30 Days of Biking: Thanks Kent

I headed over to read Kent Peterson's blog. He was up to April 28th of his Bike 30 Days challenge, which began April 1st.

Click here to go to Kent's Blog--> Kent's Bike Blog

Sidebar Rant: I hate BLOG posting order. It's all backwards!! There's no index. Unless you read a blog everyday where do you start? So let me help: Scroll down to April 1st of Kent's blog and read backwards!!! Okay...scroll UP.

I'm living in Johannesburg where road cycling is nutz. Kent lives in Issaquah Washington which looks to be an idyllic place to bike. So here's what I will do: I will bike each day for the next 30 days and see to where can I bike safely from 235 Lonehill "surrounded by high walls topped with electric wire and two gates to go through for security" Estate in Fourways, Johannesburg, Sud Afrika.

Day 1 is May Day.

Let the 30 days commence.

Just A Bike

On the morning of April 15th, I had one of those "this can’t be happening" moments. As I opened the interior house door to the garage, my self said: "Self, the garage door is open." That’s weird. Glancing over where my bike should be, there was no bike. My mind kept saying: "There is supposed to be a yellow modified for travel V-Rex leaning against the work bench." My self kept saying "It’s not there." My mind: "Are you sure? Look again."

No matter how many times I looked my bike was stolen. Gone. It just isn’t there.

Told myself: "It’s just a bike."

With a kick in my gut feeling all day I did the stolen bike thing:
Called police to file a police report
Printed out flyers with a pic to all bike stores.
Called pawn shops.
Posted flyers along the typical cycling paths.
Kept looking where my bike was hoping it would magically appear.

Kept telling myself: "It’s just a bike."

All day long whenever that empty feeling punched me in the gut: "It's just a bike."

Wait a minute. I’ve had this bike for over twelve years. Then I started remembering.

It’s not just a bike. It was my Conestoga Wagon on Ragbrai ferrying me from the Missouri River to the Mississippi River. Okay, so Conestoga wagons went from east to west. Small details. I crossed the expanse of Iowa on my bike passing cornfields, alfalfa fields, and easily recognizable from a long way off hog farms. It blazed trails for me.



It’s not just a bike. In North Dakota it was my trusty horse galloping by fertile farmlands and wheat crops and across rolling grasslands. It showed me the big sky, the Red River Valley and the Drift Prarie.



It’s not just a bike. In New York, it was my packet boat and I was the horse power trudging along passing locks and lift bridges. It helped me explore old canal side towns, including the birthplace of the Colt revolver, something I’d love to show right now to the bike thief.


It’s not just a bike. Living in Qatar it was my Dromedary Taxi, taking me across the desert and showing me the Khor al Adaid ("Inland Sea") along the Persian Gulf.



It’s not just a bike. In Shanghai, it was my own Orient Express. Small bother that the Orient Express never went to Shanghai, because the Orient Express has come to symbolize intrigue and luxury travel. Hey, it’s a (okay..it was) a recumbent and trust me, that’s luxurious when cycling 200kms: no pain.


It’s not just a bike. When I was working in Florida it was my Ponce DeLeon exploration ship, taking me up and down the eastern coast in search of my own fountain of youth. Yes, cycling keeps the kid in ya. No question.



One thing is for sure: It's not "just a bike".

Stolen Bike: Miami FL April 14, 2011

This be the stolen bike. Hopefully someone will see it and email me at JKeenan0407 AT yahoo DOT com.

Ride With GPS Site

Hope these guys make it. Two students from my home state Oregon have created a site for creating routes, rides, etc. that can be used in multiple places: GPS units, shared, embedded,etc.

The site is Ride With GPS or
Ride With GPS Website

From their website: What is Ride With GPS?
We created Ride With GPS to help cyclists plan bike rides and find routes in their area. We offer cuesheets, exportable routes for turn by turn directions on Garmin GPS units and live elevation profiles with grade information. Users can upload their ride and see graphs of elevation, heart rate, cadence and power. Signup and try our site today!

Here's an example. I've used the embed code to show the route and profile on this blog.

Tour Du Monde

Getting ready for my annual bike tour with bike buds where I'm sure most of the tour folks will be a high ticket bikes. These photos brought back the reality of how utilitarian a bike really is.

Click here for Tour Du Monde in a separate window.

Here's the first photo

Back To Brevets

What was that movie: "Back to the Future"? I'm beginning to look like Christopher Lloyd. Now if I could get "back" to having 30 year old legs, brevets would be so much more fun.

