Editor's note: We have invited expats living in China to share their stories about the cities they live in and visit. Gabrielle Chen, from Kansas, the United States, has visited Liuzhou, Hechi, and Guilin in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.
Imagine a landscape so profound it feels unreal. Mountains touch the mist; waters mirror the sky in flawless stillness.
This is the breathtaking "dreamscape" of Guangxi — a world far from my familiar hometown in Kansas, the United States.
From the Kansas plains to Guangxi's peaks, my journey to the cities of Hechi and Guilin reveals one thing: when nature decided where to concentrate its most breathtaking artistry, it chose Guangxi.
Gabrielle holds a 20 yuan ($2.9) banknote while taking a boat ride on the Lijiang River in Yangshuo, Guilin, matching the note's famous image. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
I had never seen mountains and waters of such majestic beauty. My heart followed the gentle rhythm of the waves as we drifted on a bamboo raft across Pohao Lake.
As our raft moved through the arch of an ancient bridge, I felt as if I were looking into the Earth's soul.
Before us unfolded an impossible landscape where mountains, sky and water became one perfect, wordless truth. This is true beauty: ineffable, impossible to copy, and only to be experienced.
A picturesque view of Pohao Lake in Donglan county, Hechi, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Guangxi's beauty is mirrored in the hearts of its people. I had the privilege of experiencing the local customs of the Zhuang people, a remarkably kind and musical people.
Adorned with intricate silver headdresses, they welcomed me with songs, dances and food. Their rituals mirrored the land itself: a shared drink flowed from bowl to bowl like a mountain stream — a living tribute to their local landscape.
Gabrielle (second from right) experiences traditional Dong ethnic cuisine and residents' hospitality. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
I never truly contemplated my own culture until I experienced another. Guangxi's mountains have taught me to love the plains of Kansas; the vast, open sky, which I once saw as empty, now reveals a quiet majesty.
Yet, some things transcend culture and connect us as humans. Music, food, a shared love of nature and the kindness of strangers — these are the universal threads that bind us beyond any language.
Gabrielle explores the soulful sounds of the sheng (a traditional Chinese wind instrument) in Liuzhou's Dong ethnic village. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
