Guilin, a major tourist destination in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is famous for its remarkable natural beauty. The landscape has been frequently depicted in Chinese paintings, making the picturesque land world-famous. An old saying in China says "No landscape on earth parallels that of Guilin in beauty". In today's "On the Road", let's follow Ning Yan and step into the Chinese painting.

We start our trip at Reed Flute Cave, dubbed "the art palace of nature". It takes its name from the green reeds growing outside from which flutes are made.

Located in the north-western part of the city, the cave covers about 500 square meters. Our guide Wang Li says the spectacular scenes are overwhelming.
Right before we go into the cave, a man plays a folk song as a display of local hospitality towards guests.

Walking through a zigzag of stalactites and stalagmites in dazzling colours, our eyes are caught by their strange shapes. Some look like frogs and some lions. All are illuminated by coloured lights, making the cave a fairyland.

Wang Li shows us around. She points towards the stalactites and stalagmites with her flashlight, explaining what images they could be compared to.

"People say this one is like a snowman, as you can see the heads, eyes, nose and mouth. Here is his body. But some say this one is like a happy Buddha, a laughing one. Behind here we can see … on the right hand we can see here comes a pine tree, or a Christmas tree. The tree leaves you can see hanging snow. In children's eyes, they say this looks like an ice-cream, very big, and it's melting."

The guide asks us to use our imagination.

"This one is like a long bean. Here is a Chinese cabbage. That is a cauliflower. And can you guess what is it, this one? Yeah, you're right. It's a peanut."

It is humid in the cave and water drips down the stones. Some boom like a drum while others ring like a piano.