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Tuesday morning came awfully early, and I was still on a bit of a natural high from having spent the past 2 days up in the mountains with its moody/cloudy/misty/foggy weather. I came downstairs early, around 7:00, and ate breakfast alone for the last time at the Dragon’s Backbone Hostel. (I recall donating a book to their library, too; I forget which. Just a generic David Baldacci one, I think.)
Around 7:30, I started to set my way down the hill, enjoying the walk – going down is always much more relaxing than slogging my way up hill – and got to the main parking lot just below Dazhai with about 45 minutes to spare.
That 40 minute jaunt gave me time to reflect on the past two days. For the most part, I just thought it was a peaceful, beautiful, serene place, which I’d gladly visit again…probably in a different season (autumn, to give variety)…and that I wished I’d had a nicer (that is to say, any) sunrise or sunset. On Monday, I even woke up at 4:45 in the morning, but staring through the pitch black, not seeing stars, I knew that there wouldn’t be much of a sunrise to validate going an hour farther uphill above Tiantouzhai to the Music from Paradise viewpoint just to see….varying shades of gray. (The viewpoints here all have very interesting and flowery names. Ironically, at that one, there was a Chinese guy playing saxophone. If anyone wants to know what they’ll hear when they get to paradise…evidently, Simon & Garfunkel’s “Parsley Sage Rosemary & Thyme” and Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On.”)
With close to an hour in the parking lot, it’s entertaining to take a back seat to the dark corners of your mind. The bus to Yangshuo finally pulled up and I clambered aboard to settle in for the roughly 3-4 hour ride back through Guilin and south to the Li River valley and the lush, karst landscape of Yangshuo. I don’t recall how much the bus ticket cost, but I want to say it was cheap. Maybe 80 RMB or something along those lines, which is a little less than $15.
The ride between Dragon’s Backbone & Yangshuo was completely uneventful. It was just one of those times I wish I had a time machine (or a personal helicopter) to make it go that much more quickly…and avoid the horrendous Chinese driving, including the unnecessary traffic jam in the south part of Guilin and thicker traffic between Guilin and Yangshuo.
So far, vacation was humming along pretty close to on schedule, and I was happy as a lark. The bus pulled into the heart of Yangshuo around 12:15. Yangshuo was the other big part of the first half of the trip. As I mentioned, the plan was to spend 5 nights in this corner of the province, so I had two nights here in Yangshuo.
Yangshuo is also getting a lot of attention as a travel destination these days, and is supposedly getting pretty crowded (though it didn’t feel crowded to me…not after living in some of the world’s major cities for the past 5-6 years). Yangshuo is one of those types of towns that people in the Pacific Northwest of the US or Colorado would love. (Yes, I’m being intentionally stereotypical.) What I mean to say is…this is an active person’s paradise. Yangshuo is rapidly becoming one of the top destinations in the world for rock climbing. People come here to be active. Most are younger, outdoorsy, athletic types…and Yangshuo probably has as many foreigners as locals most of the time.
In general, people will come here and set up base camp at any of the number of hostels, guesthouses, or hotels in the area. (I chose the Yangshuo Outside Inn, about 6 km west of Yangshuo, on the banks of the Yulong River. It’s run by a Dutchman – Ronald, I believe – and his Chinese wife. An old farmhouse that they converted into an inn, and it’s absolutely charming with the most wonderful service. I’ll gladly stay there if I get back to Yangshuo someday.)
At whichever hostel you choose – and since, like any small tourist spot with an overflow of guesthouses fighting for business, the rates tend to be low, and they try to offer services (travel packages, bike rentals, advice, arranging taxis, doing laundry, whatever you want ) to attract customers – you will probably be pleased with how little money you spend. I can only tell you that the Outside Inn had a terrific restaurant, bike rental, laundry service, rooms with AC, without AC (ceiling fans and mosquito nets instead), and suggestions for local and regional travel.
The village of Yangshuo is very small (and congested). There’s quite a bit of nightlife on Xi Dajie, since most who visit here are young and energetic. You’ll find all kinds of restaurants, bars, clubs. And surrounding this very small downtown are huge karst hills that look like gumdrops popping out of the ground.
During the day, rent a bike and ride to and from the nearby towns like Fuli (9 km to the east) or Xingping (about 20 km northeast). You can do things like take bamboo boat trips up and down the Li River (bigger and congested) or ride a bike along the Yulong River among the small villages and farms. Climb Moon Hill, go find caves, just…get outside.
