Guilin and the Li River

Cruising the Li river

From Chengdu we flew south to Guilin, renowned for the beauty of the limestone mountains surrounding it. There was only time for the evening meal, then organise our overnight bags for the following day when we set off early for a morning cruise to Yangshuo. The views we saw were the traditional ones we see in Chinese art, with limestone kartz mountains rising on both sides of the river as it meanders through the countryside. The traditional bamboo rafts have mostly been replaced by ones made with plastic pipes, probably more easily built and maintained but not as attractive. Once again we saw lots of litter pickers along the banks, keeping the riverside clean. It was a very relaxing morning, watching the world go by and looking for the view which features on the 20 yuan note. We had been provided with packed lunches which made a pleasant change.

"Impressions"

After landing at Yangshuo, we had a short walk to the hotel, carrying our minimal luggage and running the gauntlet of the local market stalls in West Street, so-called because all the western tourists go there to shop. Our afternoon was free to explore the town and enjoy haggling at the market. Our evening entertainment was a show called "Impressions". It was given a big build up by our guide, and did not disappoint. The show was set in a diverted section of the river with the natural arena of the mountains as a backdrop. It has been running since 2003 and was originally staged by China's most famous film director, who also produced the opening of the Beijing Olympics - China's Danny Boyle you might say. The open air theatre seated 5000 and did two shows a night, three in the holiday period, with a cast of 600. It was a stunning show with the mountains lit up, fishing boats, village scenes, and a group of 200  ladies dressed in silver. The cast were a mixture of drama and music students, representatives from the local ethnic minority groups and local fishermen.

Rice fields near Guilin

Next morning we travelled back to Guilin by coach, with a stop on the way to explore fields where rice was being grown. In the city we had an optional trip to a viewpoint with magnificent views over the city and surrounding countryside. There was only one catch. We had to climb about 400 steps. That's why it was optional! In the evening we were back on the river again for a demonstration of fishing with cormorants from bamboo rafts. We had heard about this before but were amazed to be seeing it happen before our eyes. The cormorant has a string tied around its neck just tight enough to prevent it from swallowing the fish it has caught, so it returns to the raft where it disgorges the fish. Eventually when the fisherman has enough he releases the string and allows the cormorant to swallow some fish for his supper.

Next morning we visited the Reed Flute Caves, a spectacular and theatrically lit complex of limestone caves, again very popular with Chinese tourists, and set in an attractive park on the outskirts of Guilin. Then back to the airport for our last internal flight to Shanghai.