Next stop was a flight to Guilin in the southern portion of this huge country. We did not fancy the 32 hour train journey and the flights were only 10 quid or so more than the cheep sleeper tickets so in a comfortable hour and a half we were transported from Xi'an airport to Guilin. We had heard bad things about this city but in our 1 night stop-over we saw no problems and had no hastle which
was a pleasant surprise. We booked our boat trip for the following morning, saving 30 yen each by booking direct a few doors away rather than through the hostel and soon enough we were cruising to Yangshou. The scenery is unbelievable. The traditional ink paintings d
epicting fantasy landscapes are actually not so far from the truth with limestone pinnacles jutting from the river plain like fingers stretching towards the sky. The shear cliff faces, water staining and forests all then combining to produce a landscape conjuring up thoughts of the lost world. 4 hours later we arrived at the transplanted
European resort town of Yangshou, a good place to recharge the batteries! although we still have 1 full day left at the time of writing we have (deep breath)... hired bikes, wondered villages, swum everyday in the bath-like dragon river, had a cookery lesson, been shown
round the local market (hanging dogs and all), visited caves, seen the amazing "Impressions" show directed by the same guy who did the Olympic opening (stunning and with a cast of 600) and also found time to read 2 books and catch up on sleep. Tomorrow we are walking and then seeing some Cormorant fishing but more on that once we have actually done it. We are recovered, relaxed and ready for the next leg where we are planning to try and get away from the tour groups and by heading north, first to Ping An and
eventually ending up in Kaili via lots of small villages of minority peoples. There should be some stories to tell I'm sure...
Next stop was a flight to Guilin in the southern portion of this huge country. We did not fancy the 32 hour train journey and the flights were only 10 quid or so more than the cheep sleeper tickets so in a comfortable hour and a half we were transported from Xi'an airport to Guilin. We had heard bad things about this city but in our 1 night stop-over we saw no problems and had no hastle which 
was a pleasant surprise. We booked our boat trip for the following morning, saving 30 yen each by booking direct a few doors away rather than through the hostel and soon enough we were cruising to Yangshou. The scenery is unbelievable. The traditional ink paintings d
epicting fantasy landscapes are actually not so far from the truth with limestone pinnacles jutting from the river plain like fingers stretching towards the sky. The shear cliff faces, water staining and forests all then combining to produce a landscape conjuring up thoughts of the lost world. 4 hours later we arrived at the transplanted 
European resort town of Yangshou, a good place to recharge the batteries! although we still have 1 full day left at the time of writing we have (deep breath)... hired bikes, wondered villages, swum everyday in the bath-like dragon river, had a cookery lesson, been shown
round the local market (hanging dogs and all), visited caves, seen the amazing "Impressions" show directed by the same guy who did the Olympic opening (stunning and with a cast of 600) and also found time to read 2 books and catch up on sleep. Tomorrow we are walking and then seeing some Cormorant fishing but more on that once we have actually done it. We are recovered, relaxed and ready for the next leg where we are planning to try and get away from the tour groups and by heading north, first to Ping An and 
eventually ending up in Kaili via lots of small villages of minority peoples. There should be some stories to tell I'm sure...
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