Almost a year ago I had a liver transplant which meant limited strenuous activity. While I was approved to cycle about 8 weeks after the surgery, any long distance rides such as this were verboten.

Scheduled 200km rides for January were scratched by nurse Toni, who when told that temps would be in the high 30's with possible rain, said: "I know you love cycling, but tell your bike friends that "Mama Nurse Toni" says "NO". What Mama Nurse Toni says, I do. Faithfully. I like being around.

With the Central Florida Randonneurs 300km brevet on my calendar I kept looking at the weather forecast and thankfully even though a "cold" front was coming through the evening temps would only be around 50 F degrees.

One of the "going to be fun" things about this brevet is that a bunch of my recumbent buds who ride Bacchettas would be attending, John Schlitter amongst them. John is one of these long distance intrepid souls who started racing sailcars across the plains of Kansas. A racer at a young age, as he (ahem) matured, he got into long distance events, RAAM included. He currently holds the RAAM record as the only cyclist to complete RAAM on a recumbent. I knew I'd see him at the start and that would be it. These cyclists will complete a 300km ride (180) miles in about 10 to 11 hours.

Amazing

I have to keep telling them: "It's not a race. It's a brevet". Can't take the heart out of the lion.

When I started the 300km it was 5:00 a.m. in the morning, coldish, and we were going against a cross headwind out of the WNW at 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 40 mph plus. So I pondered: "And Joe, why are you doing these?" I got the same answer when I started in 2003: "Ummmm I don't know, but I really like 'em." Although this time I was questioning my sanity.

Most of the brevet was on either lightly traffic roads or back roads with the surface from "wow" to "ow", especially one 20 mile section that looked like something from a war zone. I'm sure it was used for either bombing or strafing practice. I came to realize the benefit of my titanium trusty steed and wondered what that road would have felt like on a standard bike.

Usually I'm the "Rouge Lanterne", but this time there were one or two riders who rode with me for awhile or lagged behind at the control. So I didn't finish last on this one, as I normally do.

One third of the way into the race, cycling head first into that headwind and lucky to maintain 9 to 10 mph I was sure I would never do a long distance brevet again. Why need to? I'm not qualifying for anything or going for a medal. Turning back into a cross headwind my legs had nothing...I mean nothing. It was all I could do to turn the pedals and move.

Then it happened.

Again.

On my last brevet I also went from "lunch legs" to "energizer bunny". How or why I don't know. All I know is that the next 100 miles were "well...let's just keep going..." and I felt like I could ride forever. That's usually my style: Just keep pedaling in a spin and grin gear. It works.

Finished in about 15 hours riding time which is standard fare of about 12mph to 13mph overall average for me on these long distance rides.

Have a 400km coming up in two weeks and I'm sure I'll ask myself the same question: "And Joe, why do you do these ridiculously long bike rides?'

Same answer: "I dunno.". Wait. Yes I do: "Because they're there."

P.S. The ride back went through Titusville on the eve that the last night shuttle launch was to take place. Took my time looking at the hundreds upon hundreds of campers, vendors, food stands, etc. being established overnight: A veritable city popped up.

Shelly's Blog: A New York State Of Mind

I met Shelly in NYC in the mid to late 90's. He owns (or did) a bike messenger company and has been carless for I don't know how long. His blog urbanmobilityproject.blogspot.com/ is a door into the biking culture of NYC.

Enjoy

Worth The Read

Well worth the read washcycle.typepad.com/home/2008/07/the-myth-of-the.html it am.

A Bit of Philosphy

Roland Provost writes a great blog. Until recently he has written under
eBent Recumbent Cycling at ebent.wordpress.com.


Philosophy from Provost's Blog:

As Groucho said "These are my principles and if you don’t like them, I have others".

1. We are doing this for fun. Anything that prevents us from having fun should be avoided. If it isn’t fun why are we here?

1A. We are riding for the fun and adventure not to ride.

1B. We can ride anywhere; we are here for another reason.

2. The faster you go the less you see. I have seen birds of prey circling and ants building mounds as I ride in the mountains. I tell myself they find my bike interesting.

2A. A great trip is full of little discoveries. These discoveries happen when you stop to look.

3. Everything is easy if you aren’t in a hurry. I met an 80 year old woman who had just ridden from California to Maine, her first cross country ride. She walked over every railroad track and up every hill. She told me this and I believe she was right.

