In 1994, Guiyang singer Han Xiao became famous overnight by singing "I Want to Go to Guilin."

There are two lyrics among them, which have been widely circulated and can still be catchy today:

I want to go to Guilin, I want to go to Guilin, but when I have time, I have no money; I want to go to Guilin, but when I have money, I have no time.

This song made Guilin a household name overnight, and many people are full of yearning for Guilin. This should be the most famous urban tourism brand marketing event 26 years ago.

Time goes back to August 20, 2009. It was a Thursday. After preliminary preparations, my wife and I rushed to the Capital Airport and started a six-day free trip to Guilin. The itinerary is as follows:

Day1: Start. Strolling on the Li River and Twin Towers of the Sun and Moon;

Day2: Diecai Mountain, Xiangshan Park;

Day3: Longji Terrace;

Day4: Lijiang River Rafting (Yangdi-Xingping), Yinziyan Cave, Yangshuo West Street;

Day5: Cycling and rafting in the Yulong River;

Day6: Yangshuo Vegetable Market, return trip.

Day1Li River, Sun and Moon Twin Towers

2009.8.20 14:26, Guilin Liangjiang Airport

Walking out of the airport, the hot and humid air from the south came in.

We booked an "air ticket + hotel" for free travel. The hotel we stayed in is located near Xiangshan Park, with convenient transportation and close to the Central Square of Guilin City and the Lijiang River.

After finishing the check-in process and packing my luggage, I couldn't wait to stroll all the way to the Lijiang River.

2009.8.20 18:47, bank of the Li River

It's not a weekend, it's just an evening on a weekday. Tents have long been set up on the banks of the Li River, and citizens playing in the water are everywhere.

We who have lived in the north for a long time can only see this kind of grand occasion when we go to the seaside.

I have always felt that water is the soul of a city, such as Shanghai's Huangpu River, Tianjin's Haihe River, Wuhan's Yangtze River, and Changsha's Xiangjiang River. The water system runs through the city, adding a lot of agility and fun to the city.

2009.8.20 21:43, the brightly lit Sun and Moon Twin Towers at night

After walking along the Li River, ride the night to watch the Twin Towers of Sun and Moon. The Twin Towers of the Sun and Moon were built in the Tang Dynasty. The twin towers are connected by an underwater channel 18 meters at the bottom of the lake. Two pagodas are located in the fir lake. The sun tower is a copper tower, and the moon tower is a glazed tower. Under the light, they emit gold and silver light, reflected in the lake, which is extremely bright and beautiful.

Day2Diecai Mountain, Elephant Trunk Mountain Park

I got up early that day and ate Guilin rice noodles in a small restaurant opposite the hotel.

Chili peppers, sour bamboo shoots, sour beans and other ingredients were all added by myself. I took a small jar and poured them directly. It was spicy and sour, and it was quite enjoyable. This kind of on-demand and unsupervised method is the favorite of many foodies.

The plan for the morning is to visit Diecai Mountain Park.

2009.8.21 9:20, Guilin is seen from Diecai Mountain

Diecai Mountain Park is close to the Li River and is very popular among photographers. We climbed the highest peak Mingyue Peak and had a panoramic view of the entire city of Guilin. The top of Xianhe Cave on Diecai Mountain is said to be the best spot to watch and photograph the sunrise in Guilin. Due to the tight schedule, this time we had to make a difference.

2009.8.21 11:12, Lunch: celery and beef wooden barrel rice

After the tour of Diecai Mountain Park, we found a nearby restaurant for lunch. This is a small restaurant that mainly manages wooden barrel rice. Bucket rice is similar to rice covered, in that the food is placed in a small wooden barrel, thus enhancing the visual experience of dining. I ordered celery beef rice. The main ingredients are beef, celery and pepper. It is topped with lotus leaves. It tastes very good.

