The story appears on

Page B6

September 30, 2015

GET this page in PDF

Free for subscribers

View shopping cart

Related News

Home » Feature » Travel

Sipping homemade liquors under a starry sky

QU Ming spends as much as half the year traveling. Having worked in Shanghai for years, the Heilongjiang native likes to pack up his sleeping bag and tent, and drive off the beaten path into villages all over the country.

He stops wherever he wants and enjoys learning about the local customs of the places he visits. Nine years ago he visited Yangjia Village. He promptly fell in love with the remote village along the Lijiang River in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. He then rented a house and transformed it into a boutique hotel named Yun House. Qu takes hotel guests to the nearby mountains and Lijiang River. He knows a dozen trekking routes that few local residents are aware of.

“Every year I keep some time to my self, lingering out in the wild to feel the bond between humans and nature,” he said.

My favorite destinations so far are Yunnan Province and the Inner Mongolia, which both have rich cultures and attractive views. Bingzhongluo in Yunnan is a place for convergence. It is where the Nujiang, Lancang and Jinsha rivers mingle, and where several religious beliefs co-exist.

On the grasslands of Hulun Buir in Inner Mongolia, I was impressed by the hospitality and simplicity of the Mongols. We were driving in the night on the grasslands and ended up nowhere, when we met an old Mongol lady. She led us to her family’s yurt, and called her son and daughter-in-law to send a truck of food and supplies. We later found out they drove for hours to buy the stuff and a couple more hours to send us the stuff.

 

The most thrilling trip I’ve ever tried is taking photos while naked atop the mountains of Tiger Leaping Gorge in Yunnan. I wanted to feel a real connection between humanity and nature. For sure, nobody else was there.

 

A decent option for those who want to avoid cities are remote villages along the Lijiang River in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Instead of going to Yangshuo, where tourists flock all year round, choose a remote spot along the river like Yangjia Village. Lying between Xingping Old Town and the Hill of Nine-horse Painting, the village is amidst lush bamboos.

Walk to the Lijiang River before dawn to marvel at the beauty and peace of the river. The water flows steadily and thin twists of mist sometimes lingers above the river’s surface.

In the morning, go cycling along the river to check out the picturesque mountain views and their reflections in the water on the way. Popular sites include Yellow Cloth Reflection, where the yellow tidal flats can been seen through crystal clear water, and 20-yuan site, from where the view across the river is featured on the back of the 20-yuan note.

Set aside enough time to chase a sunrise or sunset on top of Laozhai Mountain. Adjacent to Xingping Old Town, the mountain was first “discovered” by a Japanese named Lin Kezhi in 1996. He was so captivated by the view that he went back to his country to raise 10,000 yuan so he could build a path to the top. It took him three years to finish the path. He then settled down and opened a two-story lodge at the foot the mountain. The path is steep, slippery and rugged, yet the climb is worth the effort when you witness the sun casting its light over the rolling peaks, as if walking out from an ink-wash painting.

I also like to take guests hiking on the mountain behind our hotel. I even build a primitive kiln at our camp site and make a couple of baked beggar’s chicken. In the evening, I like to bring guests onto a docked raft. We lied down and drank my homemade wines or liquors and chatted in the soothing breeze under the starry sky.




 

Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

沪公网安备 31010602000204号

Email this to your friend