4. Remember The 7 Ps – Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance or A Ride that Sucks!

5. We plan so that we can understand the consequences of changing the plan.

6. The plan was made so that the Ride would be fun. If what we are doing now is fun, we are following the plan, no matter what the plan said.

7. Enjoy what is here and now. Tomorrow may bring rain and traffic, don’t rush towards them enjoy this moment.

8. Keep your head up and your eyes open. There is very little interesting on the road and we won’t see what is interesting if we don’t look.

9. In Of Human Bondage, Maugham said, "The meaning of the Life is in the Persian Rug." This is also true for Bicycle Tours.

Amsterdamn Spring

Dozens of women posed naked on their bicycles on a bridge over one of Amsterdam's historic canals on Sunday - a unique sight even in a city famed for its relaxed attitude toward nudity and sex.

They were among 2000 men and women who participated in a series of four nude group photos in the city in the early hours of the morning as part of the latest project of US photographer Spencer Tunick.

The first and largest composition was in a decidedly prosaic location: a parking garage on the outer ring of the city.

But what the location lacked in romance, it made up for in style.

Participants lined the railings of the garage's twin circular towers, creating a pattern of multicoloured stripes against the white building and an overcast sky.

The women on bikes were selected from the larger group and posed with their chins pointed triumphantly upward toward the sky.

Other compositions included a group of men posing together near the parking garage and a mixed group of men and women on another bridge.

Tunick, from Brooklyn, New York, has become famous for photographing thousands of naked people in public settings worldwide, from London and Vienna to Buenos Aires and Buffalo.

He set a record for naked photography with a photo of 18,000 people in the buff in Mexico City last month.

Photos from Sunday's session are being exhibited at an Amsterdam club.

From the Associated Press

2010 SEBRING: 12/24 Hour Endurance Race UMCA

Many of my recumbent online bike buds have done this race. In the past I was overseas unable to attend. So this year with being in the states, I decided to "volunteer to crew" for Bacchetta riders. About Bacchetta

"Crew"ing for ultra distance riders means you do whatever it takes to keep your riders on the course. Time off the bike is lost time and less miles. These riders are there for a few reasons: (1) To qualify for RAAM (Race Across AMerica). (RAAM QUALIFYING) Various ultra races around the world are qualifiers for ultra distance ride of rides (2) To set a PR (Personal Record) or (3) Just to see what the heck it's like to ride 12 hours or 24 hours or as long as possible.

What made this year's race especially difficult was the unusual cold Florida weather coupled with the Florida hills, which goes by the name of wind!! The high temp on Saturday was about 47 degrees and as the sun dropped on the horizon so did the temperature until it bottomed out at about 35 degrees around 4:00 a.m. on the 14th. The hills/winds? All day over 20mph with gusts of 30 to 40 mph

One of the racers who set a record in 2007 had this to say: "I was pushing 250 watts and doing 11 to 17 mph into the wind." Okay says I. What does that mean to me, the layman? He told me that at 250 watts he is usually riding at 25 to 27 mph. That brought home the impact of the Florida "hills" on the riders this day. Record hopes were dashed or well, blown away.

I had the pleasure of watching a new female recumbent rider on a Carbent About Carbent smoke the course. Her name is Sandy Earl and she will be doing a solo RAAM (About RAAM) this year. Sandy rode 415 miles in 24 hours in just miserable conditions to set a new women's record.

Ultra distance bike rides take many shapes and forms. One of the most common is a "brevet" done by randonneurs.About Randonneurs

People often ask me why I do long distance rides and brevets. I put the question to one of the Sebring riders and her answer rings true. She wrote (with some minor editing by moi):

"Why do I do this race (you asked)? I do it because of all the Bacchetta people there in Florida and the route itself. It's not particularly tough, it's beautiful, and I love the camaraderie of like-minded people. I do it for personal satisfaction AND.... I really DO want to RAAM qualify and this is the one race where, unless they up the mileage requirements, I know it is possible for me to do so. I am already planning for next year. I could have hit 350 miles, for sure, had I had some training (and I didn't) ....... if there had not been all that wind. I was 98 miles short of my goal and quit 3 hours early.... even with a 15 mph average I'd have been within 55 miles of the goal and without the wind I know I could have gotten those 55 miles in over the previous hours.... Yup. I had 300 miles in 2008 in the socked bike and I spent a LOT of time in the pits.... way too much.

The Little Train That Could. That's me."

