Elephant Trunk Hill Park 
Our armada of boats cruising up the Li River
Water buffalos were everywhere on the river
Young men hawking their wares as they rafted beside our boat
An old man poses with his "fishing" cormorants on the dock...Leaving Guilin’s airport, we immediately knew we were in southern China: we saw many wheat fields instead of rice paddies, which not were yet ready to harvest…and tens of thousands of acres of vegetable farms. Guilin is promoted by tour guides and tourist pamphlets as a city where they “eat everything with wings but an airplane, and everything with four legs but a table.” Our drive through the city attested to that fact. In front of every restaurant sat tubs and cages that housed that evening’s dinner for many local inhabitants. We saw everything from snakes to cats and dogs. The people of Guilin eat every part of everything that flies and walks.
The monoliths Guilin is famous for finally began to come into view about an hour after our drive began. These uniquely shaped hills are the main reason we are on this segment of the Grand Asia Pacific Regent cruise. In 2002 we attempted to get to Guilin to see the Li River, but our group of 18 was held hostage in the airport at Xiamen. Long story, but we were returned safely to our ship late that day after our Captain refused to leave port without us.
Back to 2008…the Li River finally came into view after about an hour in downtown Guilin! We were treated to the sight of Elephant Trunk Hill Park before we walked along the river to the Sheraton Hotel, another lovely overnight accommodation. Four of us were treated to a fabulous dinner and tea show by Helen Graves. Nick and Gayle Carter from Australia joined us for dinner that night. What a fabulous (non-lazy-Susan) meal of Beijing (we still call it Peking) Duck and Orangey Scallops among several other wonderful dishes. Our dinner was followed by a Chinese waiter asking if we would like tea. He quickly returned with 5 little tea cups complete with those little lids we all know about. As he left again, we took off the lids to discover several dried things looking strangely like potpourri, in the cup, but with no water. Soon he reappeared with what looked like a large oil can with a very long spout wrapped beautifully with crisp white linen. He stood about three feet away, tipped the pot very little, and the water danced into our cups without a drop spilling anywhere. He replaced the lids and told us not to peek for 5 minutes. The lid was to be left ON the cup to keep the jasmine tea leaves and dried fruit safely in the cup for the next refill of boiling water from the long spout. What a show and what flavorful tea it was. We enjoyed that tea for about 30 minutes after dinner.
Next morning we again had a 6 a.m. wakeup call and were soon bussed down river about an hour to board a tour boat for the 4 hour ride on the Li River. Our pamphlet description puts it best: “spectacular landscapes, elegant hills, towering peaks, variegated cliffs, odd shaped crags reflect into crystal clear water.” The river has been overused and so it is quite shallow, but the day was lovely. We saw water buffalo cooling in the river, cormorants, fishermen, farmers delivering food to the long line of vessels we found ourselves in the middle of as we cruised up stream. People lived in shacks, tents, and lean-tos along the edges. We were approached, frequently, by young men and boys coming alongside our tour boat, attempting to sell the passengers their wares and souvenirs. Their mode of transportation was almost always handmade rafts. Many waved from the shoreline and on passing boats…and we will let the photos tell the rest of the story. Next port: Hong Kong where we rejoin the ship.
The monoliths Guilin is famous for finally began to come into view about an hour after our drive began. These uniquely shaped hills are the main reason we are on this segment of the Grand Asia Pacific Regent cruise. In 2002 we attempted to get to Guilin to see the Li River, but our group of 18 was held hostage in the airport at Xiamen. Long story, but we were returned safely to our ship late that day after our Captain refused to leave port without us.
Back to 2008…the Li River finally came into view after about an hour in downtown Guilin! We were treated to the sight of Elephant Trunk Hill Park before we walked along the river to the Sheraton Hotel, another lovely overnight accommodation. Four of us were treated to a fabulous dinner and tea show by Helen Graves. Nick and Gayle Carter from Australia joined us for dinner that night. What a fabulous (non-lazy-Susan) meal of Beijing (we still call it Peking) Duck and Orangey Scallops among several other wonderful dishes. Our dinner was followed by a Chinese waiter asking if we would like tea. He quickly returned with 5 little tea cups complete with those little lids we all know about. As he left again, we took off the lids to discover several dried things looking strangely like potpourri, in the cup, but with no water. Soon he reappeared with what looked like a large oil can with a very long spout wrapped beautifully with crisp white linen. He stood about three feet away, tipped the pot very little, and the water danced into our cups without a drop spilling anywhere. He replaced the lids and told us not to peek for 5 minutes. The lid was to be left ON the cup to keep the jasmine tea leaves and dried fruit safely in the cup for the next refill of boiling water from the long spout. What a show and what flavorful tea it was. We enjoyed that tea for about 30 minutes after dinner.
Next morning we again had a 6 a.m. wakeup call and were soon bussed down river about an hour to board a tour boat for the 4 hour ride on the Li River. Our pamphlet description puts it best: “spectacular landscapes, elegant hills, towering peaks, variegated cliffs, odd shaped crags reflect into crystal clear water.” The river has been overused and so it is quite shallow, but the day was lovely. We saw water buffalo cooling in the river, cormorants, fishermen, farmers delivering food to the long line of vessels we found ourselves in the middle of as we cruised up stream. People lived in shacks, tents, and lean-tos along the edges. We were approached, frequently, by young men and boys coming alongside our tour boat, attempting to sell the passengers their wares and souvenirs. Their mode of transportation was almost always handmade rafts. Many waved from the shoreline and on passing boats…and we will let the photos tell the rest of the story. Next port: Hong Kong where we rejoin the ship.
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