And at night, come back, unwind, and relax downtown on Xi Dajie or enjoy the award-winning light show on the Li River that they have every night (weather permitting) that world-famous movie director Zhang Yimou (who also did the light show for the 2008 Beijing Olympics) put together for about 200 RMB. (I am sad to say, though, that I did not go see the light show. There may be another trip to Yangshuo for me yet…)
So what about my Yangshuo experience? Well…I checked in to the Outside Inn around 1:00 on Tuesday afternoon. Not wanting to waste a minute, the first thing I did was rented one of their bicycles, and hopped out on the road heading along the Yulong River. I joined up with two Chinese ladies, and off we went. We got separated later (because they were stopping every two seconds), though they were nice, friendly, and helpful. The bike was fine, though the seat felt like I was sitting on a brick. After arriving at the Dragon bridge (our original destination), I stayed there for about ten minutes. Right before getting there, though, I stopped at a roadside cafe, trying to wait for these two ladies for about 30 minutes. They never materialized, but I had an interesting time talking with the guy who owned the shop. Just sitting, drinking water, and passing the afternoon in the middle of nowhere.
The bridge was one of the most underwhelming bridges I’d seen. I don’t even think I photographed it. The surrounding scenery from atop the bridge, though, was quite nice (and is represented in this set). Climbing back on my bike, I worked my way the 90 minutes back to the hotel, feeling like my backside had been violated, and was black and blue. Since the temperatures were nearing 35 degrees, and it was a clear, sunny day, I figured it was time for a nap.
My ambition to get out early turned out to be the only real mistake I made this entire trip. On top of very slight heat exhaustion, I missed the most amazing sunset I’ve seen in China. The entire sky had turned every shade between deep purple and royal blue imaginable (which would have looked GREAT from next to the river), but I woke up about 1/3 of the way through that evening’s sundown and had to watch it tearfully between trees with only glimpses of the sky. At least it’s in my memory. I hoped the following night would be a repeat of this one, but, unfortunately, it was pretty much clouded over and didn’t photograph terribly well. Oh, well…lesson learned.
After a good night’s sleep, I woke up early on Wednesday to start exploring Yangshuo proper and the Li River, after staying exclusively on the Yulong River the previous day. I walked the 6 km to town. Well…about 3 km, then took a san lun che (“tuk tuk,” for those who’ve been to India) the rest of the way and just told the guy to stop…wherever. I got out, started wandering the main drag, and booked an afternoon tour of the Li River on a bamboo raft that would go from Xingping partway north on the river, then back to Xingping. (We would go to Xingping by bus and get stuck on the two-lane road coming back in terrible traffic). I still had quite a few hours to kill in the morning, so I wandered around Xi Dajie, and made it down to the riverside, where I booked yet another boat to go around the Li River. The first one cost, I think, 160 RMB from what I remember. This one was 100 RMB, but it was a bit of a lie. I had to hop on back a motorbike and we rode the 9 km to Fuli (a surprisingly nice little shopping area for souvenirs), and that boat was not an open-air bamboo raft, but more like…a very small cruise ship where you sit inside a cabin.
The ride wasn’t unpleasant at all – and the scenery was stunning – so I can’t complain too much. Besides, I did need to find a way to pass the morning, and this did just fine. After the boat and motorcycle ride back to Yangshuo, I had lunch, then went to the first place where I booked a boatride.
That really was a bamboo raft…the kind that’s canopied, and seats 4 people to a boat. So after the coach took us up to Xingping and dropped us off, we hopped on and had a ride for about 20-25 minutes up this stretch of the river (slightly more scenic than the section near Fuli), and then made our way back down to the starting point.
After the bus ride back to town, we got back around 6:00. I took a taxi to the hotel and, as I just mentioned, hoped to have a nice sunset (though my optimism has sunk after watching the afternoon sky start to cloud over). At any rate, I went out and found a place near the farmhouse…just in case.
With no good results from that sunset shot, I packed up my gear and spent the evening relaxing at the farmhouse with dinner, then back in my room reading. All in all, I had been very pleased up until this point with both Dragon’s Backbone and Yangshuo. Thursday morning didn’t need me to start too early. I also knew it would be a travel day, and I wouldn’t be shooting much (if at all). But, at least I’d see the Guangxi countryside, not quite knowing what the rest of the province looked like. It would be a pleasant and interesting day, I soon learned…
Міжнародний Гранд Форум «Бізнес та ІТ. Навколо ЦОД. Навколо Хмари. Навколо Автоматизації. Навколо Безпеки. Навколо IoT. Навколо IP», або BIT-2017, разом зі зустріччю «Бізнес-Клубу» та церемонією нагородження переможців Конкурсу Industry 4.0 Ukraine (Україна, Київ, 21 вересня 2017): www.kyiv-grand-forum-2017.ciseventsgroup.com, www.awardsua.tech, www.business-club.ciseventsgroup.com/ua/bit/kyiv-210917
Presenter: Vaishali Kamat, Head of Digital Health, Cambridge Consultants
Website:http://bit.ly/CambridgeCons
Twitter: @CambConsultants
Linkedin: bit.ly/CambConsultantsLknd_DHS
Facebook: bit.ly/CambridgeConsultantsFB_DHS
Beyond the Bands: Have you heard of flexible wearables? What about disposable medical trackers? Wearables are getting more sophisticated, more reliable, and more accurate, taking measurements from numerous points on our bodies other than our wrists! And the range of applications is also increasing as we speak, from disease management to wellness and fitness! Hear all about the new frontiers in wearable tech!
