Hong Kong to Yangshuo

The first town we visited in China was Yangshuo and it is a lovely small town 700 kms from the border. We took the train from Hong Kong to the border and then after lunch we caught a sleeper bus. An unusual method of traveling where you semi-recline on a seat with your feet in an enclosed area under the seat in front of you. We stowed our carry-on bags between our feet and that was that for the next 14 hours. As we went further into the countryside the toilets became more primitive and even a squat toilet in a separate cubicle with a door was not available. Of course we ate and drank little so we wouldn't have to use them more then necessary.
We arrived at Yangshuo at 3.45am and then took a tuk tuk to our hotel. Luckily the town gets quite a few western visitors and our hotel was relatively westernized with a western toilet- you see how even the basics are appreciated and not taken for granted.
Yanshuo is situated on the Li River which is the cleanest river in China, and it's surrounded by limestone hills which are very picturesque. We enjoyed our boat ride up the river although it was a bit strange to be sitting on chairs on a bamboo boat and it was very cold. We were very surprised to see McDonald's have reached this far in China but we didn't try their food, preferring the Chinese cooking instead.
More to come.
Hugs, Jan Mac