"river drifting"...

that's what Em and I signed up for when we arrived in Yangshuo. Sounds pleasant enough...we pictured floating along the Longjin river in big cushiony tubes, gazing at the limestone peaks and maybe, just maybe, enjoying a pink drink with a mini-umbrella while we did it. When we arrived at the start point yesterday, (along with about 300 others who are on vacation during this Chinese national holiday week), they handed us life jackets ... and helmets....and knee pads (?). An employee gave a very serious-sounding safety briefing --- in Mandarin. Sweet. The only piece of advice we got, through charades, was to hold on to the frail handles on the sides of the raft. And off we went...

Two hours of rip-roaring (rumor-has-it-Class-III.5) rapids, sans paddles, complete with 40-foot drop-offs, some scary near-misses, and more than a few good laughs. Luckily, the paparazzi was there to capture some of it from the sidelines.