I've shaken off the jet lag and I'm well into my new itinerary. I have made my way to Guilin and just now arrived in Yangshuo. These are both small (by Chinese standards) touristy cities and I can see why. The scenery is amazing. The Li River is surrounded by tall, green karst peaks that seem to go on forever. I plan to explore more of this area and the counrtyside by bicycle.

OK, let's talk food! I had my challenges in Chengdu. Everything, I mean everything was in Chinese. No one spoke a lick of English and my Chinese ends at Ni hao (hello). After a lot of wandering, I finally tried a point and eat place. I pointed way to much...among my many plates, the only thing I truely recognized was cauliflower! It was mostly all spicy and tasty, however what it all was still remains a mystery. I had a better dinner experience, after another hour of wandering my hunger and thirst got the best of me. I decided to try very atmospheric restaurant with wooden tables and stutters opening onto the street. It was my lucky day...the waitress had an electronic translator and punched in chicken and spicey...sounded good to me and I even managed to order a beer.

Now food is a lot easier, there is more English spoken here and many menus are translated. I've tried pidgeon soup; tastes like chicken, numerous spicey dishes, some awesome sushi, and my new favorite snack food tenticles on a stick...however, I don't think I can bring myself to try the tiny baby birds on a stick. I hope to take a cooking class here in this city.

That's it for now...lunch time!