Guilin

Many peaks along Li River.  Had many interesting names that goes with the shape.

There were stings of cruise boats along the river.  They were double deckers each with about 80 passengers.  We were on a foreigner section on top.  

Makeshift kitchen in the rear of the boat.  They offered deep fried fresh fish for extra cost.  We wondered where they got fresh water for cooking.  Needless to say the food wasn't good.

It was drizzling most of our way down the river.  The cloud cover provided additional dimension to the scenic beauty.

 
We thought at first they were fishermen.  Later they latched on to our boat wanting to sell what was in the basket.  I couldn't tell what they were trying to sell.







Back to the natural beauty, with only one day in Xian, we flew to Guilin that late afternoon. Guilin is located in the southern part of China and is known for its scenic Li River which flows through beautiful moguls and mountains. On our schedule was a river boat cruise lasting four hours, cable car ride to the top of a mountain (unfortunately the visibility was so poor at the top due to the rain and so we quickly came right back down), and an outdoor evening show (by the famed Zhang Yimou who produced the Olympics ceremony) with the natural mountain and river as the back drop. Like the spectacular opening ceremony, we saw a glimpse of his grandiose production that evening.

Guilin was memorable for meeting a Korean couple in their late 60’s who lived in the southwest corner of Korea. They were farmers and had just finished harvesting the rice; this meant a long winter respite. They were visiting their daughter who lived in Shanghai; who, in turn, was treating them to a 3 day vacation in Guilin. After spending a most pleasant 4 hours conversing with them, they extended a warm invitation for us to visit and stay with them when we get back to Korea.