Weeks and weeks before China Alive the you can just feel the tension escalating in all the grade levels but for the grade 8 it is almost unbearable. There is a reason why the grade 8 China Alive trip is the most coveted of all the trips students take in middle school and the reason is that instead of having one or two physically challenging activities and a myriad of intellectual activates everyday is teeming with new active hands-on activities.

Rock climbing, abseiling, zip-lining, and caving are just a few examples of the horde of thrilling activities the Yangshuo China Alive has in store. Mud caving conceptually was one of the simplest activities but actually doing it was a whole other. It seems simple, walk from point A to point B but in this case between the two points are twists, turns, a river, and host of sharp rock; no wonder it’s name is “Snake Cave.” Even outside the entrance of the cave you can feel the dampness and chill of the cave’s interior.

From the moment you step into the cave of no natural light you had to exchange the sturdy flat ground you are familiar for wet and slippery slopes. In there you will slip and fall; that much is almost 100% guaranteed. Plus, even if you don’t get muddy from falling you will still not come out even remotely clean because once people enter the mud cave they become pro-lets plaster everyone else in mud, this also includes the guide.

All in all this activity was a great experience and definitely one of the highlights in this already better than average China Alive.