Li Jiang River and Yangshuo, China

A river cruise on the Li Jiang River from Guilin to Yangshuo proved the perfect way to spend Labor Day. This is the landscape of traditional Chinese ink paintings. Ping and Daisy Comes Home are two children's book set in this river valley. Water buffalo grazed along the river banks. Cormorant fishermen floated on bamboo rafts, sending their birds into the water to catch the fish. With each dive the collared birds must think, "This time I'm gonna' swallow the fish."

"This is as good as it gets in China," Skylar commented relaxing in the Le Ciu View Gardens of Yangshuo. For this family, accustomed to clean air, green mountains and solitude, China has been a challenge. In this lovely place, we could exhale, away from the tourists and insistent shopkeepers of the bustling market town. We wandered the paths, napped in a gazebo and stumbled upon an artist making ink paintings. Meeting our local guide later, we told her how much we loved the gardens. "Maybe to you it's beauty. To me it's just another holy mountain." As always, it's in the eye of the beholder.
For photos of our river trip and day in Yangshuo, click here.