Day 28 - Yangshuo Li River Boat - Guilin,

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It was refreshing to wake up in a tropical resort in a tropical rain shower. The previous night we went for a swim after the hoard of 80+ Shanghai American School students had their pool party, so we felt somewhat energised. I am not too sure who runs the Yangshuo Resort Hotel, but it is a foreign style Banyan Tree wannabe type hotel with all the amenities but none of the expertise. It seems to be the Shanghai expat weekend retreat, which is probably a good reason to avoid it. My room has an amazing bath in the center of the room, but I am missing my $20 dollar room at the Dong Village with it's water faucet and riverside views.

We headed for the lovely Yangshuo West Street, and got on a river raft down the Li River, passing the glorious Karst Peaks on the river bank. I felt as if we had crossed the border into Vietnam and were drifting along the Mekong. The locals here had Vietnamese features and in the rain, the atmosphere was bathed in Sepia.

We had lunch at West Street, Yangshuo, at a place called Meiyou Cafe, and then hopped in the cars for the short journey to Guilin. Checking into the Guilin Inn, we headed for the night cruise on the Two Rivers and Four Lakes in Guilin Central, a tacky and almost tasteless ride that reminded us of "It's a small World" at Disneyland.

Stocking up on snacks at a local supermarket, we retired for the night early in preparation for the 820km drive to Nanchang tomorrow. Our journey is coming to an end, but we still have a few tricks up our sleeve.

We have covered over 8,200 km in just 28 days, the equivalent of flying from HK to London. I feel I could just keep going, and do the whole world. If only I had the luxury of time and money... Still, the dream will come to and end next Monday when I'll have a National Day Holiday to formulate a plan for next year's roadtrip. Ideas include "In search of Shangri-La", to "Tibetan Odyssey", to "Mongolian Mojo". I'll welcome any reader ideas.

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Comments

[Kuan Yin]

Mongol Rally
There is always the London - Ulan Bator non-race for charity. Or the Budapest to Bamako Great African Run. Both sound like grand fun.

[Home and Away]

If this trip has inspired you to travel the world this way then you must read...
Adventure Capitalist by Jim Rogers (about $10 at Amazon). He drove a modified Mercedes sport car to every continent except Antarctica. An amazing journey!

[The Great China Roadtrip]

Jim Rogers
Yes, I met him a couple of times in Singapore. His yellow SLK with the big wheels and trolley cart was a bit of a cheat though. Not really an inspiration for me. One Chinese self made millionaire, Huang Nubo is inspirational though. He has climbed 7 of the world's tallest peaks and walked to both the North and South Poles. He writes poetry, and lives life to the fullest.