1st Full Day in Guilin, China

Well, it was now Saturday, April 1st, in Guilin. There were Gum Drop Mountains outside our hotel window. And, we realized what fun furniture they had in the lobby of our hotel. When we left the inside of the hotel to get on the bus for the day, the piranhas were there. This is what Alan calls them no matter what country we travel in. They are always there and they are often pretty insistent that you purchase something. If you do buy something, they expect you to purchase again when you return and the next morning when you get up and so on and so on. They do like to haggle about the price in China. It is just sport for them. Not so much for me.

The big adventure for this area was a cruise on the Li River. Here are pictures of the drive through the countryside to get there.

We are always fascinated with the variety of tiny and unusual vehicles. There is lots of bamboo growing in this part of China. The use of it as scaffolding during construction amazed Claude and me. Speaks to the strength of this tree. Did you know it is in the asparagus family? Did you know that in China it also is used to represent man? 

We were now at the Li River. We could get off our bus and board shuttle golf carts to where we would board the boats. These pictures are a few of the scenes along that ride.

We would board our boat at Yangshou. This stretch of the Li River is the most scenic, although every little piece of it I saw was gorgeous with its unusual limestone mountains all along its edges. These mountain are a lot like the 'knobs' in Kentucky and each one seems to have at least one small cave and some have many caves. 

Originally the boats were made of bamboo but they would only support the weight of two people on the water. Someone got the clever idea of using PVC pipe. So the boats are now made of PVC pipe and can support four passengers and the driver of the boat. Hope you enjoy these pictures of our cruise on the Li River.

Now we hiked thru the little community to our bus.

Then the bus drove through the countryside to a Farm & Vegetable Market.

The Market was what Alan called their local Walmart...well, sort of. The first thing we learned about was fake money. During this festival of theirs, they want to wake up their ancestors by setting off firecrackers. They also give them gifts to help with their life on the other side. One of these gifts is fake money which they burn at the grave site. In reality, the Chinese by law are cremated. But in the farming community they will bury them on a spot in their fields or the land around their home. All this land is actually owned by the government, but the farmers are allowed to bury in the ground on this land. The first picture is our first look at the fake money to be burned for their deceased ancestors. Also, note the picture of the meat section of this market. They chop the meat on wooden blocks which appear to never be washed down. No telling how long the meat laid on this counter. And the last picture is a woman selling sugar cane. Growing up in Louisiana, every summer there was sugar cane. All the gas stations would have a bucket out front from which you could purchase a big piece. You just cut a piece off and chewed on it. I never liked sugar cane so I did not taste this. But it was fascinating to those who grow up in the western United States where sugar beets are the main crop for sugar. The market was very interesting and made me appreciate our Walmart even more.

Now another drive to get to our lunch destination. Along the way these are things I noticed.

Claude was totally fascinated with this truck. He kept saying, "I want one." Why? Why, I ask you? It was interesting. When it pulled up beside our bus, I noticed the top of the motor had what appeared to be water boiling and steaming in it. 

This is just a sample of a street sign in Chinese and English. 

Our destination for lunch was the Snow Lion Riverside Resort.  

 

Then another short drive to the Old Man's Home. These people are playing cards or Mahjongg. Often they are gambling. They seemed to really like little short tables and little short chairs.  

The Old Man's Home is over 300 years old. It is kept pretty much as it would have been when originally built. The Old Man cares for his wife and his sister-in-law. 

The door we entered through is part of the original home. The brick wall to the left in the second picture above is new and protects his old home from the highway in front. The second picture is the courtyard of his home.

One of the first things we saw was a stone wheel with a handle to turn it. This was an ancient tofu maker. We were given the opportunity to try our hand at it if we so desired. I did.

In the courtyard we learned about the coat made out of plants. Also that the old man, who is in his 70's, gets his exercise each day with a workout with this 45 pound rock weight he made. Note the ruts in the step to his main living room area. These spots are worn down from rain water dripping on them. This verifies that this is a very old home.

One of the women was chopping and making some kind of food for them in their kitchen. No counter. She just sat this big container on the floor and squatted down to chop. My knees are still killing me thinking of this.

We all tried to crowd into the main living area. This room is really like a shrine with his ancestors pictures and things across from the entry door. On the wall to the left are banners with the different ways Chinese characters showing how they have changed over the years. Many young people who learn the most recent version cannot even read the original version. The Old Man keeps a big glass jar full of critters (snake, bugs, etc.) and some type of liquid. It all just ferments and he drinks from it weekly or monthly to keep himself going. He calls it the 'Elixir of Life'. He actually took a big swig of it in a shot glass. Then he sang us a song to Chairman Mao and cheered. Amazing.

To the left of this room was the bedroom. It has two compartments like this that serve as their beds. It is simply a wooden platform (no springs or foam here) on which is placed a mat that is stuffed. This mat is aired out regularly in the sun and placed back on the wood at the end of the day for them to sleep on again. There were no closets. A big trunk sized box at each end of the room was the only furnishing. Keeping it simple I tell you. Keeping it simple.

We strolled through the home and out into their storage in the back and then back through another room. In this room was located a casket. While one might find this a little odd, I re-read Pearl Buck's book 'The Good Earth' as we traveled. I was reminded that these farmers found comfort in knowing the casket was purchased and ready and it was a good one for their burial or a family member's burial.

The final event for this day was a cultural show on the Li River near where we took our cruise down the Li River. This was all in Chinese but James told us the story so we could follow along. The play was done on the river and we sat in nice chairs up the side of the river. The story was of a girl and a boy and how they became a couple. The man who created the play is the same man that created the opening ceremonies for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. He is from this area and wanted to give back to his community. This nice theater area along the river was built, her wrote the play, and there you have it. There were lots of performers and movement on the banks of the river as well as in the river. The Gum Drop Mountains around the river would be lit up at different times. It was truly spectacular. No photography allowed. But trust me, it was worth the price of admission. 

Now time for some rest before our final full day in Guilin.