Much of this area is agricultural where water buffalo are still used to plant and harvest the rice, which is their main crop. So is sugar cane, Chinese dates (jujube), and peppers to mention a few things. The city was razed by the Japanese in 1944, but rebuilt through money from tourism. Restaurants serve fish, eel, frog, turtles, snails, shrimp, and snakes. Hungry yet?
Over 3 million years ago, limestone formations pushed through the sea bed, then rain and wind eroded the hills leaving caves and grottos. What is most impressive is the fact that the jutting peaks, mounds, and spires left created what is called the "karst". The definition in Webster's dictionary describes the karst as a limestone region marked by sinks, abrupt ridges, irregular protuberant rocks, caverns, and underground streams. Out of sight, are the deeper caves that have stalagmites and stalagtites.
The Li River (or locally known as Li Jiang), runs through these mountains, as well as the city of Guilin. The scenery is surreal, as we would find out later this morning. This area was a sleepy city of over one million locals until tourism took hold in the late 70's. Perhaps what called attention to here was the fact that President Nixon and his wife came here back then, in an attempt to normalize relations between the US and China. Back then, what he would have found was a subtropical area with Vietnam on its border. The summers are hot and humid with tons of rain, while the spring and autumn are the best times to visit. His visit left a very positive impression with the Chinese people.
We did not hear the alarm go off at 4am this morning. We ended up getting up around 4:45 am, but still had enough time to grab breakfast before our pick-up time of 8:15am. There were many items to choose from at their buffet. Not knowing what kind of lunch to expect, we had omelettes, bacon, ham, pastries, yogurt and orange juice. Turned out to be a wise decision.
The weather was not exactly cooperating this morning, because it was wet outside. As we drove the 40 to 50 mile ride to the Mopan Hill Wharf, it began to drizzle in earnest. This would not be good for taking photos, especially with the good camera. We kept our fingers crossed that the rain would stop.
The Li River is not a large river, but a rather small one, especially this time of year when the water level is low. It is only 40 to 50 feet above sea level, so the current is not massive. To see the best part of the river that flows through the karst, we would be traveling 40 miles downstream. What were we going to see? Jeremy promised that there would be mountain goats, oxen, water buffalo, eagles, kites, hawks, crows, cormorants, and ducks. If we looked hard, we might see the colorful little kingfishers.
In the lower part of the river, we would spot rice fields, and veggies plot planted with eggplant, tomatoes, corn, beans, soy beans, peanuts, and the tufu bean. Fruit trees can line the river as well as grapes and wheat in the northern areas.
The sun was hiding behind the cover of clouds and a strange mist that shrouds the spires and mounds of the limestone peaks. At least by the time we boarded the river boat at 9:30 am, the light rain had stopped. Lucky.
Jeremy went to get our tickets, then we went through security similar to the airport's screening. The tickets are sold randomly, so you do not have a choice where your seat assignment is. First come, first served. We found our seats on the lower deck which was inside with a rectangular table for eight. Maps of the river ride were scattered on all of the tables. We had window seats, with our guide sitting next to us. Bill immediately went to the upper deck, which was opened for viewing the entire river. Sort of knew he would not be coming back inside.
While the two of us sat there, Jeremy had to keep people from crowding our tables. He said that if seats are not occupied, they will move in and begin a game of cards for the ride. The cabin got so noisy with the people doing this that we eventually went up to the top deck as well. By the way, we had been given bagged lunches to eat, instead of having the lunch which was served onboard. Jeremy said he knew we would not like the food, since it could include those snails, and other exotic food. More of a concern was about the cleanliness of it, as we spotted the cook and his helpers purchasing produce from boats passing by the riverboats. They were washing lettuce in tubs with what may have been river water. We even saw a man pounding some kind of meat on the back deck, right on the floor. No, we will stick to the hotel lunch, thanks.
The river scenery was so fascinating, that we stayed up top for the entire four hour ride. Good thing we wore our down jackets, because it was bone-chilling cold and breezy. We had left with an armada of boats, that followed each other in a convoy totaling 17. We were number 16, so we got good photos of this convoy. Truthfully, the boats with people added some nice color to a rather gray scene. This ride only goes one way down the river with passengers. Once they reach the 40 miles drop off point, they make their way back upstream.
There was a spot about half way, where you could take a much shorter ride to the end. You could see some of the famous spires, but also have the chance to watch the local fishermen with their cormorants fishing for their owners. In the past, these black water birds relied on catching fish to survive. Chinese fishermen were clever…..they trained these birds to fish for them, more than likely, from a young age. The birds are tethered by their foot to a pole. When they are set loose to dive for fish, a string is tied around their necks to prevent them from swallowing the fish. Of course, keeping the birds hungry is the trick. Once the fisherman has his quota, he hand feeds his birds with small fish, a few at a time. The rafts that the men used centuries ago were made from a large bamboo, and they navigated them with a long stick. Today, all of these rafts are constructed with 4 inch plastic PVC, painted blue or turquoise, and motored with a hand held small outboard motor. Furnished with an overhead canopy, these durable, but simple, rafts cost about $2000 USD. And probably will last longer than the native bamboo ones. The biggest concentration of these rafts with fishermen was at this spot in the river, where tourists pay to watch the birds dive. With the onset of tourism, these fellows do not make their living fishing this way much anymore. On a side note, we also have some of these cormorants that dive for fish in or local park areas. Always a pleasure to watch their antics.
