The next morning we check out the map of the national park and realize so far we have seen roughly 25% of the must-see sights along the forked valley. We decide to grab a bus and skip past the area we saw yesterday. I’m starting to feel better. I don’t know the nameRead more
Jing takes me to a place for some Sichuan food and it was eye-opening. I guess I kind of was not getting the real Sichuan experience while there. This beef soup didn’t avoid the fat, it embraces it. Thin fatty strips of beef just dissolved as I slurped it down, and those chillies brought theRead more
Date with a Panda Jing scores some tickets to actually hang out with a panda at the research base. The weather is also more tame, so we decide to spend the day there. School field trip. Normally they use the young pandas for this, because they ARE bears and have teethRead more
I like to splurge and get a decent, relaxing hotel for the end of each stretch of travel. This hotel was booked based on US hotel pricing and I guess that goes a long way in China. Here’s an idea of what you get for $200/night (at least in Yangshuo in 2010). The place wasRead more
Video shot early in the morning as I was woken up by the sounds no one can escape from in China: construction. April 16 River Cruise Feeling a bit better, we take another trip through the mountains. Again, I have no idea what river this is or what section. I think the first river wasRead more
Nope. Not Today. The morning of the 15th, I was just too sick to do anything. Plans, whatever they were, had to be cancelled. I’m not sure what Jing did that day. I just slept. Went out a bit at night to get some food. Just a few shots from the hotel balcony.Read more
Arriving in Yangshuo It was a 3 hour bus ride from Longsheng, back south past Guilin, and into to the Yangshuo valley, where the Jingbao and Lijiang Rivers meet. This is the spot people where the scenic dome-like mountains reside, the ones people typically think of when Guilin is mentioned. We arrived the night ofRead more
Sunshine in Longshen The next morning the clouds begin to lift and for the first time I’m experiencing direct sunlight and full blue skies in China. It’s getting hot, and I’m getting a bad cold. We head down the walkway that leads to the main road we entered theRead more
Passing through Guilin I really didn’t get to see much of the city. Jing and I left Chengdu late in the evening and didn’t even realize our hotel was right across from the river until we checked out the next morning. We check out and catch a bus line that takes us to the mountainsRead more
Traditional Brunch Met up with Jing for what I was told was a traditional Sichuan meal. It is obviously lacking in the spicy peppers. It was this day that I just figured I would lose a ton of weight in China – I just was not catching on to this type of food. Read more
Off to Jinli Street A bit jet-lagged and culture-shocked, my first morning starts out by being picked up in a cab by my guide and new friend Jing (English name Catherina). We head to Jinli Ancient Street, one of the restored commercial neighborhoods dating back to the Shu Kingdom (221-263). It’s a bit of a popularRead more