Graceful Guilin

Saturday, June 18, 2011 Eva 0 Comments

Not having any accommodation pre-booked, Max and I took our chances, and on arrival organized our hotel and river cruise at the little tourist kiosk at the airport. 
Sun and Moon Pagodas, Guilin
After checking in and then out of the first hotel within minutes (no-one mentioned anything about jackhammering renovations) we eventually settled into one that was in our guidebook.  This budget-priced little boutique hotel had Chinese reproduction antique furniture and lots of charm. By now I was photographing amusing signs in Chinglish and I couldn’t help but chuckle when I read the following message in the hotel bathroom amongst the vibrating condoms and vaginal hygienic wipes – “Non-complimentary gift.  Breaks a seal regards as the use”.  Huh? What kind of place had we booked into?  Honestly though, it was all above board and lovely.
Card game, Guilin
Nearby were the tranquil Rong and Shan Lakes with their beautiful marble-arched bridges, Chinese teahouse sitting on a little island and the Sun and Moon pagodas. The setting was gorgeous.  Guilin is lush and ringed by mountains.  Despite the hordes of tourists, the two of us enjoyed our lakeside walks taking in the sights of Chinese tourists posing for photos in rented regional costumes from kiosks, locals sipping on green tea whilst playing mah-jong or cards on the sidewalks and women’s dance classes held out in the open as passers-by like ourselves stop to watch.
Misty Li River
A day cruise down the Li River to view the limestone karst landscape turned out a disappointment.  Thick clouds covered the sky that morning, mist descended and the rain began.  Dodging the raincoated masses and popped up umbrellas in the wind to take photos, whilst trying to protect the camera from the weather, was a challenge.  Jokingly, an American couple sitting with us pulled out a crisp 20 Yuan note that depicts this section of the river landscape and we took turns at photographing it as a memento of our cruise. 
The boat docked at the small town of Yangshuo, where we disembarked through a crush of tourists with our packs, raincoats and umbrellas for an overnight stop. It was still raining and the rain continued on and off through the evening, making it difficult to appreciate what the town had to offer apart from many market stalls.  
Guilin food
Yangshuo street scene
Relieved to have left the next day by bus, in the interminable rain, we arrived back to glorious mild sunny weather in Guilin.  The remainder of our time here was spent doing laundry,going for walks and climbing the steep Solitary Beauty Peak for city views.
Graceful marble bridge, Guilin
Teahouse, Shan Lake

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