Yangshuo

I'm spending a few days in this small town (finally) which is an hour south of Guilin and also known as "backpacker central." Unfortunately the large number of tourists has made some of the locals less-than-honest... This is the first place where I have felt that people might be trying to take advantage of me. The seemingly friendly greeting "Hello Hello" is always followed by a sales pitch ("Water," "Cold Drink," "Look In"). I guess I expected that all over the country and got used to the Chinese people being genuinely friendly for the most part.

That said, the scenery more than makes up for the people. The town is on the bank of the Li River, surrounded by limestone karsts dotting the countryside. There are a number of small villages which are within biking distance. Yesterday I biked to Moon Hill and along the Yulong river, and today I visited Fuli and Xingping. It is hot... air-con is a must-have!

On Sunday I fly to Hong Kong where I will spend Rosh Hashana with the United Jewish Congregation of HK.