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Guilin Travel Guide
Guilin is one of China's most famous places of historic interest and scenic beauty. Its scenery enjoys the highest fame all over the world. Two crystal-clear rivers meander through the city, which is encircled by mountains with unusual & bizarre rock formations and caves.
Geological studies show that the original Guilin was a vast expanse of sea until 300 million years ago, the crustal movement made the limestone deposit in the deep sea rise and gradually formed to land. This karst formation was moulded through many years of erosion by the wind and rain to become the hills and rocks with unusual shapes. There are many complete karst (Limestone sites), together with the crystal-clear Lijiang River that surrounds the city, characterize Guilin's scenery and have brought it world fame.
Lying in the northeast of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and within the subtropical region, it enjoys a mild temperature with a yearly average temperature of 19?. The city area of Guilin is 50 square kilometers and the population is about 1,260,000 in the city and surrounding area.
Guilin got its name from the fragrance of osmanthus tree. The first inhabitants can be traced back to 2,000 years ago. Guilin prospered and flourished in Tang, Song, Ming and Qing under patronage from succeeding Emperors. Guilin is a compact community by scores of minority nationalities. The population from 28 ethic nationalities such as the Zhuang, Miao, Yao, and Dong accounts for 8.5% of the total population in Guilin. Guilin has a splendid civilization such as the Zhenpi Rock prehistory civilization, the Ling Canal built in the Qin Dynasty (221-206BC), the Jingjiang Tombs of the Ming dynasty, the landscape civilization by the Cliffside stone carvings and the landscape poems. Now 109 cultural relics sites are under the national, provincial and city level special protection. Poems, verses and Buddhist carvings can be found all over the caves and holes of the mountains, among which the most famous ones are the Stele Forest of Guilin and the Cliffside Stone Carvings on the Western Hill. Guilin has been listed as one of the 10 best tourist destinations.
Guilin has a sub-tropical monsoon climate with four mild and distinctive seasons. The weather in January is the coolest with an average temperature of 7.9 C (46 F). July is the hottest with an average temperature of 28.3 C (82.9 F). Summer is the rainy season, especially in May and June. So the optimum time to travel in Guilin is from April to October.
Guilin old town tour 4 days / $138
Minority Culture and Terrace Field Tour 7 days / $311
Splendid terrace field view with classical guilin tour 4 days / $245
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Guilin rice noodles (pinyin: Guìlín mifen) have been the local breakfast staple since the Qin dynasty and are renowned for their delicate taste. Legend has it that when Qin troops suffering from diarrhea entered this region, a cook created the Guilin rice noodles for the army because they had trouble eating the local food. Specifically, the local specialty is noodles with horse meat, but this dish can also be ordered without the horse meat. Zongzi ( pinyin: zòngzi), a dumpling made from glutinous rice and mung bean paste wrapped in a bamboo or banana leaf) is another popular delicacy in Guilin.
By air
Guilin Liangjiang International Airport is 26 km (16.2 miles) from the city center. Over 50 airlines connect Guilin with domestic cities as well as foreign counties such as Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, etc. In particular, airlines schedule several flights daily to and from major cities like Beijing, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Guiyang, Haikou, Hangzhou, Hong Kong, Kunming, Macau, Nanjing, Nanning, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Wuhan, Xian, Zhengzhou, Dalian, Shantou, Chengdu, Lanzhou, Tianjin, Jinan, Wenzhou, Changsha, Fuzhou, and Zhuhai.
By train
Guilin's major trunk routes link it with Anhui, Beijing, Chongqing, Fujian, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hebei, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, and Shanghai, Sichuan and Zhejiang. International trains from Beijing to Hanoi, Vietnam, pass Nanning, the provincial capital of Guangxi Autonomous Region, twice a week, where is very convenient to get to and from Guilin.
By bus
There is an express highway from Guilin to Liuzhou. Long-distance sleeper coaches run between provincial cities like Beihai, Nanning, Wuzhou, Yulin, etc, and cities in the Pearl River Delta such as Dongguan, Guangzhou, Jiangmen, Panyu, Shunde, Zhongshan and Zhuhai, Puning, Shantou and Zhanjiang in Guangdong Province, Changsha in Hunan Province, Wuhan in Hubei Province, Fuzhou in Fujian Province and Sanya in Hainan Province, and more.
The Li River Folk Custom Centre
This is a galaxy of folk custom of the Miao, the Yao, the Dong and the Zhuang, where you can not only appreciate the exquisite architecture of these ethnic groups, but also can enjoy their exotic arts and cuisine.
The Folkway Garden
The Folkway garden located in the Peach-blossom Villa, in which is a place where folk dancing and singing performances are held every day. Performers of the Miao, the Dai, the Zhuang, the Dong and the Mosuo sing songs of their nationality and dance in their traditional way very enthusiastically to welcome each guest.
Maya Internet Cafe
It's opened in early 2005, with good location, leisure environment, moderate price and fast access to internet. It is located 50 meters south from Guilin Department Store, opposite "How Nice Brazil Barbecue".
Type: Internet Café
Address: Zhongshan Zhonglu
Dragon Boat Festival
The Dragon Boat Festival, or the Duanwujie, is on the fifth day of the fifth month of Chinese lunar calendar. It is a custom to have Dragon Boat racing every 5 years. It was originally a festival to memorize a great poet, Quyuan, who was also a patriot 2000 years ago, but it is also believed that the celebration of Dragon Boat Racing may bring a good harvest and a peaceful river. A lot of fireworks will be let off, sacrifice of rice dumpling will be offered to the “God’ of Dragon, and the locals will sing a lot of boating songs. The Dragon Boat Racing will be on the river between the Elephant Hill and the Liberation Bridge.
Yangshuo Fishing Lantern Festival
The fishing lantern festival started in 1999. Events include: numerous lanterns on the Li River, colorful lights in the streets of Yangshuo, minority performances, arts exhibitions, beer festivals, cormarant fishing with lanterns, farming products exhibitions and so on.
Yangshuo Beer Festival
West Street is the 'global village' where many foreigners live and travel and is the reason why the western styled Beer Festival is held here. Since December 31st, 1999, the festival is held at the very end or very beginning of each year. On the evening of the selected day, foreigners gather together to perform their own music and dances. The local people also present their traditional dances and the two groups intermingle in the spirit of fun. The beer drinking competition is the climax of the festival. All these activities and the mix of cultures give this festival an exciting and exotic flavor.
