Yangshou

2009-02-25 Tuesday
We took the KCR, not quiet sure what it stands for, bit it’s the railway between Kowloon and the Chinese border. That was the easy part; if you can call carrying the two rucksacks each up and down steps and along long corridors.

You have to go through HK passport control first where the officer looked at my passport photo and back at me several times. I told him it was me with different coloured hair so he grunted and let me through. The scary part started when we had to go through China’s passport control and, for a very tense ten minutes, we didn’t think they were going to let me in because I no longer look like my passport photo which has me with almost black hair (bad picture) compared to me in the flesh with blond hair. The first officer looked at me then at the photo then at me again. Then he asked the officer sitting next to him. She looked at the photo, then at me and shrugged her shoulders. He then called a supervisor over who also looked at me, then my photo, then at me again. He asked me if I had an identity card, which of course I don’t but then remembered that I also had my PADI Diving License which also has a picture and showed that to him. He still wasn’t entirely happy because although the photo on that has me with blond hair, it is in a short blond bob. Eventually he grunted and let me go through – at last we had arrived in China proper.

The beds are about 30” wide, two deep and three going across. You have to remove shoes on boarding and are given a plastic bag to put them inFinding the bus station was our next little adventure. We went into the tourist information office in the train station and she was very helpful. As well as giving us directions she wrote down, in Chinese, where we needed to go and so we set off. We were sure we had gone wrong and so showed the piece of paper to a kindly looking passerby who, using hand signals, showed us where to go which confirmed that we were going in the right direction. We finally got to where we needed to be and gratefully sat down as we had to wait for another couple of hours before we could board the sleeper bus at 7.30pm for a 10 hour journey to Yangshuo.

The beds on the bus were bunk beds and ran down both sides with a third row of beds running down the middle. We were told to remove our shoes and given a bag to put them in and we were left to make ourselves comfortable. The bunks were just about big enough for me but Paul could barely fit into his. I looked out the window for a little while but then decided to bury my head into the laptop and got busy tapping away on the diary so thankfully missed most of the journey but there was a great deal of blowing of horns. Paul was on the bottom bunk and we were quite close to the front so he could see, more or less, what the driver could see. He told me that there was a lot of ‘undertaking’ and what seemed to be ‘carving’ other vehicles up while changing lanes and overtaking usually when, Paul said, it must have been impossible what was coming towards us.

We both must have nodded off eventually because the next thing we new it was 4.45am and some Chinese lady was saying “Yangshuo, Yangshuo” and some people got off. We had actually booked tickets to take us to Guilin where we expected to have to transfer to another bus to take us to Yangshou, so, bearing in mind that we had just woken up and had not expected to go through Yangshou, we very blearily collected our belongings and got off the bus. By the time I got off I couldn’t find Paul but was confronted by a bunch of very awake local men with various local vehicle’s offering to find us a bed for the night. He kept saying “you not booked in tonight, I find you bed for night”. As it was now getting on for 5am and it was a warm night we decided between ourselves that, if need be, we would sit by the river and watch the sun come up so we managed to make him understand that we didn’t want his bed, we just wanted him to just drop us off at our hotel. A price of 50 Yuan was agreed, although we were convinced we had agreed 15 Yuan the two of us together with and our luggage was bundled into a little opened back 3 wheeled truck and driven through the sleeping town. Happily for us, as we were arguing the toss with the driver, the hotel door opened and a man in shorts let us in, gave us our key and let us have the room for the rest of that morning for nothing. We dumped our bags, crawled into bed and slept soundly for another 5 hours.


Later that morning after we had managed to pull ourselves together, get some strong coffee down our throats and a muesli breakfast into our stomachs, we explored the immediate area. One of the more entertaining parts was the park. There were plenty of people going about their business and mothers with little ones and there seemed to be a lot of gambling going on. There were concrete tables and chairs with four or five people seated either playing cards (Chinese tall and narrow cards not western cards) and there was also some game being played with domino’s, although not in any way that I have played domino’s and generally a crowd around them – as the crowd had money in their hands, we assumed that they were betting on the game being played. This was all very fascinating, but we were drawn to some traditional music being played. We found the musicians together with one female vocalist and they appeared to be having a practice session. So we sat and listened to them for a little while whilst watching everyone else – who were also looking at us!

