March 20 - 23: Yangshou (Part II)

After our expedition in the cave, we returned to our tour guide's home for some home-cooked food.

Her adorable puppy.

The view that we enjoyed while we were waiting for lunch to be ready.

Mmmm!!!

After lunch.

'I think the pig wants to kiss me!'

Ah, finally, Moon Hill is in sight.

When visitors reach the base of the hill to start the hike up, they are confronted with a number of hawkers who want to sell water, other beverages, and postcards. The unusual thing is that these hawkers don't stop at selling things at the base of the hill, they pick a group of visitors and these visitors then become 'theirs' and then the hawker follows the tourists all the way up the mountain trying to sell things along the way. Unfortunately, it sort of ruins the peace and tranquility of the trail when you have a stranger constantly asking if you'd like water or telling you where you should and shouldn't go. The hawkers are all women and they sure are in good shape. In one day, we imagine that they must make at least five trips up and down the hill. Fortunately, because Nancy can speak Chinese, she was able to talk the lady out of following us. We did buy some unneeded water from her when we reached the bottom.

Up and up we go again!

The view from the hike was amazing.

A panoramic view of a village skirting the karsts near Yangshou.

Check out all the farmland!

Where's Bryan?

Having a little fun on the way down the hill.

On our way back to town.

If you're ever in Yangshou you should plan a day biking with our guide - just like us, you'll love it! Her info is:

That evening, we went on a tour to see the comorant fishermen. These fisherman use these birds to fish. They tie something around the birds neck so that when the bird catches a fish, it can't swallow it. Clever.

Us with a comorant bird.

These little children all yelled 'hello' to us as we ate our breakfast. How cute! Bryan had oatmeal with bananas and Nancy had more fresh squeezed tangerine juice. Today, we had decided to take a boat cruise from Xingping to Yangti, known to be famous for its breathtaking scenery.

Poking around in the town of Yangti.

The Yangshou market before we left that day.

Fresh bamboo shoots.

We took a most bumpy bus ride from Yangshou back to Guilin. We had heard stories about people injuring their backs on some buses in China. Well, this one would have done it had we been older. Nancy was afraid to say anything during the trip lest she bite her tongue by accident.

Ah, back to civilization and the anonymity of a big city. They also had a cheap internet cafe. Check out the jacket that the person to the right is wearing. It says "CIHGACO BLULS". Think it's authentic?

Yum! Eating at a Sichuan restaurant in Guilin. Delicious, but SPICY!

Bryan eating a dragon fruit at the Guilin airport. Next stop: Chongqing.

On to: Chongqing and the Yangtze River

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