Yangshuo

Ah, Yangshuo. Definitely one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. Before we left Shaoguan, we had one small roadblock. Since we had just handed over our passports to the police for our resident permits, we were without ID. Three hours before our train was scheduled to leave, we got a call from Ella at the international office saying that without our passports, we wouldn't be able to check into a hotel once we arrived in Yangshuo. So, after a last minute scramble to gather copies of our passports and visas, the receipt from the police, and a letter from the university, we were finally on our way Monday night, relieved to say the least! We arrived on Tuesday September 21st, after a 9 hour overnight train ride from Shaoguan to Guilin, and then a 1 1/2 hour bus ride from Guilin to Yangshuo. On the train, we opted for sleeper seats, which are basically bunk beds, usually 4 or 6 beds to a compartment. The beds are hard, but it's SO much better to be able to stretch out and sleep for at least a little while, rather than sitting the whole time. Although I'm familiar with the train system from the last time I was in China, I forgot about the realities of Chinese public transport. When we got on the train in Shaoguan, our bunks had already been slept in since the train had originally departed from Shenzhen. The pillows and blankets were full of hair other things I don't want to think about. But, Collin and I were tired, and we laid in those beds like seasoned pros! However, the next morning before we disembarked, I woke up, stretched, and looked up in the corner of my bunk only to see a giant booger dangling from the wall about 6 inches from my face. GOOD MORNING TO ME!!

Finding the bus station in Guilin was pretty easy, and the bus ride uneventful. I can't even describe how much easier it is to do everything when you are with someone who can speak Chinese. I'm so impressed with Collin's language skills and his ability to communicate with people, it's made things much less stressful for us. I really hope I can learn more Chinese while I'm here so I can become less dependent on him to communicate, but I appreciate his efforts more than he'll ever know.

Once we arrived in Yangshuo, we checked in at a hostel that Collin stayed at the last time he was there in 2008. Liz, the owner, was very helpful to us and really made our stay wonderful. The best part about our room was the cedar bathtub in the bathroom, when you filled it with hot water, the aroma of cedar was just amazing. The beds were also really comfortable, which in China is hard to come by (no pun intended). However, much to our dismay, we learned that the weather probably wouldn't cooperate for us for the rest of the week, which was weird, because this is supposed to be the best time of year to visit Yangshuo. Considering the main attraction is the beautiful countryside and mountains, most of the activities are outdoors (hiking, biking, etc). We actually considered leaving early because of the rain, but decided to tough it out.

The first two days were spent exploring the city. Yangshuo is small, but it's a huge backpacker destination. You'll see people from all over the world here, especially Westerners. There's also a lot of great Chinese and Western food, we ate at a really awesome dumpling restaurant where we also tried Guilin mi fen, a very famous noodle dish in Guangxi province. Later, we found a restaurant run by a Dutch couple, who made really awesome cheeseburgers. After a month of eating nothing but Chinese food, a good home-cooked cheeseburger was AMAZING! The couple, around our age, were really nice, and it was really interesting to talk with them about their experiences in China and running a business here. Not only did they cook tasty food, but they charged fair prices on the menu, so we felt obligated to come back and have a few beers every night!

Shopping is a major pastime in Yangshuo. Everyone wants to sell you something, especially if they see you are a Westerner. Walking down West Street, one of the main streets in the city, you'll hear "Huh-lo!! Huh-lo!! Very cheap for you! Silka! Pashmina! Huh-lo, pee-low? Looka! Looka!". It's a little daunting at first, everyone trying to get your attention. There's also a market with people selling all kinds of things like silk scarves, pillows, jade, painted scrolls, tapestries, etc. The thing is, most of the stalls sell similar goods, you'll see the same things over and over again, and it's hard to tell what things are actually worth. But, we did some major bargaining, let me tell you! Bargaining is all about playing the game, they always start the price out really high so when they come down it seems much more reasonable. Plus, they also play the guilt card, when you name a low price they'll say "Ohhh, no money, no money!!" One woman even told us that if we didn't pay 5 more yuan than what we were asking, she wouldn't be able to buy food! But we knew she was bluffing, and she knew it too because we were all laughing. The best part of the bargaining experience, by far, was competing with the Chinese tourists for the lowest prices. Since we're Westerners, the prices are automatically higher, no matter what the product is actually worth. At one point, I was looking at a table of silk scarves, when a Chinese woman came over and expressed interest in buying one. The woman selling the scarf would NOT let her buy it there, she kept telling the Chinese tourist to go to another table to pay. I automatically knew what was going on, she didn't want me to know how much the Chinese tourist paid so I would end up paying a higher price! Sneaky!! So I jumped in right as the Chinese tourist was about to walk away with the scarf, and I said "How much did she pay? How much did she pay?" The woman behind the table did her best to cover it up, offering me cheaper and cheaper prices, but I already knew I'd won. I ended up buying a scarf for 25 yuan (about 3 dollars), which is still probably higher than the scarf was worth, but I still felt like a champion anyway. Oh, my dad would be so proud...

