Li River to Yangshuo

What a long day! It started with a trip down the Li River, from Guilin to Yangshuo. The trip lasted about four hours, but we first had to drive around Guilin to pick up all the people who were coming along for the boat ride. I thought there were a lot of people, but compared to other boats we some on the river, ours didn't look nearly as packed.

We set out from Guilin at around 9:00 am. By the time we reached the really scenic areas of the Li River, the sun was already pretty high up and didn't have the best light for photos. I wondered if a boat were to set out much earlier to get to get the sunrise, whether it would be a lot more successful with tourists. All the boats set out at around the same time -- maybe it's regulated? Really the boat ride seems to be the major source of income in Guilin, everybody and their mother will try to sell you the boat tour. I got asked at the airport, in the taxi, at the restaurant, at a gallery, at a tea shop and several other times while walking around. I was surprised that they didn't ask me again on the boat. I spent most of the boat ride on the top of the boat, admiring the limestone formations and the life along the river. It was a little bit cold and hazy, but at least it wasn't raining.

When we got to Yangshuo, I signed up for bamboo rafting along the Yulong River and to the nearby Baisha village. I barely had enough time to check in and put my backpack in my room before I was off again. The rafting was really fun, though for photos it was a little challenging, as all the tourists, including myself, were given bright life jackets which got in almost every photo. Not sure they were completely necessary, the water really wasn't that deep.

The scenery here has been used in a lot of media and movies. The nearby Dragon Bridge was used as a backdrop for The Painted Veil. The view from it is apparently one of the default desktop backgrounds for Windows.

Though things aren't exactly as I expected. For whatever reason, I thought Yangshuo would be a lot more rural. When I saw fishermen in photos before coming here, I thought they were actually using cormorants to catch fish. The guide we had was telling us there's actually very few fishermen that still know how to train the birds. Most of the ones seen in photos are actually dressed up specifically for photos or shows. I saw one offering to let me take his picture for five yuen. I may take him up on that offer tomorrow, if the lighting is better.

I've been really hoping for some sunrise or sunset photos, but that may be asking a lot considering it's been raining here for almost two weeks. The hostel I'm staying at today has a nice view from the rooftop and I spent the evening there having dinner and waiting in vain for the sunset. It just got dark and cold, so I went down to my room and started working on the blog.

Li River:

Yulong River:

Baisha Villager:

Yangshuo:

Walking Around Guilin

It was another rainy day, but it eased up in the afternoon. I didn't get out of my hostel until it stopped raining. It was absolutely freezing at night and I had a hard time just getting out of bed. I can't believe the difference humidity makes when it comes to cold.

I made an effort to get out and see some of Guilin despite the cold and cloudy weather. The tourist map listed a few nearby attractions; parks with limestone formations. My first stop was Solitary Beauty Peak which is in the Ming Prince mansion. The buildings in the compound didn't interest me much, but I was interested in the views. I thought maybe I could see down the Li River. However, once I got to the top, all I could see was a sprawling Guilin. Buildings in every direction.

A guest at the hostel I'm staying at recommended checking out the Seven Star Park, so I made that my second destination. It's quite a large park, complete with waterways, waterfalls, temples, caves and even a zoo. The guidebook said the zoo is fairly run down, so I avoided it. The attraction here is supposed to be the Seven Star Cave. After checking out a bit of the park, I decided to head into the cave.

What I wasn't prepared for was the cave tour. To see the cave, you must go with a guide as the guide turns the lights on and off. The guide is for domestic tourists and the tour is in Mandarin. Needless to say it was a very long tour and I didn't understand a thing, but the cave was very pretty with the lights.

My final stop of the day was the Elephant Trunk Hill, named so because the limestone peak it surrounds resembles an elephant drinking water. It was a nice way to end the day. It was quiet and provided a nice stroll along the Li River. I even managed to catch see cormorants before heading back to my hotel.

Ming Prince Park and View from Solitary Beauty Peak:

Seven Star Park and Cave:

Elephant Trunk Park:

Rainy in Guilin

I got in Guilin pretty late in the day. Part of that was because flights were delayed due to bad weather. The airport was quite apologetic and even gave out free lunches to everyone.

When I arrived it was raining and from what I understand, it's been raining for quite a few days. That's a little disappointing, because it'll make it real hard to get good photos and views of the surrounding limestone peaks.

Right after I checked in, I decided to go for a walk. I had about an hour before sunset and had hoped to see something picturesque. I could see the limestone peaks surrounding the city, but in the foreground were tall fancy hotels. The city itself is quite pretty too, with bridges and waterways all over the place. Unfortunately it was already pretty dark and gloomy and I didn't get much in the way of photos.

As soon as it got dark, the place seemed to come alive. Everything was lit up in different coloured lights. Every tree, building, bridge and boat seem to have some kind of decorative lightning. It kind of made me think of Las Vegas. I think this place has an interesting night life. But partying is not for me, I would much rather sight-see. So I went back to my hostel to try and get to bed early and maybe get some sunrise shots tomorrow if it clears up.

