travel
China Elevator Stories
Taishan Mountain, Shandong Province: "You Can Touch the Turtles" (China Travel)
I chat with a Chinese man at Taishan Mountain.
25/04/2025
Ruth Silbermayr
Author
I encounter a little stall on Taishan Mountain with two turtles. They look like stone turtles at first; I only realize they are alive when the person selling “Chinese fortune spells” tells me so.
We chat a little.
He says, “You can touch them.”
I ask him, “Do they mind all the people?”
He says, “No, they are used to this. You can buy a wooden plaque and make a wish.”
I say, “No, thanks. Is this a Buddhist practice?”
He says, “No, it’s a Taoist practice—or simply a folk belief.”
“How old are the turtles?”
“100 years.”
“What do they eat?”
“Fruit. Apples, mango, and cucumber.”
Have you ever seen turtles such as these?