Shangri La Di Da Di Da

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I woke up this morning planning to go on a tour, then realized it was too expensive to go alone. So, what to do? Hmm. First, I headed to N's Kitchen for a lovely hot chocolate and omelet, but my heart started racing when I got halfway through breakfast and I couldn't finish my omelet. Maybe it was the altitude. Anyway, I felt like crap. So, I went for a walk around the old town and realized just how much construction was underway. In their effort to meet the demands of summer tourism, they were making the old town look really authentic. But don't be fooled. It is all new. Beautiful, but shiny and new. They also use a lot of wood, which is surprising given the huge termite mounds I saw yesterday.

I decided I would take a walk down the new thoroughfare that has been built coming into Shangri La. There are huge glass and metal buildings, car dealerships, hotels. Wow. It looks totally different from the old town. Hmmm. It looks like China! That's where I've seen it before! But it felt a bit like a ghost town because it was all empty. Strange. Very strange. This town doesn't seem big enough to support all this business, and what use do tourists have for Volkswagen, Nissan, and Honda?

I walked back into town to the Compass Cafe just off the square for a bite to eat. I had a mediocre chai, mediocre pizza, and excellent praline waffles, but horrible service. I sat there reading all afternoon and no one bothered to check on me or take away the slice of pizza I hadn't eaten. I thought it was going to get up and walk away on its own. Finally they did refill my water glass. Anyway, service and food at N's Kitchen is much better even if they don't have the same dark, rustic atmosphere. Compass does play good music though. I guess if you just want a place to sit for a snack it is okay, but not for relaxation and reading.

Frankly, I wasn't so impressed with Shangri La, but it is beautiful territory and I'm glad I came, but I wouldn't recommend a trip to Yunnan just to see this town. The people are really nice though, and if a trip to Tibet is NOT in your future, come here. There is a large Tibetian population, you can get some authentic Tibetian souvenirs that are top quality, and there are some great places to relax and get a good meal like Tara Gallery and N's Kitchen. Would I recommend a stay at Shangri La Moon Guesthouse? I'm undecided on that one. I think if there are no festivals going on, you should just come here and check out a few places on your own. There are lots of great places to stay.

Off to Tibet tomorrow. Finally.

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Photos

Cool Shangri La Door
I don't remember what this is the entrance for, but I think it was a hotel.

New Shangri La
This road is brand new and shiny. This road leads into the town and is full of glass and metal buildings that are pretty much empty.

New Shangri La
I just can't imagine what is going on or what will go on in these new buildings. Shangri La is not a big town. Perhaps the government is expecting growth on a massive scale. If you build it, they will come...

New homes
There was a lot of building going on. The new homes in this development all have these glass rooms. I cannot imagine what they're for, but I did see laundry hanging in one of them.

Another glass house
Shangri La gets a lot of snow in winter, but they also get a lot of sunshine. Maybe the glass warms the side of the house that it's on? Who knows.

I like Chinese doors
in case you hadn't noticed.