Cascading Rice Terraces and Scenic Mountain Backdrops
I never knew what to expect when going to the autonomous region in China of Guangxi. All I knew is that before I came to China, this was one spot that was on my list to visit and it did not disappoint. Not only is it home to some of the prettiest scenery, but it is also home to two minority groups in China- Zhuang and Yao people.
Yangshuo was our first stop and where we spent our nights. This small town of 50,000 people is one of the prettiest and scenic towns in China. It is nestled between jutting karst mountains all around and getting around here is quite easy on a bicycle. We spent the day going around the countryside and took a bamboo raft on one of the rivers for an hour after our morning bike ride and were able to enjoy the pure beauty of the karst mountains all around us. It is really amazing that there is that much natural beauty in this small place.
One of the most spectacular light shows in the world is also found here. It gets up to 10 million visitors a year and is an outdoor extravaganza. It uses 600 performers that ride around on boats and tell the story about the history of the area (I believe). It sits on the convergence of two rivers and the mountains lit up in the background make up a beautiful display of colors and scenery. Most of the light show is done on the water which makes it more extraordinary and the choreographing with so many different performers is legendary. The only struggle I had was getting good pictures, as selfie sticks and people standing in front of me were in abundance. Oh well maybe next time.
Located up in the mountains are two minority people of China- Zhuang and Yao people. Many of them still live their lives very simply and often times do not hang out in more populated areas. The Zhuang women are distinctly recognized by their folded scarves they put on their head and Yao women by their long hair and big hooped earrings. When they let it down, it sometimes can reach almost the ground.
The reason for going to this province was simple: I longed for many years to see the rice terraces in the mountains. The most popular of the villages was Pingan Village which boasts some of the most beautiful rice terraces in the world. The villages nestled away in the mountains maintain these terraces as it is part of their livelihood along with the growing tourism market. Hiking a back way up the mountain provided a glimpse into these peoples small villages and watching how hard they were working on building new structures and farming the fields, made me appreciate how easy I have it in life as they do not take anything for granted here. The pictures below will show you the stunning beauty of the landscape and my hope that it does not become to overrun in the next few years with resorts and condos that may drastically change these peoples simple lifestyle. Perhaps it could be good, or perhaps it could be bad. Progress is what society is built on, and from the looks of it, progress is what may be happening around here.