The Update Continues.............

Okay.. A New Year's Res: I will get this updated.

And I've started!!

February 2, 2009 Updates:

• Hanoi
  
• Sa PA
  
• Hoi An
  

Vietnam Sa Pa

Sa Pa photo album here: http://tinyurl.com/5u662c

Our journey began in Ha Noi the evening before, but that was just a fly in, check in, sleep in and spend half a day wandering about.

From Ha Noi we took a train to Sa Pa overnight. One of those old sleeper trains with four people to a sleeper car. So why didn't I take a photo of that? I have no idea except it was late, we were tired, and it was dark and dingy as can be.

Our sleep mates were a young French student who was doing a tour to wherever his wandering heart would take him. Viet Nam was a must for him, given that the French had invaded this country before we did. The Vietnamese called it the "French War". Our other cabin mate was someone who walked in, hopped in bed, and that was it. He looked Vietnamese but hard to tell.

NAIVE JOE: When we got to the train station we were told to look for a certain van. Mind you now it is about 5 a.m in the mornin. We spent a fitful night sleeping as the train was on a milk run with stops here and there. We find the van, hop in, clutching our valuables to our chest. The side sliding door is open and there's a light coolness in the air and people scurying about to and fro. A guy walks up to the van, looks at me and asks me for money. I reach in my pocket and pay the fare.

He walks away.

I think: Who was that masked man? Turn to Sue and say:"Y'know...some guy just asked me for $10 and I handed it to him questions unasked." It could have been anybody. Luckily it was the van helper who said to me when he saw me looking askance at him: "Okay. Is Okay. I work with van. You okay." I was. But I wasn't.

There's almost a full moon....the mountainside is serenely lit....the journey is long and slow, gears grinding to their own tune.

Arriving at the hotel, we're glad we're in the older section of the hotel. It has that lived in charm.

An area to walk was told to us. As we're walking down I'm getting "Grand Canyon Hike" flash back: Long time ago I hiked down into the Canyon. Lots of fun bouncing down the switchbacks. Hey. Only took an hour to get down. Took 3.5 HOURS to get back up. So I'm saying to Sue: "It's downhill, but we're gonna have a nice hike back." She says not to worry..we can do it.

All the way down locals on motor bikes are vying to ride us down for a fee. Our standard answer: "We like walking".

The ubiquitous: "Where are you from?" So I say "I'm from China". Well it's true. That's where I'm living. Without missing a beat he says: "Guess what? My name is China". Quick guy. We'd see him later.

The area was absolutely beautiful and although feeling like an interloper, walking through the local villages turned back the pages of time.

As we started to walk back up yup "Grand Canyon Flashback".

It was steep.

It was hot.

The motor bike guys kept asking to ride us up for a fee. We kept saying as the sweat poured off us: "No, we really like walking."

You guessed it. So how much to take us back to the top? $10? No way...we'll walk.

Later: So how much to take us to the top? $8? No way...we'll walk.

China came upon the scene with his friend and offered to take us to the top for $1 U.S. How could we say no? We ended up giving him $3.

In the afternoon, we did the tourist walk around town to the local outdoor markets, the Radio Tower Tourist Park, and then sat in a park with the sun beating down and gladly thinking how nice it is to worry about sunburn in the middle of December.

Dinner ended up being a Mama Hoo Hoo. That's Chinese for "Ah..so so".

Second Day Remembrances:

• Breakfast at a small family tucked away restaurant.
  
• Noticed a guy by himself and thought: "...what's it like to travel alone..?"
  
• Village Trek: We hired to do a hiking tour of a local village. The trek was down a mountain road, across rice paddies on narrow built walls, fjording streams, all with the aid of Hmong ladies who held Susan's hand the whole way and smiling all the time.
  
• "Slip & Fall" is not a new dance. It's what each of us did on the slippery narrow rack walls of rice paddies
  
• Tai and Jay our two Hmong lady "Helpers". Yes we knew they were doing it for tips...but their company was worth more than we could pay.
  
• "Walking stick". I bought one. Found out why. In one of the pics you can see how steep the climb/descent could be
  
• Village life with a "bride room".
  
• Many women working. We ask "Where are the men". The guide replies with a sly wink: "getting wood". In other words: "Nothing"
  
• Hemp: The Hmong ladies were constantly spinning hemp as they walked. We learned it can take 1 year to make enough hemp cloth for one garment
  
• Jeep trip back. Lunch. And who should be sitting next to us but the "lone guy" from breakfast. Quick hello and find out he's an ad exec from NYCity who had been thinking of doing this for 7 years. His parents recently deceased and as he said: "...I just decided it was time to go.."
  