This area is known for its’ amazing ‘limestone karsts’ and they are everywhere you look so we decided to climb up one of the smaller karsts in the park to a small viewing pavilion with a traditional looking roof on. Unfortunately there was a ‘feng shui’ lesson going on which made me feel as if I couldn’t go through to the balcony on the other side for the view. Paul wasn’t having any of that though, so we excused our way through and got a very rewarding view. Whilst on the balcony Paul pointed out the big karst he wanted to climb so we excused our way back through the lesson and then went in search for the start of the climb. There seemed to be quite a labyrinth of small back streets and alley ways and we got so far but just couldn’t find the way. It was then that a young Chinese girl offered us help – she actually took us to the foot of the path – we told her we didn’t want to trouble her but she said she had nothing to do anyway. She told us that she was a language student and wondered if we were doing anything that evening. As we had no particular plans we agreed to meet her at the park entrance at 8pm. We then continued our climb. The path was mainly steps made from rock (rather than concrete) and it was a good half hours climb to the top. The higher we got, the better the view became. You can see the ‘karsts’ all the way around the outside of town with any flat bit of land being built on and we could also see the River Li which is the river our room has a view of. It was a bit like hard work but very worth the effort.

After we had descended, we found somewhere to eat and were ready and waiting at the park gates but alas she didn’t show and we were both a bit disappointed. However, as we were waiting for her we heard more music being played and when we went to investigate this time, we found a large area, surrounded by pretty lights. We couldn’t actually see where the music was coming from (hidden speakers it turns out) but there were loads of people dancing to this music. Some were on their own, some where couples. Some where just moving from foot to foot whilst the couples where obviously quite skilled at the movements they were dancing. We found a spare stone bench and sat down to watch. Very shortly after we sat down someone beckoned us to join in. Well, how could we refuse? The music was pleasant if a little on the slow side but we managed to do the old ‘modern jive’ in slow motion and had a great time, as well as get a bit of an audience. We sat down again after the third number and again we were being invited onto the dance floor. The inviters’ said, pointing out the dance teacher, they had seen the way we had danced and wondered if we would like this dance teacher to teach us the Chinese Cha Cha Cha.

We never did get a chance to try this Cha Cha Cha because the young men that had come over were all in Yangshuo at the language school and all kept asking us questions and practicing their English. When they introduced themselves it was with anglicized names and I remember a Simon, a Bruce and a Terry. The ‘school’ were all going on a BBQ the next day and they asked if we would like to join them? How could we turn down an offer like that? We arranged to call Simon the next morning and he would send someone over to ‘walk’ us back to the school and once there someone would organize bikes for us.



2009-02-26 Wednesday
Unfortunately, when we woke up the next morning it was raining and it had turned decidedly chilly, most definitely not beach BBQ weather. We spent the morning working on the diary and then, putting on as many of our warm clothes as possible, we ventured out. Attached to our hotel is a small, very comfortable, coffee / café type establishment we stopped and had a couple of fairly expensive coffees, working out to about £2.30 a cup. Having downed our first cup, the music was changed and we recognized the dulcet tones of Leonard Cohan but did not recognize the tracks. As the weather had not improved at all we hung around for another cup of coffee, which was very good, and enjoyed the rest of the album. Whilst ordering the second coffee, Paul asked the assistant about the music and ended up buying a copy of the CD for about £3.50! We finally decided to move on when some workmen started replacing the doors and it started to chill down in there.

We had a little wander around the town looking at all the market stalls; all selling the same tourist tat. You only have to look at something on one of the tables and they are on you. I know everyone’s trying to make a ‘buck’ and some of the things are very pretty and some are even desirable. If I was given the chance to browse I might even have bought something, but they are on you straight away picking up things and trying to convince you of it’s’ desirability.

As we were both starting to feel a bit peckish so we started to look for somewhere to eat. There are a lot of places that look very basic and you can find some that you really wouldn’t consider going in and there are plenty of places that look inviting, except on a cold and miserable day, because the doors are wide open. And then we found a street with nice looking places and the doors were closed to the cold. We started reading the outside menu to one of these places and a very friendly Chinese lady, who spoke very good English, opened the door and invited us in.

Inside ‘Lucy’s Place’ there was even a small charcoal fire in an old wok making it very warm, compared to any other places. We both had a hot drink and looked at the menu. The ‘outside’ menu had boasted a full English breakfast but I was drawn to the bacon and cheese burger with chips, a little taste of home and Paul chose a Chinese dish with ‘braised egg plant’ (aubergine). I realized my mistake when the food arrived – never go for an English dish in a foreign country. The burger and chips were OK but the ‘braised eggplant’ was absolutely delicious.

Lucy sat and talked to us for some time. She seemed to be happy enough for us to sit there long after we had finished our drinks and dinner. We found out about her, her past, her family, her business and her culture whilst giving her insight into ours.