While we were here at this part of the river, our guide mentioned that many of the US presidents had visited the river here over the years.
While we were up on the top of the boat, several extended family members came up to take group photos. They love to pose for pictures, and we mean "pose" as in strike a pose. We simply stand straight and smile, while they are much more animated. Jeremy mentioned that it was only recently that women were allowed to express themselves openly. Now they love it.
Before the boat ride ended, a family came over to us and indicated that they wanted to take photos with us. Not a word of English was used, but we got the idea anyway. It was really a nice experience and no harm in it we guess. We may end up on "wechat" tomorrow, their version of facebook, banned here. The ladies took turns posing with me, while the men liked standing next to Bill. Shaking our hands, they left saying "xie-xie", meaning thank you….. a new phrase we learned today. Later on in the day, we would have a chance meeting with these folks once again.
The boat ride ended at Yangshuo, where we disembarked along the riverbank. Meeting us at the drop-off were a couple of vendors selling bags of kumquats, a fruit we would try later on. It had been a wonderful ride on this river, which has been described a green ribbon winding through thousands of grotesque peaks. We can see why poets, writers, and artists have found this mysterious area a place to cherish and visit often.
It was about 1:30pm, and we were supposed to spend some time in the village of Yangshuo. Once up top, there was a covered street that seemed to go on for miles. It was full of souvenirs tables with everything Chinese you can imagine. As we had brought very little yuan with us, we did not even ask if the vendors took US dollars. With our house already looking like a museum of treasures, we did not even consider adding more to the mix.
Glad we did not have to stay here for 6 hours, waiting to go to the evening performance we had on the itinerary. So we had our guide drive us back to Guilin and our hotel for a couple of hours. This was a glitch in the itinerary that we were not happy with. Our guide was reluctant to go back for the hour and a half drive, but it worked better for us. The best part of the tour was the river, and not a village of shops and restaurants that included local cuisine, but also KFC, Pizza Hut, and many other fast food vendors. Too touristy for us.
The ride back through the countryside was just as interesting. We could see the farmlands of veggies, fruit trees, and kumquat orchards, all set in between the limestone mountains. A truly eerie, but serene setting.
We were back to the hotel by 3:30pm. Since we had munched on our bag lunches on the way back, we did not need to eat lunch in the hotel. The lunch had included a sandwich of unknown contents, which we did not consume. But there were chips, sweet rolls, fruit, and waters to fill us up. There was even a Dove Bar, which was so good.
We used the time to do photos and continue notes for the blog. We met our guide at 5:30pm for the next part of our evening tour. And that will be in the following report.
Bill & Mary Ann
Meals at the Shangri La
Many international stations
Fresh noodles….the best
Salad fixings
Assorted fruit
Checking it all first
Cereals and toppings
More noodles
Perhaps this is a tofu dish
Red chilli peppers make the food hot and spicy
Eggs anyway you like them
Omelette station
Sweet pastries
Asian corner
Nutcrackers
Something wrapped in ti leaves
Dumplings
We were the first customers
The teddy bear is a special symbol in Shangri La Hotels
Advertising daily tai chi classes
Tai chi instructor in the garden area
Typical small business in Guilin
Outside the entrance to the Li River boat ride
Vendors sold boiled eggs and assorted nuts - hot
Various healthy snacks
Mo Pan Hill Wharf
Located in DaXu Ancient Town
This is where you buy the tickets and enter the wharf
Several waiting riverboats
We will use # 16
Enter from one side using boats to access your ride
Today, we used 17 boats
Beginning of the river ride
These folks were selling food to the boat drivers
River lighthouse
Police patrol
Fifteen boats in a row
We were # 16 in the convoy
Man washing the lettuce with river water
Typical PVC raft with outboard motor on a pole
Same man washing some kind of meat (no lunch for us today)
Houseboat
The day was overcast and grey
No sun, little color
Workers keep the river clean
Although they do wash clothes in the river
Beginning of the "karst" mountain formations
Vendor selling his products
Fishing on the river
Cleaning the river
Riverside pagoda
Fishing from the traditional raft
The convoy
Hairpin turns in the river
Limestone monoliths
A local crow
They hunt fish in the river among other things
Peaks and spires
Most unusual scenery
This raft had a nice canopy
Riverbanks with mountains in the backdrop
Bat Hill – because bats live in caves here
Some groups of formations have Chinese names
Winding Li River
Low water time of year
Banks are exposed with sand and rocks
During the monsoons, the river is wider
A hawk or eagle hunting
An experienced hunter
Plucking food off of the water with its talons
Flying off with the food, probably a fish
Wide wing span
A lucky sighting for us
Fish in the claws
Now we are watching for more birds
Steep cliffs
Resting hawk
So many ducks on this river
Shallow in parts
Calmer banks
Shrouded in a haze
Not a fog, however
Creates an eerie vision
Rounding the corners
Could be The Painted Hill of Nine Horses
Food delivery
