Fuddland

Those of us of a certain age and nationality will fondly remember the classic Japanese kung-fu television treat that was Monkey Magic — the story of a Buddhist monk, Tripitaka, and his three mystical protectors, Monkey, Pigsy and Sandy, on a quest from China to India and back, seeking sacred Buddhist texts and battling all manner of demons in a variety of camp costumes.

The story is based on an ancient Chinese legend, Journey to the West, in which the monk is called Xuán Zàng (玄奘), which begins and ends in what is modern-day Xī’ān (西安). On his return to the temple of Dàcí’ēn Sì (大慈恩寺) [Temple of Grace], Xuán Zàng requested the construction of the stone pagoda Dàyàn Tǎ (大雁塔) [Big Goose Pagoda] within its walls to house and protect the precious scripts as he translated them into 1,355 volumes [as well as negotiating the rights to the television series, sticker albums, action figures and so on].

The Temple is currently undergoing a face-lift and, sadly, looks as though is was all constructed in the last twenty minutes instead of portraying its 1,500-year-long history, although the pagoda itself has largely been left alone and looks sufficiently weather-beaten for you to believe the legends surrounding it, and even today, still emits enough mystical energy for a few moments of levitation…