Before my alarm sounded, I woke to a steady down pour of rain outside the hostel window. Our plan was to wake at 6:30 to head out for riding bikes around the city by seven. When we woke and heard the raining coming down we checked the weather to see the forecast for later. From 9:00 a.m. onward the rain was clear, but the sky would remain partly cloudy. We slept for another hour and by 8:00 a.m., when we went down for the bikes, the rain had stopped.
We set out toward Moon Hill, but, since we went the wrong way, we went 8km out of the way to the Ancient Town of Fuli. It seems we headed east, and not south.
When we set out on the bikes that morning, Alicia said, "we can't get lost because we don't know where we're going."
We didn't have a plan other than to ride bikes around Yangshuo, so she was right, and we didn't get lost all day, ha.
From Fuli, we realized if we kept going we'd leave Yangshuo so we turned around. Within an hour we were 8km in, including a million stops for pictures. By the time we were 16km down, we were headed in the right direction toward Moon Hill, where we originally intended to go.
We passed rock climbing, Butterfly Cave, a bridge over Little River and then we were at Moon Hill. We parked the bikes and made our way to the top. We met a Swiss and Irish guy on our way to the top who were just in China for holiday. I love meeting people, but discussions for 20 minutes while I hike to the top of a mountain was a real struggle.
We didn't have a plan other than to ride bikes around Yangshuo, so she was right, and we didn't get lost all day, ha.
From Fuli, we realized if we kept going we'd leave Yangshuo so we turned around. Within an hour we were 8km in, including a million stops for pictures. By the time we were 16km down, we were headed in the right direction toward Moon Hill, where we originally intended to go.
We passed rock climbing, Butterfly Cave, a bridge over Little River and then we were at Moon Hill. We parked the bikes and made our way to the top. We met a Swiss and Irish guy on our way to the top who were just in China for holiday. I love meeting people, but discussions for 20 minutes while I hike to the top of a mountain was a real struggle.
You should know mountains aren't hiked in China. Every time I've gone "hiking" here I've just spent hours toning my gluts from climbing stairs. Apparently the Chinese find stairs easier than steep walking. Believe me, there is a difference.
We make it to the top where a 75-year-old woman, and her friend are waiting with coolers of drinks and postcards. Like many, they know key words and are relentless.
We make it to the top where a 75-year-old woman, and her friend are waiting with coolers of drinks and postcards. Like many, they know key words and are relentless.
"You buy one beer me. One her. Ok?"
You get annoyed after the fifth time they ask, and they become less of cute old ladies, and more of a distraction from the scenery. But you stay calm because hell they climbed the same path you did and they've got half a century on you.
From the top the view is incredible. The sky is still gray and there is fog amidst the mountains giving an eerie look to the mountains. We can see the village and town below, and the perfectly rowed gardens and farms surrounding the shacks.
We hike to the bottom where we are forced to pay 5RMB for a water from the lady who "watched" our coats while we hiked up. These women, man...
From the top the view is incredible. The sky is still gray and there is fog amidst the mountains giving an eerie look to the mountains. We can see the village and town below, and the perfectly rowed gardens and farms surrounding the shacks.
We hike to the bottom where we are forced to pay 5RMB for a water from the lady who "watched" our coats while we hiked up. These women, man...
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| Moon Hill |
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| Bridge over Little River |
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| Top of Moon Hill |
From Moon Hill we biked back toward town. We passed on rock climbing because as much as I'm trying to conquer my fear of heights, the price was steeper than the mountain. There is also a butterfly cave we passed on for the same reason, although Alicia was going to face her fears as well. I guess our fears weren't ready to be conquered or tested.
Back in town we return our bikes to the hostel and have a shower. It's only 2:00 p.m. and our bus to Guilin airport is at seven. We pack up and walk through town some more. We found Yangshuo Park that's full of old men playing poker, dominoes and backgammon at small stone tables. The dancing ladies were gathered in a square in the park.
From the park we walked toward the side of the river we hadn't seen. Across the river was farm land where water buffalo roamed. We walked along the unrailed path and found a man with Cormorants tied to his boat.
It's common here for the fishers to clip the wings of these birds so they can't fly. They use these birds for catching fish. They tie the birds to the ends of bamboo and you can pay 5RMB to hold the bamboo stick and take your picture with the bird. PEDA would not have been pleased with us, but it made for a cool picture.
From the park we walked toward the side of the river we hadn't seen. Across the river was farm land where water buffalo roamed. We walked along the unrailed path and found a man with Cormorants tied to his boat.
It's common here for the fishers to clip the wings of these birds so they can't fly. They use these birds for catching fish. They tie the birds to the ends of bamboo and you can pay 5RMB to hold the bamboo stick and take your picture with the bird. PEDA would not have been pleased with us, but it made for a cool picture.
We grabbed a beer at a rooftop bar and enjoyed the last hour of our time in beautiful Yangshou with the mountains in plain sight and watching other travelers peruse the streets below. We talked about how lucky we were to have seen all the things we had in the past two days. We had no idea then how much better each day would get.
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