2009.8.21 11:32, Elephant Trunk Mountain Park

After lunch, enter Xiangbei Mountain Park and start your afternoon tour. Elephant Trunk Mountain is Guilin's city business card. Xu Xiake, a tourist and senior gourmand in the Ming Dynasty, also stopped here and wrote an article. Elephant Trunk Mountain stands at the confluence of the Li River and the Taohua River. It looks like an elephant. The elephant's trunk extends into the river to drink water, and the river water flows in a hole formed by the elephant's trunk and elephant legs.

2009.8.21 11:57 Folk performance in Xiangbei Mountain Park

When we entered the park, we happened to catch a folk performance and couldn't help but stop to watch (now look carefully at the picture, the hat of the second girl on the right is too big).

2009.8.21 11:32, an ethnic minority girl performing

After watching the performance, we walked around again and went to the Mingyue Cave under the elephant's nose to take advantage of the cool. My wife wanted to climb to Elephant Trunk Mountain to have a look. When I heard about climbing, my skull ached because I had just come down from Diecai Mountain in the morning and was severely exhausted. I was very aware of the consequences of reasoning with my wife, so I firmly supported her proposal without hesitation. Fortunately, Elephant Trunk Mountain is not very high, so I finally reached the top after stumbling all the way.

2009.8.21 12:45, Puxian Tower Monument on the Top of Elephant Trunk Mountain

The Puxian Tower on the top of Elephant Trunk Mountain was built during the Ming Dynasty. The towers and monuments are mottled, and it can be seen at a glance that they are ancient.

2009.8.21 12:46, Puxian Tower on Elephant Trunk Mountain was built in the Ming Dynasty

There are only two pagodas in China that dedicate themselves to Pu Xian. One is on Mount Emei in Sichuan, and the other is the Pu Xian Pagoda on Elephant Trunk Mountain in Guilin.

The Samannah Pagoda is located at the top of Xiangshan Mountain, which confirms the saying that Samannah Bodhisattva rides an elephant, and the elephant carries a treasure vase, which in many legends symbolizes peace, beauty and happiness.

Day3 Longji Terrace Tour

Transportation on Longji Terrace is not very convenient, so we bought a local day trip.

This kind of combination of local day tours with free travel is a good way, which can save money and improve travel comfort to a certain extent.

2009.8.22 15:04, entrance of Ping 'an Zhuang Terrace Scenic Area

The Longji Terrace was built in the Yuan Dynasty and completed in the early Qing Dynasty. It has a history of more than 650 years. The most classic ones are Ping 'an Zhuang Terrace and Jinkeng Hongyao Terrace. Ping 'an Terrace was developed early and has complete facilities, making it suitable for first tours and one-day tours. Jinkeng Terrace was developed late and transportation is not convenient, making it suitable for self-help tours and photography enthusiasts. We went to the Ping 'an Zhuang terraced fields.

2009.8.22 12:41, Longji Terrace Farmhouse Bamboo Chicken

After nearly 2 hours 'drive, it was nearly noon when we arrived at Ping' an Terrace. The tour guide took us meandering along the Zhuang village, which exhausted our physical strength quickly. Many people were already hungry at this time. The tour guide suddenly stopped in front of a farmyard and told them that this was the lunch place. Everyone couldn't help but cheer.

For lunch, I ordered local specialty bamboo chicken with water cabbage. The price is not low, but it is indeed value for money. The soft and rotten chicken has the fragrance of bamboo and wood, which mixes with a unique flavor that makes people praise it.

Every time I enjoy eating, I will reflect on whether I really care about the scenery of travel or the delicious food during travel.

For foodies, this is a question worth pondering.

2009.8.22 12:58, Bamboo Chicken Making

After lunch, I came out and saw the bamboo tube chicken being made in the courtyard. From the perspective of production technology, it should be to open the bamboo joints, add chicken, onion and ginger and other ingredients, add water or soup, and then seal them and place them on the fire to bake. If you want to ensure that the chicken is soft enough, it will take at least 2 hours. After eating bamboo chicken, my physical strength quickly recovered. I walked all the way and arrived at the No. 1 Observation Deck in about 40 minutes.