• Train ride to end the journey. Bunk mates are a man and his "wife", who looked to be no more than 17 and who we heard crying into her cell phone throughout the night. What was the real story?
  
• Sa Pa...your journey ended far too soon
  

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Vietnam Ha Noi

After SaPa we returned to spend a few days in Hanoi, which is a fun, interesting, and eclectic city. What was especially nice was seeing the French influence in the architecture giving the city some tucked away charm behind the teeming mass of humanity on the streets.

Another thing I love about cities like this is that you can "walk" and find almost anything and everything you need. It's nice not to have to get in a cab or car to get from there to here. Of course in Hanoi, as in many other parts of Asia, the ubiquitous motor scooters cause a din of "putt puttting"all around you. It certainly appears that the scooter is/has replaced the bike for carrying everything from its human cargo to flocks of chicken or a pile of boxes or even a half dozen sheep hanging from their canvas holders bleeting downt he street.

A most wonderful and pleasant surprise was a visit to the Hanoi Cultural Museum. This was incredibly done with full size exhibits of a life past, rich in history of the tribes of early Vietnam and the cultural impact on a modern Viet Nam.

Strolling the grounds led us onto scenes typical of those we've found elsewhere in Asia: Favorite settings for wedding photographs. Unlike in the states when the majority of photos are done on the wedding day, Asian weddings seem to book way in advance to have their photographs taken in beautiful settings, often months before the wedding. In our short visit we came across no less than six wedding parties being photographed in about a one block area on the museum grounds.

An evening at the Water Puppet Show with more information here. The art form goes back to the tenth century where farmers used what media they had to create entertainment.

HANOI HILTON

Had to visit the Hanoi Hilton, the prison where John McCain and hundreds and hundreds of others were imprisoned. And as always to read more, do the Google or internet search for "Hanoi Hilton". The Vietnamese present their "side" of what happened in the "American War" and as many U.S. publications tout: "Don't believe everything you read." Now that Murdoch owns many U.S. newspapers, that sounds like good advice, even at home.

The evenings were a big bright spot as we found a great place for Vietnamese food down the street and you know the kind of place where the food is always the best: A mom and pop operation, complete with beaten up furniture, the head of the clan counting cash and the days receipts a few tables over, the door open to a kitchen with a quick glance might make you want to walk out, but the food was so Viet Damn good!!!! Where else can you have dinner, a beer, see what life is really like and for U.S. $5? No, sorry, a Burger King or McDonald's just doesn't come close at all.




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Vietnam Hoi An & Hue

LEFT CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE IN A SEPARATE WINDOW

Hoi An: Shoulda spent a week here!! Alas, we only stayed about 1.5 days but what a time it was and a time it was.

Our hotel was tucked in a corner down a street but had world class charm at carriage class prices. The name? Right. I'll get that as soon as I get that.

If I ever go back to Viet Nam this IS the one place I'll return to:

• Meandering streets full of interesting places and charm
  
• Colorful interesting buildings
  
• Doors. I love to photograph doors. I did this long before those multi windos poster and door posters were made. Yeah, I had that idea but did nothing with it. He who hesitates is....
  
• Boat people. Hoi An is on the water and I loved watching the migration of people, wares, animals back and forth from the islands
  
• Arteests. Saw some of the best lacquer and art work here. So why didn't I gather up a horde and take some home? Slaps self
  
• Food!! Scrumptous food at the restaurants we visited and those were only a few
  
• Shoes!! You'll read about Sues Shuz later.
  
• Beaches....nice. I think they looked better than Phu Quoc island.
  

Going to write this in Hemingway fashion..yeah..as if I could write like Hemingway.

Bike ride around Hoi An. Leisurely and fun. Dinner walk. Met a couple we met before and then again. Small world. Recommended the "Cargo Club" for dinner. Awesome Cao Lau food. Superb.

Breakfast at the hotel to die for. The presentation was better than the food. One of those times I shoulda taken pics.

History and Cultural Museum. Love the misspelled stuff: Chinese "cooper"coins. Carpenting. Genuis of Cultur. to name a few. However, there was this quote from long ago: "In the coming time, Hoi An will surely be an attractive place for tourists, especially those who want to live in the rightousness of the old town once so merry prosperous and well known." Only written a hundred years ago.

