This time I'm off to Lijiang, via Kunming, for two nights then return to Kunming for two nights. Both of these places have been on my "to visit" list for awhile now so I'm excited to be finally going!
For the first time in a very long time I'm not flying a One World airline which means no lounge access for me, instead I have to wander around the airport filling in time, not an experience I’m keen to repeat too soon.
On arrival into Kunming I'm off the plane fairly quickly and straight through customs; now the fun begins as I need to go and check-in for a domestic flight. Hmmm I really should have been practicing my Mandarin. In the end I'm sorted, now to find somewhere to eat. One of the first places I see is McDonalds, yeah no. Then I see a sign saying Chinese restaurant, perfect. It's a lot of miming but in the end I manage to get a table and order :) My waitress shows me my order on her screen but all I see is numbers....I have absolutely no idea if what I've ordered is there but I suppose that's half the fun. Dinner is super delicious - stir fry beef with vegetables!
I hadn't realised how big Kunming was until I needed to walk to the gate, wow this airport is huge! I'm one of only a small handful of foreigners (that I can see) so am stared at constantly.
After a 40 minute flight we land into Lijiang, like Kunming it's definitely bigger than I expected.....I need to keep reminding myself this is China so everything is big!! After a few small issues locating my guide, Lily, we are off. Would have been helpful if she had my name written on a sign....
It's about a 30 minute drive from the airport to Lijiang; on arrival I'm told cars aren't allowed in most places of the Old Town and that there are at least 70 entrances. So now the fun begins working out which is the one for the guest house.
I'm staying at Carnation Inn, a small 5 room guest house. I've been told no one speaks English - fingers crossed all will be ok once Lily leaves me.
The room is very cute (and surprisingly not that small); however then I notice there is no way to lock the room. What the. Lily gets one of the staff up to advice I'm to put a piece of wood in the door. Yeah like that is going to hold if someone wants to try to get in. So after doing my best to close the door I move the only chair in front to add a tiny bit more weight.
I'm feeling quite tired now so get into bed - my king size bed is actually a pile of rocks, this will make for some interesting sleeping!
Saturday (May 10, 2014) I wake before my alarm, it's been a fairly restless night - not only with the rocks but the temperature (cold). Thankfully the shower is decent with lots of hot water!! Lily is collecting me at 8.10am so a cup of tea is needed to get me ready for the day. Lily had prepared me a breakfast as the guest house doesn't have a restaurant - I manage eat a banana and have one slice of "bread"; very sweet of her but unfortunately I’m not big on the majority of things.
I remember awhile ago telling someone I was going to Lijang and they advised as it’s high altitude some things may break once I’m there…..so I’m busy getting dressed after the shower and my deodorant ball decides to take a wee trip, whoops!
First stop is Jade Dragon Snow Mountain / Yulong Snow Mountain; after getting tickets then standing in a long line for a public bus we then join a line for the cable car to take us up to the top of the Mountain (well as far as you can go before having to walk to the top). The cable car takes around 15 minutes and for the majority of the trip you can’t see more than 50 metres. In some ways I’m very pleased as its crazy steep! One arrive it’s a freezing 5.1 degrees and is snowing…..we are 4,506 m high and very quickly I realise I should have purchased oxygen like the majority of the other tourists had.
I manage to step outside for no more than 3 minutes – just far too cold for me!! Watching the snow fall is pretty but thanks very much I’ll do that from inside; no need for me to go for a walk around.
After returning to the ticket place at the bottom (cable car, then bus down) we take another bus to White Water River, which is formed by the runoff from the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. I’m feeling absolutely terrible after being up the mountain (due to the altitude) so elect to slowly walk around. No need to be joining the very long line to take a golf cart – I have legs for a reason! The reflections in the river from the mountains surrounding are amazing; on a clear day you get the reflection from Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Not today unfortunately.
We head back to the ticket place and after a wee break go to the Lijiang Impressions show which is a culture show demonstrating the traditions of the local minority culture; the backdrop of the mountains make it easy to get distracted when the actors speak (in Chinese).
From here we head to Yushui Village, to see the Three Layers of Water. Like White Water River, Three Layers of Water get there water from Jade Dragon Snow Mountain runoff.
While the scenery so far has been absolutely stunning, it is time to visit a local village - Bai Sha Village. It’s a quaint little place with a river running through it; if your shop or house is on the other side you just build a small bridge and bobs your uncle you are set. It was great to see it wasn’t overrun with tourists, nor had shops geared to the tourist. I visited the Baisha Naxi Embroidery Institute, which is free for locals (and tourists) to come in and learn. They do this to preserve the traditional Naxi craft.
