Confucius says.

The Temple of Confucius - our third stop on Saturday - is the second largest Confucian Temple in China. Built in 1302, imperial officials used it to pay their respects to Confucius. Inside the temple, there are 198 stone tablets positioned on both sides of the front courtyard, containing more than 51,624 names of Jinshi (the advanced scholars) of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties (Confucius probably wouldn't rely on Wikipedia to write his blog).

As education ranks high in Chinese culture, parents and students often come to pray at the temple during exam periods.

Both my parents were teachers in the Philippines - my mom a principal and my dad the administrator of the Chinese curriculum at a prominent high school. Growing up, education was paramount above all else. Walking through the temple's square courtyards, with square patches of grass framing tall old trees - again, the four corners/feng shui/balance, yada yada - I feel a tad dumb for not knowing a whole lot about Chinese's most famous philosopher, other than the lame "Confucius says" jokes from Hollywood.

And yes, Andrew makes a lot of "I'm confused" jokes during the visit.

Thankfully, there's an excellent gallery that guides you through his life history - from his humble beginnings on - that also include artefacts, such as early counting tools (a bag full of sticks). Not a whole lot stuck with me - but I left the temple feeling a little more informed and ever more inspired to be a sponge; to soak up knowledge and experience where I can.