After classes finished I headed off to Shanghai with Aaron.  He is new to China so I accompanied him to Shanghai before his flight to Thailand for classes and then our annual conference.  I did meet up with my old student and good friend, Fiona, for a couple of meals and some good English practice.  (Her's not mine.)  Aaron left the day after we arrived and since I didn't need to be in Thailand for another week I thought I would make my way south to China's most beautiful destination: Guilin.  Who wouldn't want to go?  It was only a short 28 hour train ride away.  And since I just enjoyed my 13 hour ride from my hometown I couldn't see why not. 

 

Guilin is located in one of China's southern most provinces.  It is probably visited by a few million people each year.  I would definitely stay clear of it during either of the National holidays or the spring festival, which starts tomorrow so if you are there then get out.  But the Chinese people all rate it as the second most beautiful place in China.  (Foreigners like to use that rule where you drop the highest score when rating things here.  I think it comes from figure skating or diving or something.  But the best things in China tend to be the best to that particular person because of some relationship they have to it.  You know, like your parents being the best.  We are all a little biast so if we add up everyone's second choice then we will probably come away with an excellent choice, right?)  So, it must surely be the most beautiful.  And since I have lived in China for three years then I figured it was a good choice for one last mid-year visit. 

 

Little did I know there is a strange swirling of the jet stream 41 hours south of my city by train.  Apparently somewhere during those 41 hours we crossed into the twilight zone because when I arrived in Guiling it was rediculously cold.  It was colder than Shanghai and my home city which was farther north still.  In fact, the yellow river that draws the east-west line in China for places with heat and no heat is just 30 minutes away from my apartment.  That is how far north I live.  Guiling on the other hand is just a few hours drive from the Vietnam border.  And yet there I was.  Lugging my two back packs (I carry one in the front) through the streets of Guilin wearing shorts and a t-shirt looking for a place to stay the night. 

 

I assumed it was cold because it was night when I arrived.  I was wrong.  It was just cold.  I was there three days and it never got warmer.  Apparently it was a strange occurance because all of the places that I tried to stay didn't have heat either.  The one room I stayed in the longest was actually the coldest.  I could see my breath in the room the whole time whether it was daytime or night time.  It was cold. 

 

Did I mention I was on my way to Thailand and thought I would just stop through?  Yeah, warm stuff was left behind.  I had one pair of jeans and a thin jacket.  Everything else was shorts and t-shirts.  I would have to say that it was one of the most miserable trips I have ever experienced.  I would love to blame the terrible weather for all of this but it could have also been the long train ride or the fact that I was traveling alone for my first time in China.  Pain is always a little less painful when you can share it with someone.  Or maybe it is more bearable because you are more willing to carry it for the sake of the other. 

 

Ok, I am done complaining.  Guilin was a beautiful place.  It rained all three days I was there as you can see in the photos.  It was foggy most of the time so I didn't get those beautiful pictures I had hoped to get.  The weather took away my ability to take photos that really showed how beautiful it was but I was able to see the beauty firsthand.  Int the pictures you can see the reason for the beauty.  There are hundreds of those little karst mountains in every direction.  They fill the horizon no matter where you go.  It makes for a good time.  Be prepared to bargain your socks off.  The people there deal with tourists every day and will give you the good foreigner price any chance they get.  One of the famous things in this area is the bird fishing.  I have some shots of the little men on their rafts with two little birds.  These birds dive for fish.  So the locals tie a string around their necks so they can't swallow the catch and go out fishing with them.  It is really impressive.  After a hard days work they will untie the string and give the birds a treat for their hard work. 

 

Sorry I didn't have more photos.  I was literally huddled in my bed most of the time.  I am soft like that.  But if you are reading this then you probably already know that.  Next stop, Chiang Mai, Thailand.