Bipedal Fleet (still no pics)

Kayaking, biking, and now hiking. The stretch of the Li River we biked was fun and beautiful, but not knock-your-socks-off so. The other really scenic area is the stretch of the Li River *north* of Yangshuo from Yangdi to Xingping. When solo, I had planned on taking a river cruise over this stretch, but everyone else was keen on hiking it, and this seemed fine by me. This stretch of river is famous since the scence on the 20-yuan bill comes from it.

This is what I had been waiting for. Mountains, sheer mountains, springing from the river, narrow valleys filled with fields of flowers and orchards. The sun made a surprise appearance. The air was humid and laden with scent. We walked through bamboo groves, leaves drifting down in the fresh breeze, smelling of fall, the stalks clacking together in the wind, adding a rhythm to the melody of rustling leaves, through terraced hills and ancient cemetries, took ferries across the river, walked the stones by the river and the dirt paths through villages, had drinks and rested in the shade of a small restaurant, talked phyiscs, language, and culture. Of course, we also ate everywhere and everything. Tao treated us to some sugar cane. You take a bite, chew on it, and spit it out. Oops. My first couple days in China, sugar cane was served to me at breakfast. Thinking it was bamboo, I ate it. That was probably a good laugh for the kitchen staff. Torben, from Germany, commented that at least I got my fiber.

We stopped to take pictures from the "20 yuan"-spot. Several people were selling food. One type was a green, glutinous rice patty filled with almond paste. Very good, very local. The final stretch of road back to the bus stop in Xingping was again the lovely, shocking, exhilirating mishmash that is China: school kids in clean uniforms walking home, more buffalo being led back from the fields by octogenarians, more be-wheeled things of all kinds, more vendors hawking food and rides, bamboo, mountains glimpsed through bamboo, homes being built, homes collapsing, rich people, incredibly poor people. I saw one woman, maybe 30, who looked so...used, shell-shocked by life. Every street contains everything and its opposite: duality incarnate. (Er, wait a second, what's the opposite of duality, unity? I guess there was that too, in an old man and little boy laughing together as the little boy spun out his bike.)

Riding the bus back from Xingping to Yangshuo, I realize this is the way to see a place, just lazing down a backroad. Again, the mountains in the mist. But this was ridge after ridge of them, fading into the distance. When you squinted you could just make out more peaks beyond and the hint of ones even further. Evening was falling with its brisk bite, but the days warmth remained as I opened my window and the smells and breeze surrounded me.

After cleaning up, we went out for dinner. Xue picked a local spot by one of the streams through Yangshuo. By "local" I mean tables set up under an awning next to a barbecue street vendor. But this is the way to do it. We got Guilin rice noodles (local dish), kabobs, and beer. We're still not clear on where they cooked the noodles. Red lanterns were hung from the old tree leaning over the river, next to the arched foot bridge. The sound of an intermittent erhu mixed with the TV half-way down the block blaring Chinese (American) Idol. People strolled by in the night while we stuffed ourselves silly on good food, good drink, and good company.

I got a little sad during our hike. I knew Torben and Erika were heading out the next day, and I needed to move on myself, to Tibet. So it was going to back to traveling by myself, figuring out just how I was going to get there, wondering what food I had just ordered, guessing bus and cab fares. But then after dinner, it turns out Xue and Tao and Torben and Erika were all taking the same train to Kunming: the former because they live there, the latter because they want to see the border with Vietnam. Since Kunming is one of the gateways to Tibet, they invited me a long. Nice. Killed about 19 birds with that stone. So, sleeping in tomorrow, the bus to Guilin, then the overnight train to Kunming. Then I'll make travel arrangements to Tibet with local assistance and we'll head up to Lijiang, near Shangri-la, for some more sight-seeing.

It was nice to see the sun today. Perhaps I'll soon see the stars. I saw Venus once, at sunset in Shanghai, but no more. And back into the cold. Lijiang is at 10,000 feet. Good preparation for Tibet.

Wan an,

Dan