Guilin - Day 1

Today we headed up into the mountains to the visit the terraced fields of Longsheng; this area is populated by the Zhuang and Yao peoples, which are two of the 56 ethnic minorities in China. This also gave us a chance to see some of the countryside.

One of the more interesting trucks seen along the way. This one has an exposed engine.
 

Another interesting vehicle; this three-wheeled vehicle has a couple of benches in the back to carry 4 - 6 passengers.
 

A three-wheeled truck.
 

Some of the terraced fields. Terracing is a way of converting steep hillsides into flat fields suitable for growing crops.
 

Our route became more winding with a lot of switchbacks that larger buses could not navigate so we had to switch from our large tour bus to a couple of smaller buses. When we got off the larger bus we were surrounded by Zhuang and Yao women trying sell us all sorts of goods. They are very aggressive sales people.
 

This Yao woman climbed into our bus and made the rest of the trip with us, attempting to sell her wares while we traveled. The Yao women are known for very long hair. She confirmed that she had long hair, which we kept coiled up in that head covering.
 

Our bus ride soon ended and we started walking through a few villlages to a restaurant for lunch and then on to the top of the mountain.
 

An alternative to walking up the mountain was to ride in one of these chair sedans. For 200 yuan (about $27 U.S.) they would carry you to the top and back. I saw some Chinese opt for this method of transportation, but no Americans. The guys who carry you up and back must have very strong legs.

The view from near the top. The terracing is very extensive.
 

One of the local women returning from working in the fields.
 

This lovely young woman in traditional garb will pose for you for a price - 10 yuan, which is about $1.30 U.S.  I considered that to be a good bargain.
 

After lunch a thunderstorm rolled in while we were still hiking to the top. This is proof that Vern and Sylvia didn't fink out, but made it all the way to the top.
 

Back in Guilin later that afternoon, this little boy came up to Vern, patted him on the belly and said, "Buddha". Then he tried to sell Vern some of the flowers he was carrying.
 

Two-wheeled transportation in Guilin. Motorcycles, mopeds, electric bicycles, and regular bicycles were to be seen everywhere.
 

The fishermen in Guilin train cormorants to fish for them. They go out on these bamboo rafts after dark with three or four cormorants. The cormorants are trained to dive into the Li River to catch fish and bring them back to the raft. The cormorants are allowed to eat the small fish, but they are prevented from swallowing the larger ones by a ring around their necks.
 

This cormorant has a fish in its mouth; you can see the tail sticking out. The fisherman picked the bird up by the neck and forced the fish out and into the tub. The cormorants are prevented from flying away by a long string attached to them.
 

A closer view of a cormorant with a fish sticking out of its mouth. I'm not sure how much fish they catch this way, but they catch a lot of tourists who pay to see the "show".
 

Guilin after dark. These two pagodas are on Fir Lake. The city uses decorative lighting to make it look very beautiful at night. The pagodas are not for religion but are merely for decoration; they were built about 1997 and are empty inside.  But they look very attractive, both at night and during the day.

Tomorrow we take a boat ride on the Li river to see the scenery.