Some remembrances of Hoi An:

BOAT EYE:

Each boat has an eye painted on the bow for the boat to "see".

HAIR PICKING: Saw many women doing this. As one woman said: "Sometimes a curly hair that itches or we pluck out the gray."

BOAT PEOPLE: Packed boats of people coming from the islands to work.

HORSES: The protect the temples and are the guards.

YELLOW HOUSES: Soooooo many yellow houses. One native said "tradtion", but none I could find could tell me from whence tradtion came.

KAO KAO: As Sammy said "..the candy man can.." Many of these men selling candy all around town.

LACQUER: Got a "no no no" from Joe, but I shoulda.

SUEZ SHUEZ: At the last minute Sue decided she wanted a pair of boots because they were so inexpensive. "Boots ready next morning" says woman. Sue says okay and pays. Well, the next morning came....had to go get boots....we leave in what 2 hours. Right boots very, very tight. "I go fix". Boots come back as we're leaving. End of story? Sue gave the boots to her daughter.

Long, long, long bus ride to HUE.

HUE. Eh!! After Hoi An. Major let down. Didn't even take a note.

Get thee to Hoi An..you'll love it.

As for Hue? Fawgedaboutit. Shoulda spent more time in Hoi An.

Next time





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Vietnam Sa Pa By a Wall Slowly

In the village of Sa Pa many of the Hmong sell their wares to the tourists. In one way I felt like someone outside a fishbowl in that here I am, Joe American, enjoying the beauty of these people while they toil away to sell to the tourist.

There are various tribes some called RED Hmong, others BLACK Hmong and I think I read about FLOWER Hmong. Some Hmong information: .




www.laofamily.org/pdfs/Hmong_History.pdf


One Hmong woman hung her blankets and items on a wall across from where I was sitting. As locals and tourists walked in front of "The Wall" which was on an incline going uphill into town I was enjoying the images. In some cases it was a struggle pulling carts and in others tourists gleefully bounded upwards.

I started to shoot thinking this would make a nice travelogue when a giant delivery truck pulled right in front of the wall to deliver goods. I waited 1.5 hours but the truck didn't move.

I did.

Vietnam Saigon Ho Chi Minh City

HCMC Placeholder

Vietnam Phu Quoc Island Dec 28

Placeholder Phu Quoc

Hangzhou 2007

Placeholder for Hangzhou blog entry.

Yangshou Fall 2007

Yangshuo is the first place we've visited in China where I felt like I was visiting a unique area and real culture. Shanghai doesn't give that feeling. Simply this was a place to escape the hustle and bustle of Shanghai and nestle amongst the Karsh outcroppings at a way off the beaten path resort: The Yangshou Mountain Resort, hestled on the shore of the Li Rivewr.

We did venture into downtown Yangshuo but this was during National Day. (Copy follows) National Day (October 1)

It is the anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 in the wake of routing the Nationalists who have since taken refuge in Taiwan. There used to be grand parades squares of major cities of the country. Now celebrations usually take the form of parties in amusement parks by day and fire-works and grand TV ensembles during the evening. Employees enjoy two paid days-off. It is also a good occasion for many people to take a short excursion to enjoy the beauty of the golden Fall

The following is from where you can read more about Yangshou. Google Karsh Mountains for the history of these outcroppings, which were pushed up by Mama Earth's burping millions of years ago Wind and rain eroded them over the eons to their present shapes.

Yangshuo lies in the northeast of Guangxi Province and to the southeast of Guilin City. The special geography gives it breath-taking beauty while over 1,400 years of history bless it with a deep traditional culture. The diverse ethnic minority groups including Hui, Zhuang, Yao and others, enrich it with special folk cultures represented by their various festivals; while many foreign residents add exotic flavors to its fascination.

The famous Li River traverses the county and brings it the most beautiful scenery. Along the extremely pure river, thousands of hills stand in different poses and with different expressions, such as Moon Hill, Mural Hill and Schoolboy Hill which is the natural stage of the world famous opera 'Impression on Sanjie Liu'.

Sanjie Liu is a fairy singer in the legend of the Zhuang minority group. Big Banyan, a huge tree with a history of over 1,400 years, is said to be the place where her love story happened. The 'Little Li River'- the Yulong River – is a paradise for a cruise because of its green hills, silky water and ancient bridges. You can also go to Xanadu, a primitive minority village full of folk culture and tranquil rurality.

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