Longji Rice Terraces

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After hiking for four hours and I know to some of you hardened mountain goats this may not seem a lot, but with the humidity and uphill most of the way, it sure did burn a few calories. It must be one of the most amazing views I have ever seen walking along rice terrace which are 800 meters high in a Zhuang Village that is 600 years old. Each rice terrace is hand carved into the mountain causing a striated effect hence its name of Dragon back mountains. The water flows from one terrace into another, so not only do you have the rich colour of the rice about to be harvested but you also have the glistening of the water. A truly majestic view, a view I would love to see in winter in the snow.

We also had one of the most entertaining nights out in Longi, we went down to the local hang out and had a few beers, minding our own business when a local lady who we later nicknamed as Margaret challenged the tallest lad (from Sheffield) in our group to a “down down” competition, now anyone who has drunk Tsingtao beer understands how large the bottle is.. Needless to say Margaret put “Sheffield” to shame and received such delight from this that she continued to challenge him throughout the night, “Sheffield didn’t feel so good in the morning! It was a night of competitions, how it happened I’m not sure but we ended up having a singing contest with the locals, I’m ashamed to say we lost as the only thing we could agree on to sing was “God Save the Queen” with everyone only knowing the first line. Humiliation once again.. Nevertheless a fantastic night out.

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