Blogs from Ping An, Guangxi, China, Asia

Ich starte Dienstag 8.00 Uhr Richtung Longsheng. Ab jetzt an habe ich mich allem überflüssigen Gepäck entledigt und starte in mein temporäres Backpacking Leben. Beim Einstieg in mein wenig vertrauenserweckendes Reisevehikel entdecke ich, dass ich das erste Mal deutsche und luxemburgische Reisebekanntschaft habe. Die 2 Stunden Busfahrt vergehen dadurch etwas schneller und man tauscht sich über die bisherigen Reiseerfahrungen aus. Ich habe mir eigentlich vorgenommen direkt zu meinem Hostel durchzustarten, lasse mich von Martin und Julia aber überreden mit Ihnen die Tageswanderung anzubrechen. Der erste Eindruck ist beeindruckend. Ich habe das Gefühl ich betrete hier das Paradies. Reisterassen und ursprüngliche Holzdörfer so weit das Auge reicht. Wir starten Richtung Golden Peak und ich komme unterwegs nicht vorbei eine wild gewachsene Zuckerart zu probieren (das gelbe Zeugs auf dem Foto... read more

Zobudil som sa bez problemov,zbaleny som este zo vcera.Nerobim moc rozruchu nech spaniela nebudim.Pred agenturou mam byt 7/10 ale som tam radsej uz 6/40.Davam si ranajky,parok v crievku zajedam sladkym pecivom zo supermarketu.7/20 nikde nikoho,volam do agentury,nik neberie. 7/30 prichadza auto,mavaju na mna,nasadam,na bus stanici prestupujeme do riadneho busu.Sprievodca vychvaluje sofera aky je super dobry vodic.som zvedavy.je tu dost cudzincov,nemci,izraelci,francuzi.nebavim sa s nimi,ocuvam mp3,sprievodca hovori cinsky,do anglictiny preklada len nezbytne info.cesta nezazivna,stojime na pumpe na pispauzu..Vsade v cine su zachody zadarmo.V mestach su kazdych cca 500m. Konecne dorazame na terasy.Je to tu masovy turizmus.Nakladaju nas do miestneho busu,stojime v prvej dedine,je tu predstavenie zien,ukazuju svoje dlhe vlasy a hraju predstavenia z bezneho zivota ludi v tejto ob... read more

Ping An (a Zhuang village) is slightly more touristy than Dhazi but I really enjoyed it there and stayed an extra night. There are lots of narrow winding streets in the village with cafes and bars. My favorite was the Coffee House Restaurant great food and beer and friendly owners. There are a couple of excellent lookout posts with wonderful views and on the second day I hiked around 10k to another village up the valley and back. It’s an easy bus ride back to Guilin and you get dropped off at the bus depot opposite the train station. ... read more

Day 136: Monday, April 12th, 2010. Chengyang to Ping An (Longji Terraces), China. Per Intrepid Notes, "Days 18-19 Longji Terraces After we return to Sanjiang by private transfer (approx. 1 hour), our journey continues by local bus, as we cross the ancestral home of many of Southeast Asia's minority hilltribes to reach the Longji Valley (approx. 6 hours). Known as the Dragon's Backbone, this region is a remarkable feat of engineering, with rice terraces covering entire mountainsides. On arrival in Longji, we embark on an uphill trek (approx. 30 mins) to our guesthouse in a small hillside village. Our family-run wooden guesthouse is clean and twin-share. Most rooms have private bathrooms.

On day 19 we take a day-long hike through the Longji Valley to visit local hilltribe communities and learn about village life. Expe... read more

(still more photo issues, give me a break!) Taking a bus from Guilin to Longshen and then from Longshen to Ping'an seemed like a big pain in the arse, but meeting a Spanish couple who spoke Mandarin on the bus definitely made things easier! The road to Ping'An is interesting to say the least, a zigzag on a mountain edge and nothing but the odd bamboo to keep us on, the driver was however not as much of a nutcase as others and the road was good. Judit sorted us out with a room for 15yuan a night (just over a pound!) But we were too scared to use the shower and the beds were rocks (Alex also had the nice additon of a pink, frilly, satin number for a pillow in his room!) Nora and ... read more