More Yangshuo

Hi everyone!

After the aforementioned wonderful bike trip, we were thoroughly exhausted, but decided to explore the town at night. We met a few foreigners who were working in China, and had a few drinks with them before retiring for the evening. We may or may not have attempted to play beer pong, but were told that it was too late at the bar.

The next day we rented an electric scooter and made our way south to the water cave. We spent the better part of the tour being shown rocks that looked like various objects (dragon's head, woman looking in mirror, etc.). Honestly, it looked like the inside of a cave. I think anyone who spends a lot of time in a cave begins to see things, and thus, someone decided it would be a good idea to show this to tourists. In Chinese. However, we did encounter a mud pit, which was dirty if fun (and good for the skin too) and some hot springs. We took many pictures, as always, but I think that the other tourists took more pictures of us than we did. Apparently white people in caves are quite a novelty. The driving in China is interesting. They have their own rules, which they even follow occasionally.

The following day we decided to be adventurous and go rock-climbing. Neither of us had ever climbed outdoors, and it showed. It was rainy, it was wet, and it was an amazingly good time. It is very different from indoor climbing, and much more enjoyable. We went with a Chinese company (Xclimb), and were very impressed with the quality of their equipment and guides.

Finally, on our last day in Yangshuo, we decided to take a boat trip on the famous Li River, and do a three to four hour (24km) hike. We ended up spending 4 hours on the boat, due to some purposeful miscommunication on the part of the organizer, who was worried we would miss the bus, and only hiked for 45 minutes. We were not happy with this, but the portion that we did hike was sensational (we also got most of our money back). I know I have said this before, but Yangshuo is stunning. The town is vibrant, at night and during the day, and it really is an outdoor sports paradise.

Generalizing once again, I have an example for those of you who have never been to China, and do not know what the people and the culture are like: China is like a doorway which is a few inches too short for you (a foreigner) to enter comfortably. There is another way in, but since you are a foreigner, you are not told about it. Near the doorway are ten staff members, who are talking in a corner. None are looking at you, though other people constantly offer to sell you things you do not need. In order to be helpful, five of the staff members have hung a sign in the doorway which says "Make sure to watching head". They were genuinely trying to warn you, but have taken ten inches of room in the doorway in order to give you this message. If you crouch down, you can just make out the beautiful landscapes, dirty construction sites, great opportunities and crowded squares on the other side. With some effort, entry is possible, and well worth it. Just watch your head!

Notes:

1. food = not bad, lots of spicy beef for me

1a. finding a chicken foot in the chicken I ordered = not so good

Thanks for reading!