After another hearty breakfast in the open coffee shop with piano music in the background, we climb aboard the bus for the short trip to "Elephant Trunk Hill" for a lovely, steeply staired - uneven heights, relatively short hike to the top where the "pagoda" resembles a large urn which is from the Ming period of Chinese history. (As we pull into the parking area, another bus backs up into our bus and damages one of the mirrors. As we learn later, incidents such as this are handled between drivers though police can get involved and there is insurance.) The views from the short hill are of the river, bridges, and the city of Guilin. The vegetation is like that of a rainforest. The path meanders around a bit and forks in several places so we go back and forth to try to take everything in. It takes us a while but we finally find a tunneled cave that is open at both ends with two musicians who are playing Chinese music at the end opposite from the way we enter. One gentleman is playing an erhu (2 stringed instrument with a bow) while the other is playing a recorder - beautifully, I might add - that looks like it is a clear plastic. As we make our way down the hill, we pass by a multigenerational family who are singing and dancing together in a spot with stone benches. We walk through an area with a small pond with koi, a shrine with figurines set into an alcove in the stone wall, big bowls with sticks of incense stuck into them whose scent permeates the air. This area is adjacent to a large building, but we don't know what it is - a temple or an office? I forget to ask Lili later on. She remained at the bottom with another member of our group who preferred not to make the trek. Once at the foot of the hill, we walk around to the side where we can see why the hill has gotten the name of "elephant". Another photo op, too.
After this, back on the bus, we go the the Reed Flute Cave where Lili leads us on a tour of the cave. Lots of stalactites and stalagmites whose configurations are named and labeled, including an amazing resemblance of the Statue of Liberty that Lili points out, but it is noticeably not labeled. Colored lights illuminate the area. It's cool and humid throughout the cave. The cave was used as a hiding place from the Japanese during the invasion as it was a secret until after the war. Now it is a visiting place for dignitaries and banquets have been held in the largest open area. As we leave, we go by a shop where I want to look at the flutes that are available for sale. My oh my, am I sorry that I decided to do that. I am grateful that Richard assists in the necessary bargaining to get the price down to a reasonable one for a flute that is clearly not a fine one but is unique with a gourd making up the mouthpiece below which are 3 hollow sections of bamboo, one of which has the holes to cover to make the notes. Plays like a recorder and is in the key of C, circled at the top. Later in the hotel, Anna and I have a nice time playing it.
About the seeming obligatory shopping opportunities and the haggling aspect of this trip, I really feel as if it creates more of a barrier between the sellers and the buyers than should be necessary from my standpoint. The process does not inspire my trust in the products or the people selling the wares and prevents it from being a more pleasant interchange. I remind myself that the purpose of this trip is to give Anna a thumbnail sketch of her homeland with a particular focus of going back to the orphanage that she resided in before we adopted her so the travel agency arranged, overall tour, going from one hotel to another lends itself to that purpose. However, this is not my preferred means of travel or exploration. Hopefully, other times, we will have better opportunities to get to know the people directly.
Once on the bus again, we go to lunch at the Guilin Fubo Hotel that appears to be full of a lot of tourists on this day. Quite elegant with crisply starched white tablecloths and chairs that have covers made out of gold material. Chinese style with lazy Susan in the middle that turns around as each person helps him or herself to what is on the platters of food. No menus here. One of platters is duck. Another is a deliciously spiced cooked eggplant. Dessert is cut fruit - all with peels on the pieces, topped by a delicately carved, intricate Phoenix made out of watermelon rind.
After lunch, we're back on the bus for another short drive to the South China Pearl Museum where we are given an explanation about the development of pearls. The difference between fresh water and sea water pearls is described. We also learn that the way to tell a fake pearl from a real one is to rub them together: If it feels smooth, they're fake, but if it feels slightly rough, they're real. The expert who is giving us the demonstration opens an oyster in front of us so that we can see the pearl that has developed over the last 3 years or so. After a small grain of some sort has been inserted into the oyster, the oyster rests for a number of years to allow the successive layers of pearl to develop. The longer it sits, the larger and more precious the pearl becomes. Pearls are judged on four factors: Roundness, width, weight, luster. After this lesson, we are ushered into a room with rows of chairs and a runway. My own note here: Horrors! Yes, the seven of us are there to see a fashion show of 8 young women in long evening dresses who are modeling pearls around their necks and on their wrists and fingers. I can't help but notice their impassive expressions the whole time. It seems that that these young women grace the runway for each tour group that arrives. Of course, the next stop is, you guessed it, the showroom where we make some reasonable selections - Anna had the best idea here along with Gail - and depart.
Back to the hotel and then walked around the corner to Rosemary's Cafe nearby for supper outdoors before heading back to the hotel to pack in preparation for moving along to our next destination tomorrow.
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