Sihcao

About a week after the Anping Bike trip we decided to go back to the bridge I mentioned in that post and go explore out that way by scooter.  Several outdoorsy sounding things are pinpointed on our map out that way, like "Sihcao Mangrove Reserve," "Sihcao Wildlife Reserve" and "Sihcao Cooperative Farm."  We really had no idea what any of it was, but we decided it was worth a look.

I'm not going to lie, it didn't end up being as cool as I'd hoped and part of it was a shameless tourist trap, but we had fun exploring anyway.

As we were driving out, most of the area around us was being used for fish farming.  After not too long we saw this temple roof from far away and decided to go see what was over there.

The area around the temple was the tourist trap area.  There were big gaudy booths selling things and signs for shows, etc.  In general, it seemed like they were trying to really sell the place even though there wasn't much there.  The actual temple and grounds, however, were one of the nicer ones that we've seen.

Tom and I think these guys are a little creepy - no offense to anyone who is Buddhist.

Below is a picture of the "mangrove reserve."  Honestly, it was really small and not much to look at.

Tom surveying the not so captivating scenery.

There were a couple of neat birds though, featured in the pictures below.  The second one had a staring contest with me through the trees for a few minutes. 

More trees growing on walls.

A decaying dragon boat.

After hanging around in this area for a while we kept on driving and saw another temple in the distance (they're EVERYWHERE).  This complex was reeeally really big, but also a bit trashy looking outside of the actual temple.  Here are some pics of...well...I don't know what they are but I think people write things they want on them.

On the way home we stopped and took a couple of pictures of this big flock of birds.

All in all, it wasn't the most spectacular trip, sightseeing wise, but it was still really fun.  Honestly, I always need to have a little exploration in my life to be happy.

Next up: More Chinglish fun!