New Page 1

August 06, 2007

Yangshuo (CHINA)

Bicycle Happy and Picture Happy in Yangshuo

My bus arrived in Yangshuo this morning at 630am, and immediately after alighting from the bus there were touts surrounding me all claiming to offer the cheapest accommodation. I don't have a tour guide for China, so I figured there was no harm in giving one of them a try. I followed a man, Wang, to his car and he drove me 30m down the street to his hostel. Unfortunately, I knew things were going to be bad when he sat me down and began negotiating tour packages to the surrounding sights. After the over-night bus-ride from Shenzhen, all I wanted was a shower, a place to put down my gear, and a place to stay for the next few days. I curtly said goodbye and moved further into town brushing aside the other touts who approached me. It is unfortunate, but in China many people wear their greed on their sleeves, and they hardly realize how obvious it is to others.

I found a local shop selling steamed buns, and after chatting a bit with the owner I used her mobile phone to call a few numbers I wrote down for local hostels (in case this kind of thing happened). After speaking with several guest houses I decided on the one with the friendliest owner: the Bamboo Inn, operated by Annie. She gave me a dorm room to myself, and because there was no pressure on me I ended up eating breakfast with her and renting a bike for the day.

So, only a couple hours after arriving in the beautiful town of Yangshuo I was on a silver mountain bike peddling into the surrounding countryside. My ultimate goal was to reach the 47m Dragon Bridge (built in the 1400s) situated 11km up the Li River. I only had a hand-written map as a guide, and Annie's directions were to head out of town until I passed a gas station, then to turn left and do my best to stay along the river. With a perfect day and the famous karst peaks surrounding me, who wouldn't love the prospects for such a day?

It can often be quite strange how you meet people. This morning, for instance, I decided to explore a small side path in hope of finding a good view of a nearby village. While I was pausing to watch several local children crossing a field, a Chinese woman happened by, and I surprised her into conversation with me. Shortly thereafter, a European woman approached me hoping for help. She had her two daughters with her, and since they didn't speak an ounce of Mandarin they felt hopelessly lost. I proceeded to speak with the Chinese woman and did all the necessary translating, much to the relief of the European.

This would have been the end of the story, but two kilometers down the path and I caught up to the woman and her daughters (who were headed in the same general direction as me). We began chatting, and they followed me the remainder of the way to the Dragon Bridge, which is shown in the picture to the right.

We sat along the water relaxing after the long bike ride and chatted intermittently without a worry in the world. Mary-Anne and her two daughters, Theresa (19) and Tina (14), had just arrived from Beijing and were touring China for a two week vacation. We decided to cycle together for the rest of the day as we were both heading back in the same direction.

Unfortunately, after only 20 minutes I had us lost in a briar-patch, and it took another 20 minutes before we emerged onto the proper path (albeit with thorns stuck to my clothes). Thankfully no one was angry, and everyone seemed to share the mindset that "everything is an adventure, and that is why we are here."

At around 2pm we were within several kilometers of Yangshuo, and Theresa's mother and younger sister decided to head back to their hotel to rest. Theresa and I said goodbye before heading off for a mountain that looked to be about 7 kilometers away on my map. Since nothing is absolute on a hand-made map, we figured it was best to stop for lunch and a rest at a restaurant we passed along a main road. We were the only people there, and from the look of the owners we were the first foreigners to stop by.

I did my best to order from the Chinese menu, but we couldn't resist the chance to follow the chef into the kitchen where he offered us everything he had in stock. I can still remember seeing the chef bent over inside a large freezer sorting through vegetables when he popped up with a live frog in his hand and shoved it in Theresa's face. Between this and the general state of grime in the kitchen we figured it was best to trust my selections and leave the kitchen before we saw more than we wanted to. On the way back to our private room upstairs, we passed the bar where there were six large vats of Chinese liquor - including one containing a large snake and another full of cockroaches... At least the food turned out OK!

After lunch, it took as another hour until we finished cycling to Yueliang Mountain. I locked up our bikes, massaged my sorely aching butt, and grimaced at daunting task of a steep climb up the side of the mountain. In fairness, it wasn't a real mountain, but I was tired nonetheless. There was a Chinese woman and her daughter following us up the path with the hope of selling us water and snacks, and even they were struggling with the mid-afternoon heat.

Near the summit, I met a group of American students who recently finished a summer spent volunteering as English teachers for under-privileged kids in China. Among the Americans was a very attractive girl from Emory, named Ali. We talked for a bit in the hope of having a mutual friend - both equally shocked to find someone from Atlanta on a mountain in Yangshuo (of all places) - and arranged to meet later in the evening.

Theresa and I still weren't done climbing as we decided to go for the real summit, which was situated atop a moon shaped rock formation. When we finally reached the top we crashed atop a pile of rocks and enjoyed the beauty of the surrounding countryside. There was no one around and the only thing we could hear was the wind, so this was the perfect way to unwind after all the strenuous cycling and climbing. If the sun wasn't beating down on me and I wasn't out of water I might have called it a day and slept here because I was completely knackered.

But we still had a hike down the mountain and a 7-8km bike ride back into town to contend with, and we decided to be done with it sooner rather than later. So, a little after 1900 we rode back into town and agreed to meet for dinner.

Back at my dormitory I unlocked the door only to find a girl clad only in a bath towel. After apologizing and giving her time to change we sat down to formally introduce ourselves. In a strong Italian accent, she said: "Hello, my name is Francesca." We spent the next ten minutes chatting (like many Italians, Francesca loves to talk), and after I showered we went to a nearby restaurant for a drink. I nearly lost track of time before I remembered to meet Theresa and her family for dinner at their hotel.

It was a nice restaurant, and they were treating me to dinner because they have not had the greatest of luck in ordering Chinese food on this trip. I can understand where they are coming from as Chinese food can be terribly rewarding or just terribly, well, terrible. The trick is knowing which foods are good to eat and which ones should never leave the kitchen. Fortunately, they loved the dinner (the first time on the trip, they claimed), and even ordered seconds of several dishes. This bodes well for next summer when my brother comes to visit because if you don't like a country's food it is difficult to like a country.

After dinner, Theresa and I met Francesca and the rest of the Americans for a night out on the town. We bought $0.40USD beer from a local shop - mine was called Better and made by Liquan - and drank at the main square in Yangshuo before heading off for the bars and pubs that line Xie Jie (West Street). We had a group of 12, so everywhere we went we were able to dominate the dance floor. I couldn't help feeling this was a great way to wrap up my first day in Yangshuo.