The experience of riding down the Li River almost completely made some of our negative thoughts of China disappear. We could never have come close to imagining how breathtaking the views and scenery would be during this journey down the river.

Taking a boat down the Li River is quite a popular way for people to get from Guilin to Yangshuo. We had a sense that the “boat ride” would most likely be a giant vessel packed with tons of Chinese tourists, and that it might not be the most enjoyable and peaceful way to take the sites in (cigarette smoking, squatting, and spitting isn’t our idea of relaxing yet all too common to Chinese culture). Thus, we did a little investigation and discovered we could take a private speed boat down the river for just $12 more – also, we could bring our luggage with us and spend a couple nights in Yangshuo! We were in.

WOW, Jason and I were in total awe of the beauty of our surroundings as we flew down the river in our private boat manned by our very gracious captain. The large limestone karsts surrounded us almost the whole stretch of the river – for an entire 3 hours we got to view the splendor of the mountains. The day happened to be quite foggy, which created quite a magical feel in the landscape around us. Not even New Zealand could rival this beauty

Not only were the views of the mountains and river stunning, but passing by all of the fisherman on their tiny little bamboo rafts was quite a site to take in. It truly felt like we were in some sort of mystical story, since the images felt so surreal. Even our “bathroom break” was an awesome experience. Our eager to please captain pulled onto the embankment of the river, where we jumped off the front of the boat into yet some more amazing countryside. The backdrop of our pit stop was an open plain where a herd of cows were grazing. We also met a local farmer who wanted to share his birds with us (in other words charge us to take a picture with them), which was actually quite cool as you can see in the video.

We certainly have a new appreciation of China and some of the beauty it has to offer after getting out of the big cities and spending some time in the rural areas. Click here to see all of the amazing pictures!