Heading South to Southern Vietnam—Last Trip of the Year

Originally planned a trip to Henan in November, but due to work, the holiday was pushed to the end of December. Going north at that time seemed a bit cold, so I looked at southern provinces I hadn't visited yet. Only Guangxi and Fujian remained, plus I wanted to eat my way through Guangzhou. That's how I settled on this 9-day trip covering Liuzhou, Nanning, and Guangzhou.

This trip was still with my parents, a family of three. The total cost was about 5,500 RMB, with transportation being the biggest expense. We traveled by high-speed rail and regular trains, plus city buses and subways, totaling about 2,800 RMB. Next was accommodation: we booked the same hotel chain, about 1,800 RMB. The rest was spent on food.

Day 1, December 19: Anshun to Liuzhou

There is no direct train from Anshun to Liuzhou, so we had to transfer at Guiyang North. There is only one high-speed train per day. First, we took train G1422 from Anshun West to Guiyang North, then transferred to train D3567 departing Guiyang North at 16:03 and arriving at Liuzhou Station at 20:09. After arriving, we walked to the East Square of Liuzhou Station and took bus K9 to Ma'anshan, then checked into the pre-booked Hanting Youjia Hotel (Liuzhou Jiangbin Park Branch).

Day 2, December 20: Liuzhou Bailian Cave Museum, Liuzhou Industrial Museum, Yaobu Old Town

Liuzhou, also known as Hucheng (Kettle City) and Longcheng (Dragon City), has the Liujiang River running through it. It is a famous national historical and cultural city, the birthplace of the 'Liujiang Man,' one of the earliest ancient humans in China. With over 2,100 years of history, it is the second largest city in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the largest industrial city, and five major automobile brands have production bases there.

We woke up early, ordered breakfast delivery, then took a bus to the Liuzhou Bailian Cave Site Museum. The museum is in Bailian District, quite far from the city center, about an hour's ride.

The Bailian Cave Site Museum is built on the Bailian Cave Paleolithic cultural site. Its exhibits are divided into indoor and outdoor parts. The indoor exhibition hall has two sections: 'Earth's Past' and 'Cave Homeland.' The cave tour route is 1,870 meters long, but unfortunately, due to pandemic prevention measures, the cave was not open during our visit.

After leaving Bailian Cave Museum, we headed to Liuzhou Industrial Museum. This museum integrates industrial history display, industrial heritage protection, science popularization, and tourism. It covers a total area of nearly 110,000 square meters, with a total building area of over 60,000 square meters. It features themed halls such as the Industrial History Hall and the Ecological Livable Hall, showcasing various industrial machines and the development history of industry from the 1950s-60s to the present.

Across from the Industrial Museum is Yaobu Old Town. Although called an old town, it's actually a commercial area built in an antique style, but it's still nice for taking photos.

Day 3, December 21: Longtan Park, Jiangbin Park

Monday—indoor venues were all closed, so we chose to visit parks.

Longtan Park is a national key park in Liuzhou, one of only two in Guangxi (the other being Liuhou Park, which we visited the next day).

Longtan Park covers a planned area of about 544 hectares. It is a large scenic area combining karst natural landscape, ethnic minority culture of southern China, subtropical karst plant landscapes, and stone carving art. Due to time constraints, we didn't explore the entire park. We just wandered around, took photos, and sat down to rest—it was very pleasant.

After Longtan Park, since it was the winter solstice, we ate Harbin dumplings, then went to the nearby Jiangbin Park. Well, wherever there is a river or sea, there is always a riverside or seaside park.

We walked along the river to Wenhui Bridge, crossed to the other side, and took a bus back to the hotel to rest.

Day 4, December 22: East Gate Tower, Liuhou Park, Liuzhou Museum

On the way to the East Gate Tower, we passed the Ho Chi Minh Former Residence and the former site of the Republic of Korea Liuzhou Exhibition Hall.

The East Gate Tower, commonly known as 'East Tower' or 'East Gate Tower,' is located in the middle section of Shuguang East Road in Chengzhong District. To the north is Luochi Road East First Lane, and to the south is the Liujiang River. It was first built in the 12th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1379 AD), with a history of over 600 years. The East Tower is one of the best-preserved Ming Dynasty city gate towers in Guangxi and has been repaired many times over the ages. Inside, there is an exhibition called 'Chronicles of the Ancient City.'

