Sep 13, 2006 - To the Golden Peak (Jin Ding)

The second day on the trek was made a lot easier by the fact that the previous day we had pushed on for 3 extra hours to get to Yuxian monastery, leaving us with a slightly more relaxed timetable the next day. This morning we arrived in Guilin early and jumped on another bus to Yangshuo in Hunan province, where we are now. ... It's really cool to be back here, and everyone else seems to like it too.The second day on the trek was made a lot easier by the fact that the previous day we had pushed on for 3 extra hours to get to Yuxian monastery, leaving us with a slightly more relaxed timetable the next day. This morning we arrived in Guilin early and jumped on another bus to Yangshuo in Hunan province, where we are now. ... It's really cool to be back here, and everyone else seems to like it too....

Sep 2, 2006 - Yangshuo

Yangshuo is the backpacker haven we have been craving for a little while now, and is very much like some of the towns we visited in SE Asia. ... Yangshuo is a small town by the Li River with a very relaxed feel to it, plenty of good cheap accomodation and food - including lots of western food! And, of course, there is the reason the backpackers come here, the towering limestone peaks looming/overshadowing the town, the river, and the surrounding countryside. ... There are also a couple of parks in Yangshuo with peaks of course. ... So anyone coming to the Yak Cafe in Yangshuo, we did that! Also, while in town, we took advantage of the end of season bargain sales and shopped for gifts and souvenirs. ... Good to see our haggling skills are still very much in order, cos these guys start at some very high prices! We also managed to drag ourselves out of town twice! The first time was to bus to Xingping, also lying on the Li River, north of Yangshuo. ...

Aug 16, 2006 - Halong on Land

What a wonderfully magical place this is.What a wonderfully magical place this is....

Jul 23, 2006 - Yangshuo, China

An hour south of Guilin along the Li river is Yangshuo. ... Yangshuo does appears to offer many of the things travellers look for including, among other things, cheap accommodation, cheap food, cheap drinks, beautiful scenery, good shopping, and outdoor activities (e. ... The reward, however, was a commanding view of the Yangshuo countryside. ... In the late afternoon, I rode out to Fuli, a small Chinese village downriver from Yangshuo. ... The Danes, cousins Kamilla and Sofie, and I rented bikes and rode out into the Chinese countryside with plans to follow the Yulong River, one of the more scenic routes around Yangshuo. ...

Jul 12, 2006 - Yangshou - the last week..

Been having a great deal of difficulty with internet connections.Been having a great deal of difficulty with internet connections....

Jun 6, 2006 - The Li River and Yangshou

After a couple of days in Guilin, the group headed south by boat along the Li River towards Yangshou.After a couple of days in Guilin, the group headed south by boat along the Li River towards Yangshou....

May 10, 2006 - Yangshuo

What a gorgeous town this is! Very very touristy but we all love it! Nice small pedestrianised streets with lovely shops and nice cafes and restaurants.What a gorgeous town this is! Very very touristy but we all love it! Nice small pedestrianised streets with lovely shops and nice cafes and restaurants....

May 8, 2006 - China - Yangshuo

Arrived late at night (I don't know why I keep booking flights in the evening, I hate arriving late) and after a bit of confusion at the airport I found the driver who'd come to collect me and we drove to Yangshuo. ... Yangshuo and the surrounding region is famed throughout China for its strange hill formations and beautiful countryside. ... Unfortunately the resulting tourism has rather blighted Yangshuo and I found the commercial nature and often exorbitant prices left a bitter taste in my mouth. ... At the end of my stay in Yangshuo, I didn't really feel like I'd actually arrived in China and hoped the next stop would feel a bit more like China and less like a generic backpacker town. ...

Apr 20, 2006 - wonders never cease...

So get this everybody. This area in Yangshuo is so tourist oriented that you can pick up anything you want here. ... Who would have thought that China was so touristy.So get this everybody. This area in Yangshuo is so tourist oriented that you can pick up anything you want here. ... Who would have thought that China was so touristy....

Mar 27, 2006 - ...but brilliant Yangshuo

Ah!!! first really nice sight in China : only a short 70km SE of Guilin, Yangshuo has a truely magnificient setting among spectacular karsts all around. ... Yangshuo, notre premiere petite ville de charme en Chine, les pitons rocheux, la riviere Li (70km au sud est de Guilin) la campagne tout autour avec des villageois qui n'ont pas ete chasses de chez eux (ils ont de la chance cette zone est tres touristique avec les chinois et autres, donc surement protegee) La ville n'est pas tres grande et composee de ruelles pavees, surchargees de restos avec menu en anglais (bonne nouvelle on en avait marre de manger chez pizza hut)de boutiques de souvenirs et de petits hotels charmants et discountes. ... Les restos etaient bons a Yangshuo, notamment le poisson de Li cuisine a la biere mais il est tres important d'avoir un menu en anglais car vous pouvez facilement tomber sur les pieges de la cuisine chinoise tels que La patte de poulet a grignoter en apero La soupe de tetes de poissons (seulement les tetes sont servies) Les langues de canards sautees Les penis de boeuf en casseroles Brochettes de grenouilles, pas seulement les cuisses mais tout l'animal autres scorpions, serpents, rats des champs et tortues cuisinees a toutes les sauces de toutes les facons. ...

Jan 11, 2006 - Yangshuo and Longj Rice Terraces

We are presently here in the Southern China town of Yangshuo—a town nestled amongst magnificent, other-worldly rock outcroppings and situated right on the Li River. ... Yangshuo is a perfect town for travelers, backpackers and Chinese tourists, except that this time of year it is cold here (the days have been sunny and quite warm, but as soon as the sun goes down—cold). ... It is interesting to see the Chinese handle the cold—our hotel room has heat, but the lobbies are as cold as outside; restaurants are cold and will turn a heater on only when we enter and sit down; shops have no fronts so are cold; I am sitting in an internet café with no heat, but it is still daytime so not too cold; the street food vendors go on cooking up a storm and their customers sit in the cold and eat; everyone just wears warm clothing and bears the cold with no complaints—it's time for us to get with the program! (All this makes us feel like such wusses and also makes us realize that the future is meant for the strong & hardy folks like these people who don't care much about heaters and air conditioners! Besides, the population of China is four times that of the US!) We hear that Yangshuo is just jammed during the warmer months and the main street (which is closed to traffic and open as a pedestrian mall only) is packed with tourists from all over eating and shopping like crazy. ... We have a few more days in Yangshuo and a lot of photos to post as this is such a photogenic area, so we'll do another entry in a couple of days. ...

Dec 6, 2005 - Yangshuo

From Guilin, we took a short bus to Yangshuo, which is an absolutely beautiful area of China. ... Guilin/Yangshuo are known for their gumdrop shaped (well, sharp gumdrops) limestone formations that just shoot up everywhere. ... Guilin is a big city, while Yangshuo is a small town with the main road closed to traffic with cobble stone roads. ... and spent the next 4 days in Yangshuo worrying I'd see the same one--which I didn't!! Yippie! On Wednesday, we took a bus to Xing Ping where we were to start a boat ride along the Li River. ... Nice to have people from so many places! Thursday night (after David's friend Ben joined us in Yangshuo) we went to a performance that is done in the natural environment of Yangshuo. ...