Longji Titian- Dragon Backbone Terraces

In this post, and the few to follow lies the explanation for the prolonged silence on this blog. I have been away to other parts of China, just like the bear who went over the mountain, to see what I could see (are you singing it now?? Good. Then my job here is done).

We began our journey with a flight to Guilin where we were met by our guide. Due to the drippy weather, we modified our schedule somewhat and limited ourselves to a visit to a large cave, and a local park. The real reason for this destination was its proximity to the terraces and the Li River (more about that in another post). On the following day, we headed out to the terraces, and after a two hour drive, and a stop at the base of the mountain to see a minority people's village (pretty touristy), we arrived near top of the mountain to begin our ascent on foot. There are men and women with large baskets, and some with portable chaises that will offer to carry you or your baggage up to the top for a fee. I suppose that it might provide additional income to rice farming, but it seems like a tough way to do it.

The range boast mountains that are as high as 1000 meters, but this community has decided to farm the middle and lower reaches of that range. It looked to me as though the only commercial agriculture here is rice, but there were small family gardens for the provision of fresh vegetables. There were also lots of restaurants and small hotels, and lots of shops.


We made our way to the village of Ping An. This village and the terraces were constructed by another minority group by the name of Zhuang. According to our guide, they came to this area over 800 years ago, and due to the pressure from the other minority people who live at the base, opted to move to the top of the mountain. There, they live in traditional wooden houses and have increasingly terraced almost the entire area. It is apparently quite spectacular to view it near sunset at planting time, when the sun reflects on the water filled terraces. While we visited at planting time, or near it, we were not there at sunset. Regrettably None of our guide books or web sites informed us of the ability to stay overnight in the village, or we would have chosen this over Guilin any day. It is also said to be very striking in the fall at harvest time- we may consider going again then.


We were rewarded for our "hiking" efforts (the whole hill side is covered with steps- not a very rugged outdoor experience) with a really tasty lunch. The local specialty here is a rice cooked in a mature piece of bamboo. The put the sticky rice, with its seasonings and other additives inside the bamboo piece with water, seal the top hole with a piece of corn cob and let the whole thing sit on a brazier of sorts. The result is a very tasty rice with a slightly grassy flavor. They bring the whole charred bamboo to the table and then crack it open. This dish was accompanied by eggplant, deep fried little fish (ate them, bones and all), vegetable dishes and was all washed down with the local beer.



After lunch, we all rolled down the steps and made our way through the gauntlet of shops back to the van and then ultimately back to Guilin for the night. Many of the products for sale were new to me, and I may have bought a thing or two (beautiful indigo dyed, white stitched table cloth, and some cute little dolls that will find their way to my Christmas tree one day).