Cycling Around Yangshuo

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I joined the 4 hour boat cruise along the stunning Li River from Guilin to Yangshuo. One the way I passed breathtaking landscapes. I passed limestone cliffs towering out of the river which were covered in tropical rain forest. The views were stunning, my photos just can't do the scenery justice.

We have just returned to our guest house after cycling across Yangshuo on Mountain bikes. It was very muddy because of the tropical rainstorm's. I have not been covered in mud like this since I was a kid. It was very slippery, I lost control of my mountain bike several times. It was really good fun.

While cycling around Yangshuo, locals would point and stare, shouting things in Chinese that I have no idea what they were saying. We got completely lost, cycling for 7 hours through rice paddies, farms, a brand new motorway that has not opened, and a small Chinese town that seemed to be still living in the dark ages. The landscapes and scenery were beautiful, we got a lot of strange looks, but the local farmers and villagers were friendly.

While cycling around Yungshao we often get the strangest reactions. It usually involves pointing and staring. Its great fun trying to talk to people who have absolutely no idea what you are saying to them. They seem to shout louder and louder at us, like that's going to get us anywhere! Its quite challenging - I love it!

Of course you can't travel independently without another insane incident. We managed to stumble across our very first hostile, which grabbed hold of Glyn while the six of us cycled through a small town while refusing to pay his bribe for safe passage.

Our friends John and Jo managed to get Glyn out of the shit by shouting at this nutcase. It was a full on argument without anyone understanding what the other was saying. It ended with the local bitch slapping Jo, so John threw the nutcase to the ground while some local lads held the nutter as he threw hysterical kung-fu kicks everywhere.

Where was I while all this was happening? While I got completely lost trying to find my way back to help Glyn. For the first time I was not involved and completely missed all of the action - Gutted!

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