While chatting to her we realized that she could organize certain activities, one of them being a Chinese cooking lesson. The forecast for the following day confirmed that the weather was not going to improve so we decided to book ourselves onto a course, starting at 9.30 the next morning.

2009-02-27 Thursday
Cooking Lesson

We were told to come back to ‘Lucy’s’ and were collected from there by Linda (very Chinese names!) who walked us round to her restaurant and cooking school. Already in attendance were four Americans – there was Tom, an exchange student at a Hong Kong Uni, his fiancé Sally, who I think may have been working in Hong Kong and Laura and Joyce, Tom’s Mother and her friend who were over visiting Tom – and very nice people they were. I was a little concerned that we might not be included, it being two of us and ‘four of them’ so to speak, but we all got along very well straight away.

We were given a menu and told that we had to agree on three dishes. We chose ‘Beer Fish’ a local specialty, Braised Eggplant and Sweet and Sour Pork. Then it was off to the local market to buy the ingredients. The Chinese, at least in this area, don’t really have supermarkets as we know them but prefer to buy all their food fresh from the market where it has generally been bought in from the local farms / farmsteads. Linda obviously did all the buying but was happy to answer all our questions which was particularly good when presented with vegetables that none of us has seen before.

The vegetable market came first which was very colourful with the produce laid out on ‘covered’ ground. After that came the meat market. There were row upon row of butcher benches with large cuts of pork but the really interesting stalls were not selling pork! Chicken, duck and rabbit can be purchased and you know it’s fresh because it’s still alive! We also noticed, hanging up in more than one location, what could only be dried rat. The most upsetting stall though was the one selling dog! The first you see of it is, quite literally, de-furred and hanging up. As we got closer we could see the female butcher cutting meat up into saleable pieces, next you noticed the cage at the back which was full of very subdued ‘man’s best friend’s’ and lastly we noticed a man out the back of the stall using a blowtorch to de-fur the most recent creature to be slaughtered.

Although the ‘dried rat’ and the dog were very distasteful to us, we have to appreciate that the dogs were ‘farmed’ specifically for this purpose; just the same as the chickens and the pigs and that they didn’t eat their pets. The Chinese believe that eating dog is very ‘warming’ and is therefore mainly eaten when the weather is cold (cat, apparently is cooling and therefore eaten when the weather is hot – and not very much then). It is also believed that eating dog can make a man strong and virile! It is unlikely that we will ever eat it by mistake as it is an expensive ‘meat’. As for the rat, these are not, apparently, town rats but rice field rats that don’t live in the rubbish or sewer. Having said that, I still don’t think, or at least I hope, I will never be hungry enough to try that particular delicacy.

Eventually, shopping trip over, we came back to the restaurant cooking school where we each had a ‘station’ which included one gas burner, an impressive sized bamboo chopping board and a cleaver which is, it seems, the smallest ‘knife’ in the Chinese kitchen, a wok and a wok spatula (probably has a proper name that I don’t know). There was also the necessary condiments of any Chinese cook ie the soy source, the rice wine, oyster sauce, sugar, salt, chicken bouillon (instead of MSG) and there was also something else …….

First we did the preparation for all three dishes followed by the cooking of the first dish, or starter, the Beer Fish. Once the fish was cooked we took our individual plate of cooked food down to the restaurant to eat. Then back up to the kitchen to cook the other two dishes which we then took down to eat together. Linda had two very helpful assistants who did all our clearing away and washing up

The other activity that we arranged the day before was to take a Bamboo raft down the Li River, but only for the short distance that it is at its most beautiful (there is a part of this that is the picture on the 20 Yuan note and also on a cigarette packet). Tony, who works at Lucy’s Place and is one of her cousins, knows a man (his friends’ father) who owns a raft and is located just in the right spot.
So after we finished at Linda’s we made our way back to Lucy’s where Tony was waiting for us. We caught the ‘local bus’ to the village – that was interesting! It would seem that the ‘local buses’ are run by husband and wife teams. Before the bus moves off both, but mainly the female, gets as many people on board as they can by simply calling out the name of their final destination. The fare is very cheap and along the way they ‘pick up’ passengers at ‘non’ bus stops. The driver pulls over and the female almost drags the passenger on. Tony told us that this is because they are not really allowed to ‘pick up’ in these places and if someone decides to take a photo of them doing it they could get into a lot of trouble.