Thank you to our sponsor: WebMD www.webmd.com
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The Digital Health Summit, www.digitalhealthsummit.com , produced by Living in Digital Times, convenes one of the broadest spectrum audiences which makes it a can’t miss event. Everyone from medical providers, policy makers, buyers, payers, investors, developers, leading consumer electronics companies, innovators driving the marketplace and all the other industries starting to cross-pollinate into digital health including the automotive, fitness and gaming industries.
Official Hashtag: #DigitalHealthCES
Twitter: www.twitter.com/dhsummit
Hashtags: #DigitalHealthCES #WebMDCES #CES2015
Blog & Videos: www.digitalhealthsummit.com/blog
Photos: www.flickr.com/digitalhealthsummit
Conference Producer: Jill Gilbert, @GilbertGuide
Photos by: Asa Mathat www.asamathat.com
My bro and I just created a video for the Dorito's Viralocity Video Contest. VIEW,SHARE, & REPOST THE LINK ON MY TAG! Link can't be viewed from the tag, it must be copied then pasted to the address bar, THANKS! :)
Международный Гранд Форум «Бизнес и ИТ. Вокруг ЦОД. Вокруг Облака. Вокруг IoT. Вокруг IP», или BIT-2016 (Краснодар, 28 января 2016 года): www.krasnodar-2016.ciseventsgroup.com
© Susanne Hupfer; All Rights Reserved
Wall showcasing the female form - outside a restaurant at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas.
(Taken with an iPhone 6!)
Columbus's first barcade opened in 2013. Since then 16-Bit has expanded to Cincinnati and Cleveland while competing barcades have opened in other areas of Columbus.
Міжнародний Форум «Бізнес та ІТ. Навколо ЦОД. Навколо Хмари. Навколо IoT. Навколо IP», або BIT-2016 (Україна, Львів, 9листопада 2016 року): www.lviv-2016.ciseventsgroup.com
Международный Форум «Бизнес и ИТ. Вокруг ЦОД. Вокруг Облака. Вокруг IoT. Вокруг IP», или BIT-2018 (Россия, Самара, 1 марта 2018): www.samara-2018.ciseventsgroup.com
Netball Court Repairs in Aberdeenshire | Netball Surface Repair #Netball #Court #Repairs #Aberdeenshire bit.ly/21atYkv:
via ift.tt/1I5T8DP
To check out this Tumblr account’s website, make sure to click here! ift.tt/1HNt6rR
from bit.ly/214nkuU
via Tumblr bit.ly/1ObzQQg
MUNICH, Germany - 01 October 2019: Bits and Pretzels - Day Three (Photo by Dan Taylor - ©Dan Taylor).
Международный Гранд Форум «Бизнес и ИТ. Вокруг ЦОД. Вокруг Облака. Вокруг IoT. Вокруг IP. ProAV», или BIT-2016 (Россия, Республика Татарстан, Казань, 24 ноября 2016): www.kazan-2016.ciseventsgroup.com2016.ciseventsgroup.com
Международный Гранд Форум «Бизнес и ИТ. Вокруг ЦОД. Вокруг Облака. Вокруг IoT. Вокруг IP. Вокруг Сетей», или BIT-2016 (Санкт-Петербург, 6 апреля 2016 года): www.sankt-peterburg-grand-forum-2016.ciseventsgroup.com
A day out with the girls..
Tram to town, Sheffield Cathedral, the big wheel on Fargate, playing and paddling around the steel balls, then lunch in the Winter Garden..
...aterriza la nave Radartois en el "Festival Multimutante" Universidad Ricardo Palma (facultad de arquitechtonik)
Sueño Cosmos de un pequeño gran habitante
El señor Ricardo Palma nos felicito, nosotros lo vimos y nadie mas lo vio (8)
Foto: www.flickr.com/photos/lajatodeljota/
Saludos desde la nave
Moderator Andrew Kennedy, Senior Program Manager of BITS with John Beccia, General Counsel and CCO of Circle, John Ryan, CEO of Conference of State Bank Supervisors, and David Luigs, Partner at Debevoise, speaking about the future role of digital currencies at the 2015 BITS Emerging Payments Forum
Международный Гранд Форум «Бизнес и ИТ. Вокруг ЦОД. Вокруг Облака. Вокруг IoT. Вокруг IP. ProAV», или BIT-2016 (Россия, Екатеринбург, 8 сентября 2016 року): www.ekaterinburg-2016.ciseventsgroup.com
Got a text Saturday morning from Hayley to let me know she could do a couple more hours work on my arm on Sunday morning. I had just got home and felt like s**t..... Will replace this with another photo showing it all later.
Международный Гранд Форум «Бизнес и ИТ. Вокруг ЦОД. Вокруг Облака. Вокруг IoT. Вокруг IP. ProAV», или BIT-2016 (Россия, Екатеринбург, 8 сентября 2016 року): www.ekaterinburg-2016.ciseventsgroup.com