Guilin – A Hike and a Bike in Yangshou

Saturday morning, I was so crazy. Jared, Bryce, Dani, and I woke up at 4:30 AM to go hike to the top of a hill in the middle of the city that had a pagoda at the top to watch the sunrise. We knew sunrise would be at 6 AM, and they had heard that it might take some time to hike to the top of the hill and then some time to even get to the base of the hill. And since I was worried about keeping up with them, we left at 4:30 to make sure we’d be there in time for sunrise. Well, it took us half the time to get to the top of the hill from the hotel than we thought it would. We were to the top of the hill by 5 AM. We hiked up those steep stairs in the dark with only the flashlight apps on our iPhones giving us any light. And sadly, the sun never really rose because of the clouds and the little bit of pollution. But we had some spectacular views of Yangshou in the morning.

Then we got back to the hotel by 6:45 AM. Those three went rock climbing with another classmate, while me and the remaining folks went for a bike ride! Oh how I loved the bike ride. The bikes were old rusty things for sure, but it was so great to be on a bike again! We rode several kilometers out to an old banyan tree park where they also had a bunch of beautiful lotus flowers. And then we rode out to a viewpoint of Moon Hill. Riding through the city was so crazy! We’d ride through roundabouts just whenever we wanted, and the cars would just zoom around us or let us in. I really loved my bell on my bike. I rang it all the time! Mostly to forewarn pedestrians, scooters, cars, and other cyclists that I was coming up along side them. So now I have a little more understanding why so many motorists honk their horns when they drive – to let the other motorists know that they are there!