Pudi - a tiny village 22km from Yangshuo

Pudi is the hometown of our guide and tour operator Jessie Lu. In Augustus 2008 I joined Jessie for a short visit to Pudi.

Pudi Village

Jessie has told me over the years Pudi was not easy to reach. I couldn't really understand why it would be so difficult as Jessie told me it was only 22 km from Yangshuo town. This day would explain the difficulties.

Traveling to Pudi takes time and effort. For example, if you would take a bus from Yangshuo to Pudi, you have to change bus 3 times! And still you need to walk another 20 minutes!

Farmer in Pudi "surfing" his land

So where is Pudi located? Get the Yangshuo county map (Pudi is not on it) and follow the Li River eastwards. You can locate Pudi in between Fuli and Puyi on the east shore of the Li River.

On the way to Pudi, by bicycle

So, how can you visit Pudi and, probably more important, why would you want to visit Pudi?

Like I said, you can take buses from Yangshuo but nicer and more attractive is to get a kayak in either Yangshuo or Fuli and peddle to Pudi.

Another option is to get a bicycle and cycle in the direction of Liu Gong. Before Liu Gong there's a junction. If you follow it to the riverside, you may be able to get a ferry. The problem is that some of the time, they ferry will be at the other side and you need to call the ferryman. And if you don't have his phone number....(as I don't have it too!).

Therefore I joined Jessie in a tour. Jessie and I cycled out of Yangshuo, passing the Snow Lion Resort and Mushan on a the dirt road to Liu Gong. We passed a few villages but most of the time it was just Jessie and me alone in the empty land. We briefly visited Liu Gong and the 3 colors pond (which was nothing much important).

Pudi Village

When we arrived at the ferry point to cross to Pudi, in fact, the ferry goes to Minan, Jessie had to call the ferryman. After a while the boat showed up and we crossed the river which took just a few minutes.

On the other side we still had to cycle another 15 minutes to reach Pudi. This area is part of Pingle county. Pingle town is further south. I realized later I had taken this road some years back from the other side and I remembered it was a very long way from here to Yangshuo as then I had not crossed the river but followed the dirt paths on the east side of the river.

Pudi is, so to say, as far from the modern hectic world as you can imagine. Life seem to have stand still. There are some tractors and trucks. People have TV but in many other ways the village is almost untouched.

Jessie and I had a meal with her parents. Lunch included stuffed snails prepared in a special secret way and very good.

Maybe if you ask Jessie's father, he will play some music for you on his erhu, a traditional Chinese musical instrument with a specific beautiful sound

After the lunch we had a short walk in the village. Jessie showed me one of the oldest buildings in the village, a house that is more then 500 years old.

Kitchen in the 500 years old house

Although the outside of the house didn't look very interesting, inside it was different. Especially the traditional kitchen looked interesting

Earlier in 2008 the village had suffered from severe rainfall and rising of the river. Even though the river banks are several hundred meters away, Jessie explained to me her parents house had been flooded. June 2008 was an extremely wet month and several provinces in south China had suffered from heavy rainfall.

Rice cakes

Lucky me! I came on a day Jessie's family was making rice cakes. Some of the rice cakes are sold on the markets but some is also used for private use. It could be for offerings in the temple or simply for some kind of celebration.

See our rice cake page to learn more about rice cakes and its ingredients.

Pudi Temple Festival

The annual Temple Festival is held since 1999. Jessie Lu wrote for us an extensive page with photos of the festival which is held on the February 2nd. This little known festival by foreigners and local Chinese alike is however very popular with the people of the surrounding villages. As the photos on the Temple Festival in Pudi show at the festival day it is a very busy.

On the way to on the Li River with a motorraft Pudi Village

If you are coming to Yangshuo around the time of the festival, make sure you book a tour with Jessie. It is worth the effort to go there.

Should you want to do the same tour, book now your One Day Tour to Pudi with Jessie. I can promise you it will be one of the best days in your journey in China

More about the Temple Festival in Pudi

Jessie and I took a different way back, we followed another old road that eventually brought us back to Yangshuo. It was a well spend day.

Back to the top of Pudi

Here is more about Jessie's tours (3 to 5 days) and her 7 days tour.

Meet Jessie Lu

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