Guizhou: Carved through time

Guizhou's name comes from the Chinese character meaning precious or expensive, and it truly lives up to it. Precious in its serene environment and expensive with its lush greenery, Guizhou is the perfect place to reset and recharge your battery.

Living in the hustle of Beijing can be exciting and thrilling but sometimes the country-raised boy inside of me needs to take a moment to relax, so I jumped at the chance to visit Guizhou when invited by the China Storytellers Partnerships Tour. I knew as soon as our plane was preparing for landing that this was where I needed to be. Stepping out of the airport you are hit with the freshness and calm that the province has to offer, it felt as if my soul had taken a deep breath.

Our first stop on the trip took us to Wanfeng Lake in Xingyi, a vast man-made lake that stretches for miles, weaving in and out of the mountains. We climbed into our kayaks and set off to adventure, all the while thinking to ourselves "surely this is the end of the lake?" and continuously shocked as we turned a corner only to see the lake continue. Along our way we were greeted by fishermen and families relaxing by the water, the warmth of the people was equal to the fall sun resting on our skin.

Our aquatic adventures didn't stop there. The next day we ventured to the Malinghe Canyon. We set out on rafts, drifting down the crystal-clear waters with our local guides. The canyon's dramatic rock formations, carved over centuries by the relentless forces of water, created a breath-taking backdrop for our journey. The thrill of the rapids had us soaked in joy, followed straight after by the gentle flow where we basked in the beauty of the sun glimmering through cracks in the canyon above.