2009.8.22 13:43, Longji Terrace No. 1 Observation Platform

2009.8.22 13:45, Longji Terrace No. 1 Observation Platform

Looking down from the observation deck, the rice fields are stacked on top of each other, like an oil painting, slowly unfolding into the distance. The wisdom of the ancients is really amazing. They planted rice on the ridge, stored water from top to bottom for irrigation, and the sun was more abundant. However, irrigation water sources may be a problem. For example, if there are no streams and rivers on the mountain, water can only be diverted from the bottom of the mountain. I heard that some terraces are completely irrigated by rainwater, avoiding the pain of water diversion. Talking to the village residents, they said that this is not the tourist season and there are still few people. The most beautiful scenery and the most crowded time is during the National Day period, and all accommodation will be fully booked. At that time, the rice was ripe and its color turned golden. There are golden rice all over the mountains and plains. After the wind blows, wheat waves are stacked one after another, which reminds people of Li Jian's "Wind Blows Wheat Waves". Among the famous terraced landscapes, Yuanyang Terrace in Yunnan, Shibadong Village in Hunan, and Ziquejie Terrace are also excellent works given by heaven to mankind, but they have never had the opportunity to visit.

2009.8.22 14:23, Ping 'an Zhuang Village

2009.8.22 14:22, the girl selling passion fruits took a photo with her wife

When I returned, I passed through a place that sold specialties. The little girl in the picture used it and sold it alone with passion fruits when she was not in class.

The little girl pursed her lips and smiled sheepishly when taking pictures, which made people unforgettable. Judging from his age, he should have graduated from college by now. I wonder if he has left Longji and entered the embrace of the city.

Day4 Lijiang River Drifting Yinziyan Cave

Guilin's mountains and rivers dominate the world, and Yangshuo's mountains and rivers dominate Guilin. From Guilin to Yangshuo, few people should go by car, because by boat down the Li River, you can not only enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Li River, but also go directly to Yangshuo. There are two options for taking the water. One is to take a cruise ship, which is fast and comfortable to ride; the other is to take a bamboo raft, which allows you to stay and watch at will. We chose bamboo raft rafting. The bamboo raft rafting of the Li River is the section of the ancient town of "Yangdi-Xingping", which is the most essential part of the Li River. You can have close contact with the mountains and rivers of the Li River. The attractions included on the way include carp hanging on the wall, Guanyin sending children to the house, nine horses painting mountains, and a background scenery of 20RMB. The bamboo raft had been contacted long ago. We took a bus from Guilin to Yangdi and walked to the ferry in the village. Brother Bamboo Raft had been waiting here for a long time.

2009.8.23 8:59, Yangdi Ferry covered with phoenix-tailed bamboo

Roasted shrimp and grilled fish purchased during rafting in the Li River

Chinese wampee fruit

Brother Boat has rich experience because he often receives tourists. Every time I visited a scenic spot, I started explaining and helped shoot. The arrangements were very thoughtful.

This kind of high-quality service is extremely satisfying. If you have the opportunity to come again, you will definitely contact this big ship brother.

2009.8.23 10:27, Guilin bound for Yangshuo cruise ship

While I was playing, I suddenly heard a whistle and turned around. The cruise ship bound for Yangshuo was moving rapidly along the middle of the water. Tourists were watching and taking photos on the deck, and there was a lot of noise.

When they saw our bamboo rafts, the crowd on the deck was obviously a little stunned, and they probably realized that there was such a way to play.

We couldn't help but feel complacent: it's too low to ride on a big ship, and all veteran players play bamboo rafts.

2009.8.23 10:56, took a photo with Brother Boat

2009.8.23 10:57, photo taken by Lijiang River Rafting

2009.8.23 10:59, handsome boy from Brother Boat's family

2009.8.23 12:02, Water spinach

Near lunchtime, the eldest brother docked on the way, parked the bamboo raft, climbed the stairs, and took us to a farmhouse restaurant.

