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Published: October 28th 2007
Our ongoing search for somewhere to sit out the week of National Day (which was already half over) next took us to Dazhai, via 4 bus journeys and a 50 yuan entry fee to the region. The area is known for its population of Zhuang tribespeople as well as some famous rice terracing. Some of the Dazhai guesthouse owners clearly had a Yangshuo mentality and tried to charge ludicrous amounts for the (very basic) rooms they had but we found a room in a place with the cleanest shared bathrooms in the village, with an added bonus being the hot water was immediate and steaming.
There are definitely only so many rice terraces you can see in 1 year without becoming inured to their charms and, as we hiked up to one of the many viewpoints overlooking the village and the valley it sits in, I found myself more impressed by the stamina of the local guys whose employment was carting infirm/lazy tourists up and down the hillsides in sedan chairs.
The Zhuang women had a highly distinctive look, with extremely long hair coiled around their heads and heavy lobe-stretching silver earrings. In fact one of the settlements nearby
boasted it was the longest-haired village in the world, by whatever criteria such things are measured. We were accosted by many Zhuang women in Dazhai, who all seemed to have their fingers in many pies. If we didn't want them to carry our bags for us, then maybe we'd like to stay at their guesthouse? Or eat at their restaurant? Or buy some of their handicrafts? In fact it was strange just how many guesthouses there were in the place, not to mention those under construction, as though it had been created specifically for tourism rather than had grown organically.
However with both of us needing Internet so that we could research our plans for the end of the month, 2 nights later we were headed for Sanjiang.
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