We finally arrived in the village, the only non-Chinese around, and everyone looks at us. We just smile and say “Knee how” (obviously not the correct spelling, but that’s how it is said) and means hello. We say it to some people and they giggle or run off to and tell their friend(s) who then all giggle. It’s very strange. They also think we are strange because we always say ‘thank you’ or ‘sha sha’ as it is pronounced – the Chinese don’t bother with little niceties like that.

Anyway, we got on this raft and we both agreed that it would be a wonderful way to spend some time – on a nice day. We were bloody freezing. We had both purchased ‘North Face’ fleece lined waterproof jackets the evening before because it had turned (unseasonably) cold. We both had hats on and we were still cold. But the scenery is breathtakingly beautiful. Tony pointed out some of the lime karsts that had interesting names (they all have names) but it took some stretch of the imagination to appreciate the names given.

We were on the raft for a good hour and when we were dropped off we walked to the next village and caught a bus the rest of the way back to Yangshuo, a good 30 min ride for what amounted to 55 pence

When we got back we went back to Lucy’s and met a British couple, he English and she Irish and both citizens of Jersey who had gotten married in Thailand and were now have a years honeymoon backpacking around the world.

2009-02-28 Friday
Bought a pair of double thickness gloves – I was so cold!

2009-02-29 Saturday
The pick up time for the Cormorant Fishing trip was 7.30pm and it is quite dark by then. The guy collected us from our hotel and we walked down to the river bank and got on a boat. Clearly, the trip is ‘put on’ for the tourist and instead of the traditional bamboo raft there was a motorized boat which our boat drove alongside whilst the cormorants did their ‘stuff’

The trip didn’t turn out to be quite what we were expecting but we did get to see the cormorants doing their bit and at the end of it our boat and the fisherman’s boat pulled up on the river bank and we were able to take photo’s (without them being blurred) and were allowed to hold one of the birds – and at what amounted to £3 each it was a good value for money 45 minutes, all things considered.


2009-03-01 Sunday Ma’s birthday
We went for a bike ride. We hired bikes from the hotel. They were the same size and too small for Paul and a little too big for me. We were going to see a particular lime karst called ‘moon hill’ due to the shape of a hole that goes through it. The map we had said that there was a detour that we could take which was basically a ride along the river. Again the weather was inclement, it was cold and we had intermittent light showers. The map we were following showed that there was a bridge across the river which would then bring us out at moon hill. The first time we thought we had the right place, in we cycled only to be surrounded by hordes of ‘tat’ sellers who really won’t understand the word ‘no’. It gets to a point in the end where you just have to blank them out ‘cos they won’t go away.

The second time we tried, they managed to persuade us that there was no bridge and that we could only get across on a raft. The two of us and our two bikes. That was more than a little scary. The water wasn’t very deep but it was bloody cold and we were a long way from the hotel. The lady that ferried us across took the bikes off us, one at a time, and managed to get them on the raft while we gingerly got ourselves on. The river was only about 20 yards wide so it didn’t take very long but when we got to the other side we very nearly lost one of the bikes into the water! It was quite a relief to get back on terra firma. We continued are ride but by this time I was getting very tired and very saddle sore and very low on blood sugar. We did see the ‘moon hill’ but you had to pay to actually go up to it but as we had to be back for a pick up at 6.40pm we didn’t really have the time to go in and appreciate it. Instead we turned off onto a road opposite which promised local food and headed for Mama Moon’s establishment. The place, at first sight, was not somewhere you would choose to eat but as she was trying to convey the food on offer we got to see her kitchen, which although very shabby was clean, so we decided to stay. What a lovely old lady. We had a long conversation which was kind of hard work, her not speaking a great deal of English and our Chinese vocabulary about 6 words. She actually taught us how to say ‘delicious’ which is pronounced ‘howtoo’ and the other thing was ‘see you next time’ but neither of us can remember that.

The reason we were being picked up at 6.40 pm was to go and see the ‘light show’ which is famous in China. It is a ‘spectacular’ of lights, dancing and music. It does tell a story, something to do which the (now city of) Guilin which started life as a fishing / market village and is about 90 mins up the road (by local bus). There must have been several hundred members of the cast and takes place in an open air ‘theatre’ on a large body of water with the beautifully lit lime karsts as its backdrop – and it rained. We were given one of these ‘use once’ plastic macs which we wound round our legs letting our new jackets keep the top half dry. Again it was bloody cold and I felt really sorry for the cast who didn’t have the benefit of wet weather clothing. This show was written and produced by some very famous Chinese director and goes on every night and lasts for about an hour. It was both impressive and enjoyable and despite the awful weather we are both glad we went.

2009-03-02 Monday
Rice Fields

2009-03-03
Bus ride to Guilin