Our last stop for the day is Shuhe Old Town; John (owner of the travel company I used for my trip) had told me to come here at night as it’s very pretty. As I still don’t feel that great I decide we will visit now. It’s a beautiful, quaint Old Town that like Bai Sha Village has a river / canals running through it. The water is crystal clear. It’s lovely just to wander around. There are a number of fruit/vege ‘stalls’ setup along with snack food. Lily and I munch on a corn cobb while wandering. Can definitely understand why John said to come here at night time, it would be extra special.
I have a brief stop at the hotel before we head out to wander around the Lijang (Dayan) Old Town, it's still light (the sun doesn't go down until about 7.30pm at the moment) which is a nice change for me.
Finally just before 7.30pm we sit down for dinner - I'm thirsty, starving and tired!! And still feeling a bit funny from my altitude sickness. It's only been one day but this trip is definitely not a holiday!!!
After dinner we wander around the Old Town, definitely more picturesque in the evening. One "street" we wander down is called Pub Street, think super loud, super super loud and each bar has its own entertainment. Each place is basically packed with either couples or groups of family (with children). Not my cup tea tonight nor if I was on my own.
Sunday morning (May 11, 2014) I'm up early which is annoying after being woken in the night by two incredibly loud screaming children, thank goodness for earplugs.
This morning we are heading to Black Dragon Pool then onto Tiger Leaping Gorge where we are going to hike for a couple of hours. I'm very excited!!
Thankfully the driver meets Lily and I shortly after we leave the guest house to help carry my suitcase up the hill.
Black Dragon Pool was built in 1887; on a beautiful day (which it isn't today) you can see Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the reflection. It's peaceful wandering around - there are locals dancing, doing tai chi, playing badminton, running and walking. Lily shows me a majiang (mahjong) tree which if you touch three times when you next play majiang you have good luck. I could spend hours here but unfortunately we only have 40 minutes. On leaving I notice a handful of older looking men carrying their bird cages into the park. I remember seeing this in HK so am not at all surprised, after all it's good for the birds to get out and "chat" with their friends too.
We have a brief look at the 'Dongba Mytha' Naxi Dongba Culture Exhibition, which showcases the local Dongba scripture.
I'm on the road again - driving now to Tiger Leaping Gorge; thankfully the driver is happy to go on the newly built motorway otherwise I’ve been told it's a windy journey through the mountains. The scenery is out of this world!!! I know New Zealand has amazing scenery as well but boy this is spectacular.
I had mentioned to Lily yesterday about the strawberries at the small fruit and vege stalls we saw, she had told me we would get some today so after driving for a bit we stop at some stalls to buy - yum yum! And nice and cheap, RMB 10 (basically SGD 2).
Before we start our hike I make the mistake of going to the bathroom.....all I'll say / ask is why ooh why do Chinese woman (older ones) like to go to the bathroom with the door open....
It's so nice and peaceful on the hike, with mountains and rock to our immediate right and the river and mountains to the left. We walk for about an hour, stopping along the way for photos, before we reach the "tiger" about to leap onto a huge stone to cross to the other side (tiger leaping stone); this is the end of the hike so we turnaround and walk back to where we started.
After getting away from what seems like hundreds of tourist buses we head to the first bend of Yangtze River then onto Shigu Village - a Naxi local village. Nice to wander around and see daily life.
Time to get into the car again, this time we are heading back to Lijiang for a late lunch and wander around the Old Town again. Then it will be time to head to the airport.
I enjoy a chicken fried rice for lunch, it was tasty although I was so hungry I nearly would have eaten anything and it would have been ok. We then wandered around the Old Town, at one point tasting yak milk, which is very sweet. Reminded me a bit of the milk bottle lollies I had as a child. The Old Town is quite different during the day, still lots of people around but a different buzz.
Thankfully Lily insisted she gets me checked in before leaving me as there is an issue with my flight - the lady told Lily it's good we arrived early as my original flight has been badly delayed and is likely to be cancelled. Luckily I was put on a slightly earlier flight.
Hard to believe my 2 nights in Lijiang has come to an end - in some ways it's gone very fast and it other ways I feel like I've been here for awhile. I've had a great time and am very pleased I came; time now to explore another part of China. Kunming here I come.
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