Guangxi

“Ah Jie, I tell you the saying that we have about the ethnic minorities of Guilin,” Xiaohuang was keen to introduce me to the territorial politics of the province, “ages ago, the different ethnicities fought for land. It is said that those who won the …

Guilin, in Chinese, means “a grove of osmanthus.” The osmanthus is, therefore, in every way representative of Guilin. From the way that osmanthus trees wave fragrance in their native habitat, to the way that its tiny yellow flowers perfume in coffee, the osmanthus stands tall …

My family wanted to visit Guilin for their biannual trip. Unlike my last trip to Guilin, which was a solo adventure in the same year, I had to plan for a group of five adults. There are two older members of the family. As such, …

One Last Look at Xingping There was no need to get breakfast as eating breakfast is not my habit, but I was craving for one last good experience in Xingping. I would be leaving a little after lunch that day. At that hour of the …

At the hotel I inquired about a private car ride to take me to Xianggong Shan for sunrise viewing. After a day, I was told that there would be no one else to join me on this ride, and therefore I would be fully responsible …

Li River was always known and praised for its beauty. The Yellow Cloth Shoal, a scene of the karst peak clusters at the Li River, is featured on the RMB 20 yuan bank note. It brings the Li River to the fore of China’s national …

The fishermen of Xingping had engaged in the cormorant in their fishing practices for centuries. This very special practice has drawn many interested tourists and I was keen to see it when I went to Xingping. There are two options in terms of boat rides …

In the morning I inquired with the hotel staff the possibility of maybe joining a half-day tour to see the Silver Caves. To my surprise, (and this really is very surprising to me), the hotel staff advised me not to join those tours. They said …

I did not get to try the beer fish in Huangyao and so I was very keen to try it in Yangshuo. Indeed, when I just arrived in Yangshuo, I saw all these restaurants claiming to be beer fish specialists. That would be my dinner …

I was only spending one day in Yangshuo and by the afternoon I had decided to take it easy. The boat tour of Lijiang River would be departing soon at 3pm on Binjiang Road, so I hurried to the pier. This 1.5-hour boat ride will …