​My friend Oye and I took an earlier flight at 5 pm and arrived before the others. It was the first time both of us are leaving from Shanghai’s airport but luckily we met a middle-aged man who was also heading to Guilin and was going to be on the same flight as us. So he told us to follow him and he helped us check in at the counter. As we waited for our flight, we began having a conversation and I realized he is in the teaching profession and he was in Shanghai for training. Knowing that my Chinese-speaking skills were pretty high, he began discussing about the differences between the education system in the US and China and other controversial topics. *He became the first friend I made in Guilin.*He wanted to take the taxi with us but Oye and I thought it would be unsafe if he knew where we lived so I lied and told him our friend will come pick us up. We waited in KFC for a while before we walked out to catch a taxi. When my other friends arrived around midnight, we met up with them since the place was quite hard to find.

First stop: Reed Flute Cave

Since the public transportation system is pretty much nonexistent, we had to catch a taxi to get there. Before heading there, we ate breakfast at 明桂米粉, which is a well-known rice noodle restaurant in Guilin. The rice noodle is so delicious that we unanimously decided to return at least once before departing.

After arriving at the cave entrance, we purchased our tickets and decided to take the tramway up. We had to wait approximately 15 minutes before the next group of visitors can tour the cave. As we entered the cave, the tour guide introduced the story and meaning behind the names of each rock formation. The explanation was mainly in Chinese so we didn’t pay much attention but instead focused on taking as many photos as possible. Initially, I thought the colors emitted from the Reed Flute Cave were natural but they were actually lights installed as a form of art and the names given are based on their imagination. Before leaving, a few of us decided to purchase the photos they professionally took of us. There I met this adorable guy who was eager to make friends with foreigners and constantly asked me to translate to my friends what he was saying. He became the second friend I’ve made in Guilin.

Leaving the cave, two old ladies approached us and asked us if we wanted a raft ride, 50 RMB for the 6 of us. We took the deal and had our fun riding the raft. After the raft ride, we decided to go to our next stop: Elephant Trunk Hill.

​​Next stop: Elephant Trunk Hill

We started having a conversation with our taxi driver and she began promoting us tour groups to join. Our friends who were in the other taxi became interested in one of the tour so the taxi drivers drove us to the tour agency before heading to Elephant Trunk Hill. Not knowing anything, we decided to pay for two tours, one to Yangshuo and the other to Longji Rice Terrace for 688 RMB in total.

We finally arrived at Elephant Trunk Hill after and our taxi drivers asked whether we wanted to take a cruise or hike the mountain. Believing it would be much suitable for us to take a cruise, they dropped us near the port and helped us bought the cruise tickets. Thinking back, I wished my Chinese were better to understand what they were saying and tell them unlike the average tourists, we actually love to hike.

After the mini cruise ended, we realized we were pretty close to our apartment so we decided to walk back and chose a restaurant to eat at. We stayed in the whole night since tomorrow will be a long travel day.