I stared vacantly out the window of the bus as rain drops
whipped by in the night. Music pumped through my headphones, drowning out
the cacophonous chatter of my fellow passengers. I was on a bus on a
Friday night, headed for
Yangshuo in the Guangxi province. As is so
common in China, silly restrictions like the number of seats on the bus did not
correlate to the number of passengers. People squatted on tiny
stools-most likely designed for toddlers-up and down the single, narrow
aisle. Sitting on a stool less than a foot high, crowded in on all sides
by people in actual seats, for a full hour. I have not yet had the
opportunity to experience such discomfort but I can only imagine that it will
come all too soon. This is China, right?
I rose early on Saturday morning without a clear plan ahead
of me. In recent years I have adopted a more lax approach to my
traveling. In the past I tended to micromanage too much: where I was
going, how I was getting from place to place, what I would do and see, where I
was eating. Eventually I realized that my approach was not working.
It took too much time and too much energy. It took all the fun out of
being spontaneous on my journeys. It prevented me from following my whims
which, usually, resulted in me having a fantastic experience I would most
likely not have had given my former approach.
A fellow traveler in my hostel, a young Chinese man named
Jacques, invited me to go bike riding with him. In my reading I had
learned that renting a bike and touring around Yangshuo was one of the best
ways to go, so I accepted. We were headed for the Dragon Bridge, some 9
kilometers outside the city. To me it seemed like a great way to pass the
morning and experience some of the most beautiful countryside I had ever seen.
After biking through towns, down highways, and through some
winding dirt roads among a rundown village we arrived at the bridge. To
be quite honest, I was underwhelmed. The bridge is (supposedly) around
500 years old and is the largest free-standing stone arch bridge in
China. As you can see, it is really not that big. But I suppose
given the technology available at the time this was quite an achievement.
The surrounding area is quite beautiful and I think the bridge really melds
well with the scenery. However it is clear that the top part has been
rebuilt recently. Like so many historical sites in China the bridge was
not left in it’s original state or even restored while maintaining its
integrity. It is really unfortunate that this happens so often, but the
truth is that the Chinese have some methods and ideologies that are just plain
counter intuitive. This is China, right?
From the bridge, we decided to take the long route back to
Yangshuo by some trails off the beaten track. This is where the real
journey began.
We biked more than 10 kilometers over dirt roads and
farmer’s paths. We wove in and out of tiny villages and farmsteads.
We made our way through fields of vegetables and passed various animals-dogs,
cats, chickens, cows-all the while following along the gorgeous Li River.
The sights were simply breathtaking. As we pushed on along the trail
through thick mud and pools of water we never lost sight of the omnipresent
limestone karsts that are the pride of the Guangxi province. Surrounded
on all sides by fields of green and beautiful mountains, with nary a sign of
modern technology or industry, I find myself at a loss for words at how much I
enjoyed myself. Despite all the pedaling and getting splattered with mud
and nearly falling off my bike on more than one occasion, it was simply
awesome.
Eventually we made our way back to civilization and turned
our bikes in. We grabbed lunch at a local joint with some cheap yet excellent
food. A piece of advice, if you will allow me, always try to find the
places where the locals eat. It may not be as flashy or showy as the
touristy restaurants, but the food is always just as good (if not better) and a
fraction of the price. Besides, one would think (as I do) that you travel
to a different country or place to experience what it has to offer, including
the food. You don’t go half-way around the world just to eat more food
like back home at jacked-up prices, do you?
By the time we finished lunch it was late afternoon. I
did not need to depart for
Guilin until the evening, so I wanted to squeeze one
more adventure into my itinerary. I said my goodbyes and thank-yous to
Jacques and we parted ways, most likely to never meet again. One problem
with making friends on the road is that it is usually so ephemeral. Alas,
such is life.
For some reason Jacques was not interested in accompanying
me on my next jaunt. I didn’t ask why; I’m sure he had his reasons
(probably just wanted to do something else). I was off to Moon
Hill. Check back tomorrow for an account of my exhausting climb to the
top of the mountain.
