Like most people, I'd reduced Liuzhou to a single bowl of mouth-watering luosifen (snail noodles).
I'm sure plenty of travelers have come here for nothing more than that bowl.
Let me tell you — Liuzhou is so much more than luosifen! I thought the same before landing, swearing I'd eat noodles three days running. The instant I stepped off the plane, the hot, sour perfume of luosifen was already in the air. But give the city a real look and you'll find it brimming with surprises.
Sleek Wuling MINI EVs are everywhere — the city's rolling calling card. Liuzhou ranks among China's top five car-making cities, and Liuzhou Steel is famous nationwide, said to account for a quarter of Guangxi's entire industrial output.
For all its industry, Liuzhou sits ringed by green hills and clear water. The jade-green Liu River runs right through it. In mid-July the daytime sun beat down fiercely and people swam in the river; after dark, even more took to the water, as naturally as sitting down to dinner.
My first trip to Liuzhou was on business. On old colleagues' advice I booked the Hyatt Place Liuzhou. The views from the 50th floor were genuinely breathtaking — book a west-facing room and you might just catch a stunning sunset.
Naturally, my first mission was to demolish a bowl of luosifen. I walked to Cao Mei Luosifen nearby and sweated through a 30-minute queue. Prices: small bowl 8 RMB, medium 8.5 RMB, large 9.5 RMB. Sides run from fried pig trotters, duck feet, and duck kidneys to fried eggs, braised eggs, tofu strips, and sausages. How was it? The real thing — 100% authentic, so good I could have exploded on the spot. But the bigger shock was the "stir-fried luosifen" — even better. Just typing this makes my mouth water.
Beyond luosifen, Liuzhou has no shortage of local eats. Sadly, with work breathing down my neck, I never found the time to chase down more of the food scene, let alone the sights.
I'd meant to visit the Liuzhou Industrial Museum but cancelled at the last minute. After work that evening, colleagues and I found a local restaurant for dinner. The riverside walk afterward was pure delight — the locals plainly know how to spend an evening, with swimming, boating, music, singing, dancing, running, and strolling along the water.
On my last morning in Liuzhou I woke early to climb Panlong Mountain, drawn to the pagoda on its peak ever since I first passed through. A taxi dropped me at Yaobu Ancient Town — this busy commercial strip was peacefully hushed at dawn. I followed Baidu Maps to the foot of the hill, then the signs upward. It's a small mountain; under 20 minutes brought me to Wenguang Pagoda. The climb was worth every step — the panorama of Liuzhou unfolding from the top was spectacular.
My first Liuzhou trip ended with a lengthening list of places to save for next time: Longtan Park, the Luosifen Town Flight Camp, and Luzhai Xiangqiao Scenic Area.
Here's hoping I make it back to Liuzhou soon.
