The weather was getting warmer (it hit 33 centigrade one day) but I wanted to explore the countryside. The brochures recommended a bicycle and bamboo raft ride (from the photos, it appeared to be made of real bamboo) in the nearby Yulong River, but I wanted to avoid the beaten path. So, on two successive days, I walked up the narrow road beyond the Li River Retreat. The hotel provided a simple hand drawn map and I set off with a backpack, snacks, and water.
After walking through Village #1 (as named in the map), its vegetable plots and orange groves, I went through a small bamboo forest to reach the river. The Li River flowed quietly with not a human or a boat in sight. Birds twittered, dragonflies darted, the bamboo swayed in the light breeze. Where were the 1.3 billion people? Coming down the Li River from Guilin on riverboats, probably.
As I walked along the riverbank, I came across this old fashioned ferry, probably not a rare sight in rural China but remarkable enough for me. I wondered where his passengers came from? Why would they want to cross the here? Actually, the only bridge was some distance downriver, in Yangshuo, so this would be a convenient crossing point for villagers, a short cut. The ferryman was quite elderly. Would someone take over the job when he eventually gives up? The river was shallow here but poling across the water must be tough work.
As I walked on and nearing the stream where I would have to turn left away from the river, I came across this idyllic scene of a modern, colorful riverboat on a rural, isolated setting in the river. The crew were bustling around, clearing up before going back upriver to Guilin. Every day, dozens of these boats bring thousands of day trippers to Yangshuo. Where did they discharge their waste? Into the river? But the river is used for bathing, for washing clothes, and river fish and prawns are served at all local eating places.
I turned left into a small forest of pine and native trees. Forest sounds enveloped me. Cicadas, birds, wind through the trees. Large birds flitted among the high branches. The walk was blissful till the path became narrow and rocky, with a small irrigation channel on one side and a steep slope on the other. Miho, who walked with me on the second day, managed by walking sideways, holding onto the rock on the left. I fell into the water on both days.
The two wheel tractor is King in China. In urban areas, it's seen even on highways, hauling goods. n cities, its also used to haul people. In rural areas, these tractors are used in agriculture, the function for which they were originally designed. They plough and weed rice fields, pump water, husk paddy, and perform numerous other tasks. In Japan, I have seen them used to transplant rice seedlings.
I saw these tractors around Guilin and Yangshuo but buffaloes and cows were also used to plough fields. During the walk, I was often reminded of the countryside in Sri Lanka's Dambulla area, which also is well provided with water and has has forest, rice fields, and vegetable and fruit orchards.
On the subject of two wheeled tractors, which are ubiquitous in Asia, the late Ray Wijewardena of Sri Lanka figures prominently. He invented the first two wheel tractor, the Landmaster, in 1955. My father owned one in the late 1960s and I used it to plough a rice field and to fertilize coconut trees.
I passed this woman transplanting rice on both days of the walk. She worked alone on this backbreaking task. (I know, because I've done it.) She greeted me on both days with a smile, probably why I was walking around without a purpose in the hot sun. Farm workers are probably hard to come by in this area because the tourist trade is more attractive. Some rice fields appeared to be abandoned.
In Lijiang, the peasants were dark. (Some would say they were bronzed.) The outdoor physical labor and the high altitude may be responsible. But the peasants in the Yangshuo area were not dark skinned.
I know only two words in Chinese, "Ni hao" and "Xie xie" and my greetings were always retired, sometimes with a "Hello". I am thinking about returning to Yangshuo for a longer stay to learn conversational Chinese.
Once, ahead of me, I heard a loud, guttural "juk" "juk" sound, used by Sri Lankans to drive cattle. But, as I rounded the corner, I met a farmer driving his flock of ducks.
Water was plentiful and the walk, mostly along the river and the stream, was pleasant. I know that some parts of China, including Shandong, a region that I am familiar with, are facing a severe drought. In Yangshuo, we even had rain in during my visit.
The stream had been dammed so that water could be taken some distance to fields downstream, sometimes at a higher elevation than the stream. This practice is universal. In the Middle East, an irrigation channel is called a falaj and is sometimes directed underground to save the water from evaporation.
This grave bordered the footpath. From its impressive size, an important villager seems to be buried there.
The stones leading to the water indicate a bathing spot for the villagers.
An orange grove. The trees bore flowers so the area was pleasantly scented. Oranges appeared to be the main crop of the area. Some rice fields had been converted to orange groves, probably because rice cultivation is physically more demanding.
Thanks to the tourist trade and the thriving agriculture, the villagers were comparatively prosperous. Their houses were well built of brick and cement and had two or three stories, somewhat similar to the village houses in Hong Kong's New Territories. This was the only mud brick house I saw in the village, probably the last one. I took a peek inside: a bicycle, a rough bed, laundry drying on a line, and clothes heaped on the floor.
An interesting name for a language school. Another computer translation?
Noodles drying in the sun and collecting dist from passing vehicles.
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