This restaurant has a booming business and is full of tourists, most of whom are bamboo raft rafting tourists.

It was not easy to find an empty seat, so I ordered the Lijiang Sword Bone Fish and Water Cabbage according to the recommendation. The water spinach came up quickly, but the sword-bone fish was never seen.

2009.8.23 12:25, Lijiang River swordfish

Sword bone fish is a specialty of the Li River. It generally lives in the bottom waters of the Li River. It feeds on small fish, shrimps, and screws. It has no thorns and only has a backbone. It has a fragrant and tender meat.

There were many people who ordered swordbone fish, and it took more than half an hour to serve it.

I couldn't wait to pick up a piece and put it into my mouth. The meat was tender and tender, and I suddenly felt that half an hour of waiting was completely worth it.

This should be the best fish I have ever eaten in my memory. Looking at the photo, the only ingredients are shredded ginger, wolfberry, green onions, and pepper. Unlike Wushan roasted whole fish or boiled fish, because a large number of condiments cover up the delicious flavor of the fish, it is ultimately difficult to maintain the original flavor and achieve perfection.

2009.8.23 13:03, Nine Horses Painting Mountains on Lijiang River

After nearly 4 hours of bamboo raft rafting, we arrived at Xingping Ancient Town, the destination of the rafting. After disembarking from the ferry, wave goodbye to Brother Boat, go to Xingping Bus Station and take a bus to Yangshuo. The drive is about 40 minutes. After arriving in Yangshuo, check in and go to Yinziyan Cave.

2009.8.23 16:41, Silver Rock Cave Stalactite

Yinziyan Cave is a typical karst landform. The cave here runs through 12 peaks.

There are stalactites developed in different ages in the cave. They are crystal clear and diverse. They are hung one by one on the rocks. They have very strange shapes, and some are very sharp and some are very clumsy.

2009.8.23 16:50, Yinziyan Cave Stalactite

After visiting Yinziyan, go back to the inn to rest for a while, and then go straight to Yangshuo West Street. West Street is the oldest street in Yangshuo County, with a history of more than 1400 years. Every year, foreigners come here to live and relax, which is three times the number of permanent residents, so it is nicknamed Foreign Street. Almost all the signs in restaurants, restaurants, Internet cafes, bars, etc. on the West Street are bilingual in Chinese and English. Before shopping, I found a recommended restaurant from the reviews and tasted Yangshuo's famous local specialty, beer fish. Unfortunately, I searched through the folder and couldn't find any photos. Did I eat too fast and didn't have time to take photos? Which is better, beer fish or sword bone fish? I think beer fish is still slightly inferior. The beer fish is made from fresh carp from the Li River. It is first fried in raw tea oil, and then stewed in beer. Beer fish uses ingredients such as soy sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, onion and ginger, chicken essence, and monosodium glutamate. Excessive use of ingredients will destroy the delicious flavor of the fish itself. After dinner, we walked along the west street and looked around. If there were any shops we liked, we would go in and choose slowly. There is no special purpose for visiting the ancient street. I just want to relax completely, forget myself, be a local for a while, and experience the life here, stop and go, stop and go.

Day5 Yulong River Drifting

According to the research strategy, we chose to rent a bicycle and ride to Chaoyang Wharf, and then take a bamboo raft to drift to Gongnong Bridge.

The Yulong River is the longest tributary of the Li River in Yangshuo and is known as the "Little Li River". Especially the section from Yulong Bridge to Gongnong Bridge, the water quality is clear all year round, the water flow is slow, and there are no traces of modern buildings or artificial carvings, making it very suitable for rafting.

In 2002, Zhang Yimou turned to direct his first martial arts film "Hero". In the play, Feixue angrily swings her sword and competes with a broken sword. The filming location was Yulong River in Yangshuo.

2009.8.24 8:03, riding a bicycle to rafting in the Yulong River

At around 7 o'clock on August 24, we had rented bicycles from Yangshuo County and rode along the route.

