One of the benefits of cruising the Li River, or any river for that matter where you can get out of the cabin, is the way the landscape just slides on by.
I shot these reflections from the cruiser on the Li River near Guilin in China.
To the right you can see examples of the limestone cliffs that feature in this area. Up in the hills in the top left corner you can see a collapsed surface. These highlight some of the challenges of hiking in this area. The terrain makes it extremely difficult but you could be hiking along and find yourself on the edge of a cliff. Being so far from help, that's why you stay on the trails.
On the way back to Koh Phi Phi Don from Koh Phi Phi Ley, having cruised by one of the caves from which the locals harvest swifts' nests for birds nest soup, we got some up-close views of the base of the limestone cliffs. The cave action is clearly undercutting the rock over the course of the years.
The ferry also stops by some of the local attractions on it's way into the islands. Here it's pulling up to the limestone cliffs so the passengers can see some caves where locals gather swift nests for birds nest soup. Quite why a soup made from bird spit is so sought after I don't know. I've never tasted it myself. But I'm left wondering...
I love the tight crop on this image that eliminates the sky and thereby accentuates the height of the limestone cliffs. You can just make out a small beach and a hut in the center of the photo. The aqua water is shallower than the blue water. If you look closely you can see a thin line of aqua on the far shore also. The ferries and fishing boats typically stayed in the blue water to avoid grounding.