Gui Lin
Yang Shuo w/ "Little House"
Yang Shuo
Moon Hill in Yang Shuo
Gui Lin
Quick update on my adventures in China:
Hong Kong: roamed around on the train, made my way to SoHo, went to a jazz show and hopped across the street to play at an open mic. Met some people (a girl from hong kong, a couple guys from the states, a girl from new zealand), headed to a pub in Wan Chai and hung out there until about 5 in the morning. Hong Kong stays up late! The next day I found my friends with whom I had planned to travel to Gui Lin, Yang Shuo, and ultimately Shanghai. We found a hotel and went out to the Mainland at night, stayed out too long and woke up late the next morning. Not too late though、thankfully. We made it to the airport with a little time to spare.
Flew to Gui Lin, which was very beautiful. We met the coolest tour guide, Effie, and befriended her. She took us around to a bunch of wonderful sight seeing spots and temples. The mountains are the most noticeable feature. They are narrow and skinny, and there is one range after the other, so that the horizon is filled with layers of their curious sillhouettes. Effie stayed with us after the tour to have dinner, since we were buddies now. She explained that in some Chinese provinces, it is customary for friends to offer each other meals of dog meat, and that friends commonly call each other "dog meat" as a sign of affection. So we were dog meats now, and we had a great time at dinner (an interesting restaurant that operates in a window-shopping manner), and also perusing the night market booths. She laughed at me when I got ripped off. She gleefully recited her knowledge of American curse words, gleaned from our movies.
We slept at the hotel (7 of us, Todd, Nora, Dana, Danika, Megan, Mallory, and myself. Todd facilitated most of the trip), and took a river cruise to Yang Shuo the next day, which was more rustic, and even more beautiful, than Gui Lin. We biked to Moon Mountain, a mountain with a big built-in arch. I should have asked how that happened. I'm really curious now. Bike rides have been extremely satisfying each time during my adventures. I love bikes. Now you know. I guess they have always been fun. My bike riding partners, you know who you are. Let's ride when I get back.
We hung out at the hostel that night, a lively place called Monkey Jane's. It was the kind of hostel you always hope for: Fun, friendly, interactive, and with a cool owner who has a weird name like Monkey Jane. Strange she was. I met a Chinese girl from Hunan province playing the Asian version of hacky sack, her name translates to Little House, which is funny because I always used to eat at House of Hunan after my first job doing data entry at Smith Travel in Easton (no longer in existence, not my fault I hope). Not a huge coincidence, but there I was in Yang Shuo, hanging out with the real live Little House of Hunan. There was a guitar around, music was played, friends were made, and life is good. Shanghai wasn't too exciting, it's ridiculously huge and I never really got a feel for it. Met a cute baby in a restaurant at least.
Now I'm in an internet cafe in Tokyo, I'll let you know how all this goes when I get to reflect a bit. Staying in a capsule hotel tonight, heading to the fish market tomorrow. Kobe homestay was amazing. Stay tuned, pictures coming soon.
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