Yangshuo, China - January 2026 - Day 2

In the morning I got up and had breakfast at the hotel for a princely RMB25 (AUD5). It was good...

After that I got a Didi to what is known as the Red Bridge, or Ruyi Lookout. The driver was a middle aged man. I don't understand the Chinese fascination with these things...

I caught the cable car up which was quite stunning...

It's called the Red Bridge as it has thousands of red ribbons tied to it. Tradition is that you write your life goals on the ribbon and tie it to the bridge for good luck...

It's been really well done, and there's a one-way walk over the bridge, up to the lookout and then down to another area with a glass walkway. You can see the lookout area in the picture behind me...

Made it to the top where there are more ribbons...

Looking back the way I had come...

Then headed down to the next area which has a glass walkway. 

It doesn't feel too scary as it's not as high off the ground...

Slip carefully!

The next stage I was not expecting. A glass walkway on the edge of the cliff. It was fine as you didn't look down...

They provided special slippers...

I then caught the cable car back down and called a Didi. It is very easy to get a car here and they are very cheap.

Next stop is a place famous as it is the backdrop for the CNY20 note. I find this funny as China is completely cashless and nobody knows what a CNY20 note looks like.

It's quite common to see people dressed in traditional clothes and taking photos at tourist sites. I did ask permission before taking this...

That night for dinner I went to another place in Yangshuo I had seen reviewed...

Nice view of the river...

After dinner, I walked into the main drag, West Street...

I had a massage...

After that, I found a cool bar with live music, although it was all in Mandarin...

There are a lot of panda themed things here, even though we are not in panda country...

Yangshuo, China - January 2026 - Day 1

I'm really excited to be heading to Yangshuo today. I caught an early train from Shenzhen North and had to change trains at Guilin as I couldn't get a direct train from Shenzhen. On arrival at Yangshuo I caught a Didi to my hotel. It was a 40 minute drive. 

I checked in and had a walk around the hotel. It's very peaceful...

I then headed to lunch at a rooftop restaurant that I had read about. The bowl of tea is to wash your plates and chopsticks in, as is normal in China and HK...

The restaurant had lovely views...

I ordered the set. This is the signature bamboo chicken soup...

Plus this tofu which was great...

I wanted to go on the Yulong River so I caught a Didi about 15 minutes away and took a ride on one of these rafts...

The lady propelled us with a pole...

We had to go over a number of causeways which was difficult for her, but we made it...

It's a nice day and pleasant being on the river...

Coming back to the starting point...

I caught a Didi back to the hotel past the Romance Park with an impressive structure...

That night I got a Didi to West Steet, the main tourist street. It was pumping with many bars, restaurants and other shops...

It's quite cold at night - about 14 degrees...

Got a Didi back to the hotel to sleep!

Shenzhen, China - January 2026

I had enjoyed my train trip to Hangzhou last year and achieved all I wanted for my few days in the Hong Kong office, so I thought I'd take an annual leave leave day and head to Yangshuo, about a 3 hour train ride away. It had been recommended as a very beautiful part of China.

After work, I headed to Shenzhen on the fast speed train from West Kowloon. All very efficient but a bit of a process leaving HK and clearing China immigration.

It took less than 20 minutes to get to Shenzhen North, which is where I will get on the train tomorrow. I stayed a night at Pullman Shenzhen North which is effectively above the station. The hotel is new and big, and I had a room on the 51st floor.

Went for dinner at a Chinese restaurant. These were like a beef wrap. Nice presentation but the beef was dry...

The dumplings were okay but a bit tasteless...

This is the signature drink. It was like a Rose, but the fun thing was the jelly temple in it!

Shenzhen has a lot of impressive buildings...

Lots of greenery...

I then went back to the hotel and crashed.

The next morning I got up early and went to the station about 0730 for my 0800 departure. It's another large Chinese train station but easy to get through. 

The good thing about train travel in China is that you put your passport details in when you book, and you use that - no need for a ticket at the gate - just use your passport. 

I got some food...

I booked First Class and got a little snack pack...