I spent a total of 3 nights in Lijiang and for most of that time I just hung around the guesthouse talking to some of the other Chinese guests and enjoyed walking around the old town in the evening. The best bit for me was the range of food on offer which I made the most of and even had KFC a couple of times. The downside was the amount of tourists, by far the most I have seen in China, and how jampacked the small streets became in the nightime. I found that it didn't really hold much value for me as a tourist but it was a nice place to take it easy for a couple of days and recuperate. On my last full day in Lijiang I caught a bus about 10 km ... read more

I caught the 8.30am bus to Songpan, a town 300kms north of Chengdu and only 100kms from Jiuzhaigou Nature Reserve. The trip took about 7 hours and I found it quite interesting following the river and passing near the epicentre of the devestating 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Most of the towns that were destroyed are full of new housing with only some remnants to be seen, including a few bridges that had collapsed which they haven't done anything about. The other interesting part was a definate tibetan feel the further we got from Chengdu which was reflected in the houses as well as the people. Arriving in Songpan and seeing the renovated city walls and temples I was worried that it might turn out to be another Chinese tourist town, but after going for a walk I ... read more

After arriving back in Kaili after a disappointing night in Chong An I hopped straight on the bus bound for the Miao tourist town/village of Xijiang. The trip took about an hour passing some nice scenery along the way and then we were dropped off at the entrance gate at the top of the hill. I paid the $16 entry fee and joined about 100 Chinese tourists to have a look from the viewpoint over the town. The view was pretty good and after taking a few photos of the Chinese tourists dressed in traditional clothes I walked down the hill, across the river and eventually found a nice room in the main street above a candy shop for $11 a night. That night whilst I was having dinner at a cheap barbecue place I started ... read more

Last thursday morning I left my hotel in Ping An very early and walked down the hill in the rain to the carpark to catch the bus to Longsheng. The bus was on time but we had to wait about 30 minutes for some passengers that had been at a large wedding in town and were a little late getting up. It was an enjoyable 40 minute trip and the guy I had been sitting next to showed me the bus to get on for Sanjiang. We left right away and it took only an hour and a half to arrive at the Sanjiang bus station. A couple of the things I have noticed in China is the number of bridges they have, and also how much cement is being used for government works as well ... read more

My flight to Guangzhou went fine and I arrived about 8pm. After asking a few people I hopped on the right bus to take me into the city, and from the bus station I caught a taxi the last couple of kilometres to my hostel. The hostel was very modern with drinks and food available, and my 6 bed dorm room was fine. I also liked the location, just a short 8 cent ferry ride across the river to Shamien Island and a 15 cent ferry ride to the main part of town. On my first full day I just walked around the city area and Shamien Island. It was a pleasure watching the older people enjoying themselves in the park, dancing, singing, and exercising. The following day I caught the impressive underground to a large ... read more