Yangshuo - Day 2

The day started off with bacon, eggs and toast which we haven't had since we've been in China! Then it was off to explore on bikes. Our destination was the 1,400 year old Banyan Tree. We quickly got lost and ended up riding through open fields and greeting the smiling faces of the villagers. We eventually saw our ancient tree, but like most road trips, getting there was half the fun. Our ride back was quite memorable as well, but for different reasons. After 5 hours of biking we were tired, hot, sticky and looking forward to a cold shower. We were less than 10 minutes away from our hotel chugging up a small hill when a big truck carrying pig manure zooms past us. The stench nearly knocked me off my bike. As I was trying to ride my bike with one hand while clenching my nose with the other, a bigger truck comes roaring past us leaving a trail of black exhaust fumes in our path. At that point, Yangshuo wasn't quite looking so beautiful. However, a couple hours later while we were enjoying our dinner on the patio of our hotel watching the colors of the sky change as the sun went down, we were charmed by this riverside city once again.