2009.8.24 8:33, ducks are full of ponds on the roadside

I passed by a pond on the way and saw ducks everywhere in the pond, so I couldn't help but stop to watch.

In my wife's eyes, there should be a peaceful and pleasant pastoral scenery in her heart, but in my mind, I was thinking whether the local duck was more delicious in braised or stewed. This idea made me think that I could easily lose my bottom line when eating.

After arriving at the dock, he first contacted Master Chen of Bamboo Raft and asked about how to handle bicycles. Master Chen informed that they would be transported to Gongnong Bridge, the destination of the rafting, and then they could continue riding after the rafting.

Group photo before the Yulong River rafting

Master Chen, who is drifting on the Yulong River and supporting a bamboo raft

The young and handsome Master Chen arrived at the dock early in the morning. We sat on the bamboo raft. Master Chen stretched out the pole and the bamboo raft slowly moved forward.

Bamboo raft rafting in the Yulong River is different from the Li River. It only relies on bamboo poles to keep moving forward, so it requires a lot of physical strength.

2009.8.24 9:03, the Yulong River with calm water

Due to the early time, there were relatively few people drifting, and the water surface of the Yulong River was very calm. When the bamboo pole is pushed into the water, you can clearly see the path of the bamboo pole rowing in the water.

The phoenix-tailed bamboos on both sides are reflected in the water, constituting Yangshuo's unique landscape and pastoral scenery.

2009.8.24 9:06, scenery on both sides of the Yulong River

2009.8.24 9:18, Fuli Bridge in Yulong River

2009.8.24 10:31, Scenery on both sides of the Yulong River

2009.8.24 10:36, Scenery on both sides of the Yulong River

2009.8.24 10:37, Scenery on both sides of the Yulong River

2009.8.24 10:46, Scenery on both sides of the Yulong River

Rafting on the Yulong River is a pleasing pleasure. The bamboo raft moves slowly forward in the reflection of the mountains and phoenix-tailed bamboos on both sides. The water surface is calm and I feel that the Yulong River belongs to me at this moment. In such an environment, it is easy to forget everything, like giving your soul a SPA. This is the Yulong River 11 years ago. I don't know what the Yulong River is like today. If there is a lot of noise, there will be no such artistic conception at all. After about 3 hours of rafting, we reached the end of the rafting, Gongnong Bridge.

Rural scenery in Yangshuo

It was lunchtime after landing. We walked into a farmhouse in a nearby village and ordered a few dishes.

Lunch after Yulong River rafting-Water spinach

Lunch after Yulong River rafting-Lipu Taro

Lunch after Yulong River Rafting-Native Chicken

Water spinach has a relatively high appearance rate and is almost one of the must-order items every day. In addition to my wife's preference for green vegetables, it does taste good every time.

Taro is a specialty of Guangxi, especially Lipu taro. After steaming, sprinkle with some chopped green onion to make a dish.

Day6 Yangshuo Vegetable Market, Return Trip

Yangshuo Vegetable Market is one of the popular check-in places mentioned in many strategies.

We arrived at the county vegetable market in the early morning. I have always believed that the vegetable market is the place with the most smell of fireworks in the world. The sounds of hawking, bargaining, and the dazzling vegetables and fruits are the most real life in the local area. We walked around the market and finally bought several Lipu taro.

These taro traveled with us all the way, crossing mountains and rivers, and finally flew back to Beijing.

Looking back on these six days in Yangshuo, Guilin, I have gained a lot. I tasted delicious food, watched the beautiful scenery, met Brother Chuan and Master Chen from Yulong River, and left many beautiful memories.

It is a pity that due to the tight schedule, there are many places I haven't had time to visit, and I will definitely visit Guilin again if I have the opportunity.

If Brother Boat and Master Chen of Yulong River are still running the business, our family of three would like to ride on their bamboo raft again. I will show them this article and recall the trip to the Li River and Yulong River that impressed us more than 10 years ago!