Wonderland *(Xanadu)

The legend of Liu San Jie fired our young minds in the 60's in Sibu. It was not until  June 2016 that I was able to visit Guilin, her birth place. It was like a pilgrimage to a holy land of young social activists agains tyrannical land lords.

" land of idyllic beauty" (Shi Wai Tao Yuan) is the description of Yangshuo County. It is a wonderland, or Xanadu.




I saw the wine making culture there.




Their houses are pretty, but not so different from the Fujian houses of our ancestors.


Dr. Loh de husking rice.





Guilin is a wonderland.

Guilin : A Man and his Weaving Machine

In Guilin, I saw for the first time a male weaver and he was a fairly old man in his 60's

He was one of the many weavers in the museum who demonstrated his skills when groups of tourists came by.

He also wore  tribal costumes.

The weaving loom looks very complicated.

If you happen to visit Guilin don't forget to book the show Guilin Impression Liu San. (Choreographed by none other Zhang Yimou.) A Must See.

Guilin Impression Liu Sanjie

Four Frog Metal Drum of Guilin

This is a Four Frog Drum in Guanxi, Guilin. I was there as a tourist.


There is evidence that this four-frog drum from Guangxi region have been present in Indonesia since approximately the 3rd century CE. The drums were clearly part of the systems of alliance, trade, tribute, and exchange across SE Asia and SW China.

In the ancient days drums like this symbolized authority.

There were also ritual and sacred objects.  Used in ceremonies, they were played as musical instruments. Offerings were poured over them. Some were even buried in lavish tombs.
The frog motifs supports the belief that they bring rainfall in Asia.

Hence this drum is a significant symbol in agricultural Guangxi area (Guilin)

Drums continue to play an important role in the culture of Asia.

Guilin : Tribal Brass Gongs

This is a nice display of the well loved brass gongs of Guilin.

Liu San Jie Memorial Garden, Guilin.

Guilin : Elephant Trunk Hill

Miri has Horse Drinking Water at Tusan Beach while Guilin has Elephant Trunk Hill.









Our tour guide told us the legend of the Elephant Trunk Hill.

It is said that the Elephant Turnk Hill is the embodiment of a God Elephant who was loved by the Emperor of Heaven.  The emperor would ride him every where he went. But during a war, the Elephant was separated from the Emperor and was stranded in Guilin. He had suffered severe wounds.

A couple saved him and the elephant fell in love with the beauty of Guilin and decided not to return to heaven. The Emperor of Heaven understood him and bestowed a pagoda to help it suppress evils and protect the people. Ever since then, the Elephant never left Guilin and it became the Elephant Trunk Hill.

The Puxian Pagoda is said to be the one bestowed by the Emperor of Heaven.

Meeting the Legendary Liu San Jie and Tasting Bamboo Pork

In every restaurant we came across a lot of dishes serving pork cooked in Bamboo.

Here is a lovely dish from the restaurant of the hotel we stayed it. Yongshuo has nice food and it would be good to visit again.

Crispy baked fish is always on the table at the restaurant. Sweet and sour but not based on tomato sauce.
Pork with a very sweet sauce...caramelised.


A special flat bun, almost a foot in diameter.



All the dishes are laid our here, with two complimentary bottles of beer.

Below are two dishes from the Internet.

Longji Rice Terraces of Longsheng, Guilin

http://yangshuo-insider.com/longji-rice-terraces-longsheng-dazhai-pingan/

I was thrilled to be in Longji or Long Sheng where the most famous rice terraces of Mainland China can be found.

The people are very friendly and they have lots of stories to tell. They are rather like the Ibans and Bidayuhs of Sarawak, humble, on the quiet side and they cook lots of food for their guests which make many of us homesick for Sarawak.

There are mainly old people and very young children in the villages. The young people have all gone OUT to work (dah gong), and some as far as Nangyang!! (They know Singapore very well).

Costumes of the minority group living in Longsheng with a cute little grandson who is very cute and alert. She has brought him in a basket as she has to sell tourist souvenirs at the centre. Photograph by Sarawakiana.

Below is a photo by Daulay (Google)


Dragon Backbone’s Rice Terraces is the most amazing terrace in China! Construction of the terraces began in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), and continued until the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) when construction was completed. The Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces are the culmination of both the profound wisdom and strenuous labor of the Zhuang people.

Here we met the local people and exchange some information about the majestic system of cascading aqueducts.

We came at the right moment because April is the beginning of the rice planing season.

The people here do most things by hand and water buffalo.

Longsheng Rice Terraces (Dragon's Backbone) (simplified Chinese: 龙胜梯田; traditional Chinese: 龍勝梯田; pinyin: lóngshèng tītián), also called the Longji Rice Terraces (simplified Chinese: 龙脊梯田; traditional Chinese: 龍脊梯田; pinyin: lóngjǐ tītián), are located in Longsheng County, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) from Guilin, Guangxi, China.


The Longji terraced fields  (2,000 to 2500 feet a.s.l ) received its name because the rice terraces resemble a dragon's scales, while the summit of the mountain range looks like the backbone of the drangon.

Silver Cavem Yangshuo, Guilin

Guilin is full of limestone hills.

The karst landscape was the perfect setting for the movie, Liu San Chie, Third Sister Liu.

We were staying at Yangshuo for a few days and were taken to see the Silver Cave. Though the majority of the group had wanted only to do shopping, a few of us took the opportunity to wander into the caves for a good look.

The Silver Cave is located in Maling town (sounds like Sibu's Maling) and is only 11 miles from Yangshua.

It is the largest kasrst cave in Guilin and we were very impressed by the crystal stalactites. The caves are brightly lit and the stalactites glitter like silver and diamonds. This actually results in its name. Silver Cave.

Very majestic. And your spirits will definitely be uplifted by the smiles from the tourists. Advice - never go with a group which is silly and ony interested in shopping.

Extra notes : Winding 2,000 meters (2,187 yards) through twelve peaks, the Silver Cave is a multi-level cave ascending as high as 16 floors. It can be divided into three parts - the ground cave, the main hall, and the upper cave. (Wikipedia)