Next to the East Gate Tower is Liuzhou Post and Telecommunications Museum, but unfortunately it was closed.

We also planned to visit the former site of Liuzhou Lianhua Printing Factory and the former site of the Guangxi-Guizhou Regional Committee of the Communist Party, but time was insufficient, so we gave up and went to Liuhou Park.

Liuhou Park was first built in the first year of Xuantong in the Qing Dynasty (1909) to commemorate Liu Zongyuan, a great literary figure of the Tang Dynasty and once the prefect of Liuzhou. The park contains the Liuhou Temple, a national key cultural heritage site.

After leaving the park, we ate rice noodles, then went to our last stop in Liuzhou: Liuzhou Museum.

Liuzhou Museum was first built in 1959, located on the east side of People's Square in Liuzhou, Guangxi. Its collections include: Journey of Life—Paleontological Fossil Hall, Liuzhou History and Culture Hall, Liuzhou Ethnic Customs Hall, Ancient Fan Painting and Calligraphy Art Hall, Ancient Bronze Art Hall, Ancient Stone Inscription Exhibition, and Longbi Liuzhou Inkstone Hall. As a city-level museum, its classification is clear and worth visiting.

After leaving the museum, we took a bus to Liuzhou Station, ready to head to our second stop, Nanning. We booked train Z285. The train departed over an hour late, but fortunately it arrived at the station only half an hour behind schedule. After exiting, we took the subway to the pre-booked Hanting Youjia Hotel (Nanning Jiangnan Wanda Branch), then went straight to bed.

Day 5, December 23: Guangxi Ethnic Museum, Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area

Because the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Museum was under renovation, we chose the Ethnic Museum. The museum is in Qingxiu District, accessible by one bus transfer. The main building's shape is inspired by the bronze drum, which is rich in Guangxi's regional and ethnic characteristics. The museum displays the scripts, customs, culture, and arts of Guangxi's 12 indigenous ethnic minorities, divided into sections: 'Drums Through Time—Bronze Drum Culture Exhibition,' 'Colorful Guangxi—Guangxi Ethnic Culture Exhibition,' and other special exhibitions.

Outside the museum is Guangxi Ethnic Village, an open-air display of traditional Guangxi residential architecture.

Our second stop was Qingxiu Mountain Scenic Area, the only 5A-level scenic spot in Nanning. The regular ticket price is 20 RMB. We didn't know the south gate was closed due to pandemic prevention, so we got off at the south gate and had to walk over 2 kilometers to the west gate to enter.

Qingxiu Mountain is very large, with over 90% green coverage. We happened to encounter a chrysanthemum exhibition. We spent most of the day there but only covered the western part. If you bring snacks, you can arrange a full day to explore.

After leaving the park, we went to Zhongshan Road Food Street, but the night market hadn't opened yet. We strolled along the pedestrian street, and since it started to drizzle, we had dinner and returned to rest.

Day 6, December 24: Deng Yingchao Memorial Hall, Three Streets and Two Alleys, Nanhu Park, then heading to Guangzhou

We got up early, took our luggage, and started the day. First stop: Deng Yingchao Memorial Hall. Located in Nanning's Three Streets and Two Alleys Historical and Cultural District, the memorial hall is a three-section, two-courtyard compound building covering 1,273 square meters, with an exhibition area of 1,000 square meters. The exhibition halls are divided into six units: Memories of Yongcheng, Revolutionary Journey, Pioneer of Women, Deep Affection, Public Servant Nature, and Love for Guangxi. Through physical objects, photos, scene recreations, multimedia, and other methods, it comprehensively displays the magnificent life of Comrade Deng Yingchao, the 'Daughter of Nanning.'

Afterward, we casually strolled through the Three Streets and Two Alleys, with its arcade-style architecture. Then we went to the adjacent Nanning Organizational History Museum to learn about Nanning's historical development.

Finally, we went to Nanhu Park—a city park to pass the time.

When time was about right, we took the subway to Nanning East Station, boarded train D207 to Guangzhou South Station, then checked into the pre-booked Hanting Hotel (Tianpingjia Subway Station Branch). That day was Christmas Eve, and the hotel gave us three apples.