Vesak Day

On Vesak Day we went up to the Shuang Lin Monastery. This is one that I have wanted to check out for awhile, so Buddha's birthday was the perfect day. Buddhist celebrate his birth, enlightenment and death all on the same day. 

There were lots of big buildings to explore. The big Buddha statues were gorgeous and I loved the warrior paintings on the big doors, each one so different. 

 In the main hall there was a lot of chanting, meditating, reciting, praying, offering and bowing going on. 

Gage stood in line to bathe the baby Buddha. 

Love that face. 

And these two. 

Can you see Gage in the crowd? He loved throwing his pennies at the well. 

We ran in to one of Noah's classmates and his family. They are Buddhists and said their kids knew this monastery well. They showed us where to get some snacks. We passed on the chicken bones and tofu clouds but the spring rolls and freshly squeezed orange juice sure hit the spot. 

Happy Birthday Buddha.