complex we had to use a funicular railway to take us to the top.
At the peak was the giant statue of Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, in her pavilion, surrounded by statues of animals and fearsome guardians (who did not look quite so merciful).
Apart from the Goddess and her retinue, the views were amazing.
Not having had our fill of temples (having gone around the Thai and Burmese temples) we headed for the enormous temple Buddhist complex of Kek Lok Si. It looked so dominant, sitting up there on the hill.
It was quite a climb.
There were so many temples and pagodas spread over a large area that it would have taken many days to explore them all.
At the very top was a huge statue of Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, but I’ll come to that later.
I just adore Buddhist architecture, decoration and colour.
As temples go, this is a modern one – only about a hundred years old – but very impressive.
Even if I don’t like religion I can still marvel at the aesthetics.
All religions bought in the best craftsmen and artists in an attempt to outdo each other and show they were the best.
The main pagoda is interesting. It is in three distinct styles. The bottom section is Chines. The middle section is Thai. The top section is Burmese.
Coming back from the waterhole I was feeling ecstatic. For a Biologist like me to encounter real Komodo Dragons in the wild was quite an experience.
We headed back to the beach. The tropical jungle seemed very fertile. All around us was the buzz of insects and call of unseen birds. We came across more wild pigs and deer. There seemed to be ample food for the dragons.
Back on the beach there were fishing boats. I went for a look around.
Our guide beckoned to us. A little cash exchanged hands. He took us along to his village.
We passed more deer. One mother seemed to be telling her baby to beware of dragons.
In the village, the kids were out playing. There in the middle of the village was a huge slumbering giant of a dragon.
He took us right up to it. So much for ferocious dragons. They let their kids play with the dragons!
We weren’t through. We were able to go right up to the huge beast and even touch it. The dragon didn’t seem bothered. It was far too sleepy. It just closed its eyes and went back to sleep – dreaming of gobbling up pigs and deer – plus the odd annoying human.
Our guide was taking us to a watering hole popular with Komodo Dragons. He explained to us that we were likely to encounter a few more and that they’d be a bit more lively than our previous encounter.
Sure enough, we rounded a corner and there was a pack of them. Some were moving about quite fast – looking mean and hungry. Mouths drooling red saliva, tongues flicking.
I wasn’t sure how one stick was going to be sufficient if they decided that we looked like brunch, but our guide seemed pleased and did not look in the least nervous.
One great beast opened his mouth wide – a greeting? A warning? Hunger? His red-tinged deadly saliva did not look at all appealing.
They were big. They ate deer and pigs (and people??).
