On Tuesday morning, we went exploring around Guilin. I really wanted to take the river cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo (we found one lady who offered a bamboo raft for 80 yuan), but the other girls wanted to take a bus. If the weather had been better, I would have taken a boat by myself, but the sky was clouded over that morning, so I decided to go with the girls. Early that morning, we headed out for Seven Star Park. Its name comes from the shape of the seven mountains spread out like the stars in the big dipper. We walked along the Li River and crossed the bridge to the other side of the city. On the bridge we saw a minority family selling some chestnut cake, so we bought a slice to split. Their kid was so adorable: he had the most gorgeous brown eyes and kept blowing us kisses. For a 3-year-old kid, he was quite the charmer - his smile was enchanting.
At the park, we took a tour of an ancient cave and two of the Chinese guys on the tour kept asking to take pictures with us. The animals in the park were incredible - I saw my first wild monkeys, along with peacocks, birds, and bats.
At about lunch time, we hopped on a 15-yuan express bus to Yangshuo. We dropped off our bags at the Bamboo House (which took forever to find!) and explored the city. It's even warmer here than in Guilin, which is hard to believe. We did a little shopping and bargaining at the outdoor markets and had dinner with Simon, a fellow Maple Leaf teacher, and his girlfriend Tiffany, who is teaching English here. At night we went to an amazing light show on the river. It's directed by the guy who directed Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and it's one of the most amazing productions I have ever seen. They must have had at least 200 men, women, and children playing singing and dancing in spectacular costume. I felt like I was at the opening ceremonies of the olympics. But I have to say the best part of the night was coming back to the hostel and taking a bath in the bath tub. It's been way too long since my last real bath!
At the park, we took a tour of an ancient cave and two of the Chinese guys on the tour kept asking to take pictures with us. The animals in the park were incredible - I saw my first wild monkeys, along with peacocks, birds, and bats.
At about lunch time, we hopped on a 15-yuan express bus to Yangshuo. We dropped off our bags at the Bamboo House (which took forever to find!) and explored the city. It's even warmer here than in Guilin, which is hard to believe. We did a little shopping and bargaining at the outdoor markets and had dinner with Simon, a fellow Maple Leaf teacher, and his girlfriend Tiffany, who is teaching English here. At night we went to an amazing light show on the river. It's directed by the guy who directed Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and it's one of the most amazing productions I have ever seen. They must have had at least 200 men, women, and children playing singing and dancing in spectacular costume. I felt like I was at the opening ceremonies of the olympics. But I have to say the best part of the night was coming back to the hostel and taking a bath in the bath tub. It's been way too long since my last real bath!
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