This past week we took our first trip with some friends and fellow teachers from Seattle, Kristin and Jeremy and their 3-year-old son Sawyer. We went to Yangshuo, a tourist town 700 miles west of us known for its dramatic karst peaks, traversed by the Li and Yulong Rivers. It was nice to escape the city for a bit and the scenery did not disappoint!
We spent our mornings exploring by bike, mostly on paths along the river, with a couple detours through small towns (being extra mindful of the traffic and electric scooters zipping by) and a couple off road adventures in search of spots to go climbing. (Yangshuo is a popular rock climbing destination in Asia, and Jeremy happens to be an avid climber so he showed us the ropes.) Most afternoons were spent back at our hotel by the pool, which was charming and also aptly referred to by Gabe as a “family hostel.” It was buzzing with kids running around and the rooms were right off of an open dining space, where everyone spent their time eating, socializing, drinking, etc. Not the most relaxing or quiet, but we met some nice families – most from Europe and also living/working in China.
Juxian Village 
Below are photos of an indoor food market. On the left are buckets of snails, frogs, and small fish and a produce aisle on the right. I took a cooking class one night (which was great and now a must do on future trips) and the first stop was the market. I decided to forgo the walk through the separate meat market after the mention of cat and dog. I’m not ready to become a vegetarian, although I’ve seriously contemplated it the past couple months.
It was a big national holiday this week and we’d been warned of the crowds so we did our best to avoid them and the major tourist attractions, with the exception of dinner in downtown Yangshuo.
