We left the hotel in Shanghai and it was quite strange to say goodbye to most of the group that was still around and had a few days left in Shanghai before going back to their homes or travelling onwards. All of a sudden we were going from a large group of 15 to a small and intimate group of 8. As we were driving to the airport, we couldn’t help but think of some of the personalities we were leaving behind and could only wish them well on their future travels and life adventures. We are sure we will still keep in touch with some of the group and visit some of them during our travels to Europe.
Our flight to Guilin was very pleasant as most of us were exhausted from the night before and just needed some sleep and rest. We had been told in advance that Longsheng was a city of outstanding scenery with rice terraces cascading down the hillsides in every direction. We were going to stay in Longsheng for two nights, one night in the village of Ping’an and one in the village of DaZai. We were all looking forward to being able to wind down and enjoy the quieter and greener side of China and to our trek through the rice paddy fields. (Above picture – Rock a bye babies….)We arrived in Ping’an, the village we were staying at the first night, at around 8pm at night. It was rather dark when we arrived and it had been raining on and off. As we got off the bus, a large group of “small” women (some rather old) were anxiously waiting for us to help us with our bags. These ladies were utterly amazing. Some of them must have been in their 50’s, if not 60’s, yet they each grabbed one of our bags with no hesitation, threw them on their backs, and lugged our stuff up quite a steep and long climb up to the actual village. Jess had informed us that this was their way of earning a little extra cash for their families and that they did this with all tour groups that come to the village. Chris and I, like most of the other group, felt quite bad having these older women carry our bags for us but at the same time were in awe that they could do this so effortlessly and that most of them were beating the rest of us (who had no bags to carry) up the hillside. It was one of those things where you felt badly for having them do this but at the same time knew the reason behind why they were doing it and couldn’t help but respect them for it. We finally reached the top and walked into the Li Qing III Guesthouse and boy were we surprised.
Chris and I weren’t expecting too much in the means of accommodation in Longsheng but luckily enough what we got ended up surpassing anything we could have imagined. We were staying in one of three buildings that the Li Qing family had built themselves, this one being the newest of them all. We walked into a wooden lodge and we momentarily felt like we were in Whistler minus the snow. The place was immaculate, very homely and very quiet as we had the complete lodge to ourselves this first night. We were ushered to our rooms where once again we were happily surprised. Our rooms were FANTASTIC. They were large wooden lodge-like rooms with windows all around to take in the view although we couldn’t see much that first night. The big beds and comfy duvet covers were an added bonus and definitely made our first sleep in Ping’an a very comfortable one.
After settling into our rooms, we enjoyed a very delicious dinner and spent the rest of our first evening in the rice paddies introducing everyone to the wonderful card game of ‘Sociables’ and oh what a night it became!! 5 pots of mejo (very tasty rice wine..this is the good stuff and not that “hideous” stuff in the bottles at the supermarket – its warmed up and mixed with sugar – although its super tasty, its one of those things that goes down easy at first but rears its ugly head later when you stand up and it hits you), 5 bottles of beer and a couple hands of Sociables later, we were all laughing and singing without being able to point, use names and at one point, not able to show our teeth while talking!! Try following that rule when you’re buzzed. It was one of those nights where we didn’t even look at our watches despite the fact that we were to be up early the next morning for our long trek through the rice paddies to the village of DaZai.
We began our journey a little after 11am the next day, full of excitement of what might be awaiting us and what to expect. And oh what a journey it was! The next 6 hours were absolutely amazing. It’s very hard to describe in words exactly what we saw and experienced but hopefully some of the pictures below will give you all somewhat of an idea. We walked up and down hillsides, surrounded by rice paddies. Every turn and every corner seemed to be bigger and better. At times it felt like we were wandering through these rice paddies in a movie scene or a story book where these kinds of things sometimes seem more possible than in real life. The 8 of us walked and walked and walked and at times were in complete silence as we all were in awe of what we were doing. The hike was very peaceful and although it was quite difficult at times with very steep hills, this didn’t seem to bother most of us as all we had to do was look up and around and it was well worth it. The best part of the hike apart from the rice paddies was being able to see everyday life occur around us. We came across farmers tending to their paddies, cows being ushered up the hillsides to help plow the paddies, women trying to sell their handmade goods and others just walking through the paddies like we were. It was overwhelming at times as it was hard for me to imagine how the locals tended to these paddies as some went as high up into the hillside as the eye could see. We finally reached the village of DaZai around 5pm and at this point, we were all EXHAUSTED. It was a very long day, one well worth the pain we were bound to feel the next day. Luckily for us, the weather was perfect and was cloudy and cool almost the entire trek except for the last quarter where the sun peeked out and provided us with a few more amazing shots. We ended our fantastic day with yet another yummy dinner and another fabulous night with friends and a “few” (see picture below for clarification) beers. (Above picture: The group at a pit stop)
The rest of our time in the rice paddies was just as wonderful as the first two nights. Longsheng is one of those places where you can come to unwind, relax and enjoy nature. For me, personally, the trek through the rice paddies is right up there with the Great Wall experience. It just goes to show how diverse China really is. Not only does it have the hustle and bustle of city life with modern architecture (Shanghai, Beijing) but it also has magnificent historic structures that date back centuries ago (Great Wall, Mt. Taishan, Terracotta Warriors) and natural beauty (tea plantations, rice paddies).
This is definitely a place that Chris and I will come back to visit the next time we come to China. Will there be a next time to China you ask? YES. We have both decided we would like to come back and see more of what this beautiful and diverse country has to offer and revisit some of the places we have already been to. Now that we have been introduced to China through this tour, we are confident we could come back a 2nd time. We’re hoping the next time, some of our family and friends from back home can join us on the trip to share these experiences with us.
The Tao women of DaZai village known for their colorful outfits and their long, long, long hair
For those who left us in Shanghai – You missed a wonderful and serene part of China which we hope you all get to visit someday. Hope you’re all well and enjoying whatever it is that you’re doing whether it’s working, studying or travelling.
For those back home in Vancouver – We miss you all and think of you more as July draws near. Can’t wait to see all of you and catch up. It will be a hectic month, but one that will be worth every penny.
To the other 6 left in our group – Thanks for the great memories and good times in Longsheng. It will be a part of our trip through China that we remember the most.
Next stop: Yangzhou.
1 comment:
Le can only say one word: MAGNIFICENT
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