Self-Driving in Early Spring Guangxi: A Journey of Unexpected Adventures and Stunning Discoveries

Once again, it's April, flipping through old photos from previous travels, the rapeseed flowers back then were so vibrant, and that remote town, the river town, the rain bridge… So, a few years ago's troubled yet joyful journey, slowly surfaced, gradually became clear.

Three years ago, my friend and I went to explore the ancient town of Big in Guangxi after visiting it, and then drove to our next destination, Guiyang. In the middle of the journey between Guilin and Guiyang, the highway was under construction, and we were forced to take the National Road. At that time, the continuous multi-day rain shrouded the early spring in Southern China like a painting of wet mountains and rivers. The National Road was difficult to travel on, the muddy mountain road sometimes was smooth, sometimes was bumpy, we couldn't increase the speed, my friend worried about 'The road conditions are too bad, it will take so long to get there?'

However, the car climbed little by little, the road became deeper and deeper, when the roadside dwellings gradually turned into verandas, we couldn't help but admire 'It's really beautiful'

The rain kept falling, the raindrops were soft and slender, I opened the car window, outside the air was fresh with vegetation, birdsong echoed in the valley, the solemn black verandas were hidden in the mountains and rivers, like silent medieval castles

Not long after, the car drove into the Longji Town in Guangxi, the town was not big, the National Road passed through it, the National Road passed through it, it was situated at the crossroads of Hunan, Guangxi, and Guizhou, it was clear from the prosperous town that it was a place of trade. Not long after we left Longsheng, a huge rain bridge suddenly appeared across the river, the eaves were cracked and worn, it looked like a bridge, it looked like a tower, it looked like a pavilion, it was a surprise. We hurried onto the bridge, the inside was dark, the wooden corridor stretched into the opposite bank

It is said that this bridge is also called 'Flower Bridge' or 'Lucky Bridge' in the local area, in rainy weather, it provides shelter from the wind and rain for passersby, it is a true rain bridge. The architecture can be seen in Guizhou, Guangxi, and Hunan. Looking out from the corridor now, the river flows, the clouds and mountains are swirling, and the new green leaves are dotted with transparent white and faint gray. At the foot of the mountain, the dense small buildings reflect in the river, 'It's called 'Mountain River People's Home' is not so much, right?'

'A faint dawn, a horizontal misty and vast level sand' this simple and innocent beauty is like the landscape paintings of traditional Chinese literati. It's not just the pursuit of the painters' aesthetic spirit, but also their daily observations

From the Han Dynasty to the early Tang Dynasty, architectural structures such as 'rain bridges' that combined aesthetics and functionality began to emerge. It's amazing that the entire bridge, without a single nail or rivet, except for the pillars, the bridge body was connected by mortise and tenon joints. Don't underestimate the wisdom of ancient people, its strength is no less than iron bridges and stone bridges, standing for hundreds of years without damage

Today, this rain bridge not only integrates into the mountains and rivers, but also integrates into everyday life. We hid under the bridge, watching the uncle pushing a cart, watching the young mother hiding from the rain with her child, and watching the farmer selling snacks with a burden. 'Let's go, we're running out of time' my friend urged me to take a photo while still driving

From the bridge, we rushed to the car. By the rain bridge, on the narrow National Road, a small cluster of yellow rapeseed flowers was quietly blooming. The raindrops fell densely on the petals and stems, the yellow was more intense and rich, as if a whole tube of paint was sprayed carelessly. 'How come I didn't see it before?' I wondered in my heart. At this moment, the rapeseed flowers are in their prime, random and flamboyant, echoing the rain bridge, everything is just right

Isn't the charm of self-driving travel exactly like this? Like life's journey

As dusk approached, the rain stopped. Large clumps of mist drifted across the mountains. 'Isn't it like 'Silent Hill'?' I muttered to myself. Did we miss the entrance to the expressway? Or did we not see other entrances and exits, and after we left, only our car and us were left, the sky was getting dark, and we were alone

'What if it doesn't go out at night?' I worried

'What do you think? You don't think it's worth it today?' My friend hadn't finished speaking when the car turned a corner, and the expressway entrance appeared

'Yay!'

Opening the window, the wind rushed into the car, two birds chirped urgently, birds answered each other. Without taking the National Road, how could we experience this beauty? Without worrying, how could we know what it felt like to be drenched in the rain?

The car lights turned on, the road became bright

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