Four days in China - it seems kind of crazy considering the cost of visas (especially for American citizens) and extra flights. However, we were so drawn to discover a little corner of this enormous country. A place that has such a rich and ancient history, that influenced countries like Japan and Vietnam to a high degree and that plays an increasingly significant role in world economy and politics. Recommended both by our Chinese friend in Tokyo and by our travel agent who is based in this town, we decided on exploring Guilin, also called "The most scenic city in China".
This title did not disappoint. The town itself (just over a million inhabitants, which makes it a small town in China) was quite friendly and accessible. We stayed right downtown near a lake that had a walking route around. We saw many grandparents taking a stroll with their grandchildren, men of different generations playing Chinese chess and hardworking people dipping their feet in the water after a long day.
Our tour took us to the Li river, a historically important waterway connecting the Yangtze valley (think Shanghai) to the Pearl River Delta (think Guangzhou and Hong Kong). This is the highlight of any Guilin visit. The river is surrounded by karst mountains of limestone that give it a distinct characteristic. Featured on the 20 Yuan bill, the landscape is famous all over the country. We went down the river on a luxury cruise boat with air conditioning. The upper deck gave a beautiful view of the scenery whilst the lower deck had seating and tables where we enjoyed our lunch box. Having just lived in Japan, we were struck by how different Chinese people behave in public. Very open, quite loud, commercially minded.
Other visits included the Reed Flute Cave (a large limestone cave with lots of colourful light effects), a bicycle ride along the Li river and a climb upon one of the high rocks in the center of Guilin for a panorama of the city. We got to stay in a beautiful eco hotel along the river and play in the water. Finally, we spent a day visiting the well-known Longji Rice Terraces. It's a 2,5h drive from the city and the terraces are located at a height of 800m. They were created seven centuries ago by the Zhuang minority and continually farmed since then. This people group composes the largest minority in China with around 18 million. They were chased away from their fields in the valley by the Han majority and driven to the mountains where they created the terraces to continue growing rice. The people we saw on the way up were beautiful in their strength and weathered faces. The women never cut their hair and even preserve the ones that fall out. The way their hair is put up tells you whether they are unmarried, married or married with children. Our guide told us that their hair never grows grey because they treat it naturally.
We felt well cared for by our guide Henry and our driver. It is wonderful to be on a private tour, where we can adjust the schedule and timing to the needs of the children and where we can handle the weather with the occasional breaks in the airconditioned vans, hotels and restaurants.