Thursday, we decided to brave the weather and rent some bikes to take out into the countryside. I bought a really cheap rain pancho, which ripped about 5 minutes after I bought it, but it still kept my camera from getting wet. The rain made things cold, wet, and muddy, but it was so worth it. The scenery in Yangshuo is absolutely breathtaking, and the mountains are like nothing I have ever seen before. Tall, odd-looking peaks, called karst, are everywhere. Even in the rain, the mountains were gorgeous. Collin thought that they might be even more beautiful than the last time he was there, when the weather was better. We biked through some nearby villages, and stopped by the Lijiang River to watch the bamboo rafts carrying Chinese tourists. It was here that we were approached by a Chinese woman who wanted us to take one of these rafts down the river. We weren't exactly sure if she was just trying to be helpful, or if she really wanted to us to pay for one of these rafts, but she followed us for quite some time after we left the river. We'd lose her for a bit, and then all of a sudden, there she'd be! She finally gave up when we turned around and went back to the river, where we watched some Chinese men loading huge bamboo rafts (6 of them to be exact) onto a small dump truck. It was interesting, to say the least.

After we got back to Yangshuo, tired, wet, and muddy from our bikeride, we were approached by a middle aged white man, who asked us about the bikes and other things to do there. His name was Robert, and he said he was originally from California. He also introduced us to his Chinese "helper", a young woman in her early twenties. He was kind of forward and loud, but he seemed very friendly and eager to meet fellow Americans. He told us that he was a bus salesman and that he had been living in China for the last 3 years, and he asked us if we'd like to get together later in the evening for dinner. We said sure, and we exchanged phone numbers. Here, is where things get interesting, and the Tale of Robert begins...

Collin and I went back to the hotel, showered, and then decided to eat an earlier dinner since we were really hungry. We went to the Dutch restaurant again for cheeseburgers, and after that we decided to take a walk down West Street. Here, we happened to run into Robert, who we had arranged to meet later in the evening, but since we met earlier we decided to take him and his Chinese "helper" back to the Dutch restaurant so they could eat. By this time, I was starting to wonder what sort of "helper" the young Chinese girl was. We got a table, and Collin and I ordered beers while they ordered food. As soon as we walked in, Robert immediately began obnoxiously joking to the Dutch couple (who he didn't realize were the owners) about how there were "too many Westerners in here." After another obnoxious and rather awkward conversation while ordering food, we were beginning to regret meeting up with this guy. Only we didn't know things would get worse. It was a little warm inside the restaurant, so Robert decided to take off his shirt. Lo and behold, under the t-shirt, was a skimpy weight lifting shirt, the kind that has narrow straps and dips down low on the chest and sides. To make matters worse, it was bright blue. He immediately started bragging about how he had actually made the shirt himself, how he lifts weights to stay in shape, and how he has such a great body for being 49. It was all I had in me to keep a straight face. The shirt, if you could call it that, was crazy, and everyone that walked by stared at him and us. So embarrassing! Then he told us more about his bus business in China, which was sort of interesting, but it went on for far too long. After awhile, his Chinese "helper" decided to get up and leave the restaurant to go shopping for awhile. As soon as she left, he began telling us all kinds of things about this girl, and other girls he has been with since he has lived here. As I'd figured, this girl was much more than a "helper". We learned far too much about his sex life with Chinese girls less than half his age, and he was none too modest, or quiet, to share this with us. By this time, I just wanted to leave. At the end of the night, we said goodbye, and as Collin and I walked back to the hotel, we looked at each other with expressions that said "What...the...hell..." Needless to say, we definitely did not want to hang out with this guy. EVER again. Wow...

That evening, after our interesting meeting, we decided to head up to the roof of our hotel, where we caught a glimpse of the surrounding mountains at night. Since we were there during the Chinese Mid Autumn Festival, the mountains were all lit up by spotlights. The neon lights from the city combined with the illuminated peaks created a truly amazing view. Definitely a pleasant end to a rather tiring and odd day...

On Friday, after a really great buffet breakfast, we decided we wanted to do a cruise down the Lijiang River. Our hotel helped us book the cruise, and we took a small bus all the way to the drop off point. After a rather crowded and uncomfortable bus ride, we met with our guide and made our way down the river in a "bamboo" raft made of PVC pipe. It rained off and on, but the scenery was spectacular. It was sort of surreal, both Collin and I couldn't believe we were actually there. It was a truly amazing experience. After a fairly long ride on the raft, we were dropped off further down the river, where we took a fairly violent tuk-tuk ride back to the bus station and hopped back on another bus back to Yangshuo. When we got back, we felt obligated to visit the Dutch couple one last time and apologize for bringing Robert there the night before. They were so nice about it, and said that he wasn't even as bad as some people they've dealt with. We just felt that we needed to come back and say something, because we didn't want them to think we were obnoxious Americans like Robert. I think many people from other countries have preconceived notions about Americans that people like Robert only perpetuate. We're trying our best not to fall into those stereotypes.

So, another long and dirty train ride back to Shaoguan, and we arrived back here safely early Sunday morning. All in all, it was a really great trip. Even though the weather wasn't the best and we had a few odd experiences, we still had a pretty good time. We're hoping to go back to Yangshuo at least one more time before we leave China, hopefully with better weather next time!