At the thousand-year-old Jin Temple, I found a hidden copy of Journey to the West

Winter at Jin Temple has a kind of solemn romance. The ancient building's painted decorations have oxidized and peeled away, fading to a blue-gray, revealing the natural wood color, which perfectly matches the cold daylight. Here, I found a hidden copy of Journey to the West: I saw the small temple where the animated Sun Wukong transforms & also the famous scene of "Fishing Alone in the Cold River Snow" from "Black Wukong," the big willow tree that once tied the White Dragon Horse, and the coiled dragon pillar that once bound Babor Ben. Historical relics and classic imagination overlap here, a dreamlike connection across time and space. 📜 A little note about Jin Temple’s "Three Wonders": ▪️ Song Dynasty polychrome sculpture: The maid statues inside the Holy Mother Hall, a favorite of master Mei Lanfang. The maid smiles on the right side of her face facing the Holy Mother, while the left side quietly shows sorrow. The vivid expression almost lets me hear her whispers from a thousand years ago. ▪️ Architectural specimens: The Holy Mother Hall and the Fish Pond Flying Beam are textbook examples of Northern Song architecture. The wooden dragon carvings around the hall are lifelike, and the "Fish Pond Flying Beam" is the earliest existing cross-shaped ancient bridge in China. It can also be considered the prototype of the first overpass in history. ▪️ Thousand-year-old ancient tree: The Zhou cypress planted in the Western Zhou period still stands strong today. Time here has a visible shape. 📌 Winter travel tips: ▪️ Fewer people in winter, excellent light and shadow, perfect for immersive experiences. It’s recommended to ask for an official guide at the visitor center to make history come alive. ▪️ Dress warmly; definitely bring a thick down jacket in December! Layering like a sandwich is best; you can take off your jacket indoors in some places. ▪️ Why not bring your own "script"—whether a classic novel or a game—to personally hunt for Easter eggs? The fun is irreplaceable. Jin Temple also has several popular photo spots that reinterpret historical stories and traditional aesthetics in trendy ways, giving new life and vividness to the stories.