Diaries from solo travelling South Western China

By Eva, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

Chinese university holidays are at different times to what we are used to in the UK. The main winter holiday is structured around Chinese new year. We had from early January, after our exams finished, to early March off and were free to do what we pleased. I used this opportunity to travel around China (mainly the Yunnan province) and also make the most of the cheap flights to other countries in Asia.

My solo travelling started with a 20 hour sleeper train from Shanghai to Guilin. I could have flown in a couple of hours but opted for the train because it is cheaper, better for the environment and I like to stare out of the window imagining I’m in a film. The bed was quite comfortable but a bit difficult to climb into as it was the highest of 3 bunks. I got chatting to this girl around my age going home to Guilin and having some company made the time go faster. This was my first of many experiences of just how kind people would be towards me on this trip.

After arriving in Guilin, transferring to a train to Yangshuo and then a bus to Xingping, I reached my hostel at last. That afternoon was spent exploring the small town which consisted of about 3 streets next to the gorgeous Li river. I climbed Laozhaishan, a hill right in the centre of Xingping. It provided a gorgeous view of the karst peaks framing the river. Everyone else seemed to have the same idea because the hill was dangerously overcrowded with big queues of people waiting to climb the single rusty ladder to reach the top.

I had dinner that night with 2 Chinese women from my hostel, this really put my language skills to test as I rarely use Chinese in a casual, social setting.

The following day I set out to climb Damianshan. This involved a short ferry ride across the river before following a footpath up the mountain. I was alarmed when I reached what I thought was the base of the hill only to find a ‘no entry, trespassers will be prosecuted’ sign. In any other country I might have risked it but there was a big CCTV camera glaring at me so decided to find another route. At the next entrance they were willing to let you trespass if you paid a 20元 entrance fee. A small price to pay to not have to deal with the Chinese justice system.

In contrast with yesterday’s walk, today I saw no one else attempting the same route. That was until I reached the top and there was a middle aged couple and their parents. I was trying to get my breath back from the hour of straight steps I had just climbed only to be shown up by these 70 year olds, some of whom had no teeth. They were really kind to me and after exclamations about how tall I was and how brave I had been to climb the hill alone, forced me to share their packed lunch. They didn’t have to try very hard to ply me with satsumas and dumplings.