Into the Stone Forest

It was a fairly relaxing day. The only thing on my agenda was to see Shilin, the "Stone Forest." It's about a 120 kilometers outside of Kunming. Luckily there are direct buses that go to the area and it was fairly easy to get to.

Shilin was on my agenda when I first thought about what I was going to do in China. I thought it would be similar to Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park in Madagascar, which I saw a documentary on and found quite fascinating. I believe both were formed in the same manner of erosion, however, I think Shilin is considerably smaller in comparison and quite a bit more popular with tourists.

Unfortunately, the Shilin "Stone Forest" is so modified for accessibility, that it loses its natural appeal. Pathways run throughout the park, often right through the formations. A couple view points have been installed right on top of the formations where mostly domestic tourists gather shoulder to shoulder to try and get a good birdseye view and a photo of themselves with the formations in the background. For what it is, it's quite overpriced. So far it's the most I've paid for admission, even more than The Great Wall.

Perhaps the high ticket cost was to pay for the dancers. The park had two stages where the Yi people, dressed in traditional garb, performed various styles of dance. I took a few photos and hopped back on the bus to Kunming.

Later I met up with Ed and Christine, who I've now met up with in three places in China. We went out for "across the bridge" noodles, a speciality among these parts. I'm not sure it was my favorite dish, but it's always fun to try the local cuisine. We finished the night off with some ice cream and smoothies.

Shilin Stone Forest:

Yi People:

Kunming

I left Shangri-La early this morning, caught a flight straight to Kunming. I could have gone by bus, but I didn't feel like a fifteen hour bus ride. A one hour flight was more to my liking and worth the extra money. I figure the less I spent on the bus or train, the more I can spend sight-seeing.

I really didn't think about spending too much time in Kunming. It's a city of just over a million people and the capital of the Yunnan province. Reading the guidebook, there wasn't too much in the city I wanted to see, but to get to my next destination, it was a required stop.

I spent most of the day exploring and found it a fairly easy place to walk around. I must have walked a good portion of the city today. Everything seems fairly new. Malls, McDonalds and KFC are everywhere, though I did see an occasional row of old wooden buildings hidden in alleyways.

Kunming has a large Chinese Muslim population (known as the Hui) and a couple of sights indicated in the guidebook were mosques. I was pretty impressed with the architecture of mosques I've seen in the past, while traveling through India and the Middle East. These ones here were so ordinary that I actually walked right by. I don't know why they were indicated in the guidebook. I suppose just because it's unique to see a mosque in this area.

I also visited two pagodas which seemed to be quite old and the Yuantong Temple, which was the only sight I spent a bit of time at. The temple is quite pretty and much bigger than I thought. Spending some time on its grounds was a nice escape from the very noisy city streets.

Perhaps my favorite thing about Kunming has been the number of bakeries I've come across. I've filled up on a whole bunch of unique baked goods. The most interesting was a sweet pastry that had a muffin like bottom and a fried egg on top.

East Pagoda:

Old and new:

Yuantong Temple:

Unimpressive Mosque:

Kunming Downtown:

Shangri-La

This morning I got up early, had breakfast and went out to the road to wait for a bus. There isn't an official bus stop here, but the buses do stop frequently. I was accompanied by an Australian couple and at the stop was an English guy. We waited for sometime and when a bus finally did come, it drove right past us. While we were waiting, a guy tried to offer us a ride for 250 yuen. I offered him 200 (50 each) and we were on our way.

The destination was Shangri-La, which is actually a fictional name for Zhongdian. James Hilton's Lost Horizon book is where the name comes from. No one knew he actually based it on a real place. There are actually a few places in the region that claim the name, but according to my guidebook this is actually the place. It's assumed he read about in an early National Geographic article published by Joseph Rock, a famous botanist that had spent years in this area. To attract tourists Zhongdian has now officially been renamed to Shangri-La.

The place is quite beautiful. At 3,200 meters above sea level, it's the highest town I've stayed in. I left my things in the hostel and went out to see as much of the town as I could. While running around, I ran into a Canadian couple that I had met in Lijiang, Ed and Christine. I found out they were going to the Ganden Sumtseling Gompa, a monastery that houses over 600 Tibetan monks. I asked if I could tag along as I was planning to go to the same place.

Going with them was excellent. Christine speaks Mandarin and she was also meeting up with a friend who lives here, so I got to learn quite a bit about the area, people and monastery. We walked around it for most of the day. A lot of it seems to be getting a facelift, which is too bad because I like that older look for the pictures. The monks here are apparently quite well off, they receive pretty good donations from businesses, in exchange for blessings.

The highlight of the day was at the end of our walk. We were invited by a monk into his home. Inside he had us sit around a stove and brought out a plate of baked goods, yak cheese and nuts. Jokingly he offered us some yak milk tea and brought out a bottle of Sprite. We learned a little about him and how he lives in the monastery. It was quite a nice experience.

After the monastery, I went out for dinner with Ed and Christine. We decided to have hot pot, as I had not tried it yet, as well as a few dumplings and pig leg, a local specialty. It was all very delicious.

Shangri-La Town:

The Monastery: