TUESDAY, MAY 19TH - GUILIN - FIRST DAY

Guilin Beer



Guilin Cave

Guilin Cave

Guilin Entrance

Guilin Cave

Guilin cave

Guilin Cave reflections

Guilin Cave

Guilin Cave

Guilin Opera

Guilin Bed

Geri in Guilin bed

TUESDAY, MAY 19TH - GUILIN - FIRST DAY
Guilin is located in Guangri Province. Guilin is called a shining jewel in this area. It is a city hemmed in by a mesmerizing forest of Limestone Mountains which is one of the areas geological marvels. More than 1/2 of the provinces population is ethnically Zhuang and the area is called a "Zhuang Autonomous Region". According to local legend, "It doesn't go for more than three days without raining and there is hardly a square meter of flat land." These conditions are who the province has historically been dismissed as an irrelevant, impoverished backwater but it is just these drawbacks for locals that make it so spectacular for tourists. Guilin was once a walled city and much of it was destroyed by the Japanese in WWII. It was recosntructed in 1999 so much of the city is ten years old or newer.During our drive from the airport we got our first glimpse of these amazing craggy rock formations. It was foggy with a light rain so they looked just like they do in traditional Chinese paintings they were often see. This is an area of weird and wonderful rocks. The solitary beauty peak, Duxiu Feng) stands alone right in the middle of the city. Our guide is Tina and she is delightful and very knowledgeable about the area as she grew up here and still lives here with her family. She is 27 and single. She is of the Zhuang minority people. Except for going to college in Beijing, she has not traveled to other parts of China. She has a cousin, who she calls her brother, who lives in San Francisco and she hopes to be able to visit him someday. She lives in an apartment that was bought by her mother. Three generations live here in a 120 meter space. They have 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 kitchen and 1 sitting room. She owns a bicycle but not a motor scooter. She takes public transportation to get to work as a tour guide. The Zhuong Minority is the biggest minority in China. Her father was a Han but since he was educated, he was forced to the Guilin area by the government for re-education - he met her mother here. Her father hated Mao and the Communist Party. Her mother lost her job after giving birth to her third daughter. Tina: wangqunyan123@yahoo.com.cnWe were treated to a trip through the most beautiful cave in the area which is called the REED FLUTE CAVE. This cave is 500 meters long and very wide and tall with many caverns filled with huge stalactites and stalagmites in it. It was fascinating to walk through it and it took about 45 minutes. They have very cleverly put colored lights throughout the cave and our guide pointed out the formations that looked like animals, vegetables and even The Statue of Liberty! Back at the hotel, we tried to use the Sheraton's WIFI but apparently China Telecom was down so we couldn't get onto the web. I am back to writing a paper journal until tomorrow when I will post this!