I was planning to leave Jianshui and catch a bus to Yuanyang straight after watching the NBA finals but I started talking to a Taiwanese girl, Carol at the hostel and before I knew it, it was almost 4pm. I caught a taxi to the bus station and then had to wait an hour before my bus left for the town of Nansha, at the base of the mountains which contain the rice terraces. The interesting trip through the mountains took about 2 and a half hours so I arrived in Nansha after 7.30pm and the sun was starting to set. I couldn't find any vans going up to Xinjie and the taxi drivers were asking too much so I decided to get a hotel for the night. The following morning I got lucky as a ... read more

The bus ride from Shangri La to Deqin was probably one of the worst I have ever been on mainly due to construction along the road, the way the drivers pass or go around blind bends on the wrong side of the road, and the dangerous mountain roads where you are surely dead if you go off the edge. Our 6 hour trip turned out to be 7 and a half hours so we arrived at 7.30pm and then stood around for a while before a minibus driver told us that he would take us to Feilai Si (3,360metres) for $1 each. About 15 minutes later we arrived at the temple where there are quite a few hotels and restaurants and a great view of the mountains including the 6,740 metre high Kawa Karpo. Aleksei and ... read more

I spent a total of 3 nights in Lijiang and for most of that time I just hung around the guesthouse talking to some of the other Chinese guests and enjoyed walking around the old town in the evening. The best bit for me was the range of food on offer which I made the most of and even had KFC a couple of times. The downside was the amount of tourists, by far the most I have seen in China, and how jampacked the small streets became in the nightime. I found that it didn't really hold much value for me as a tourist but it was a nice place to take it easy for a couple of days and recuperate. On my last full day in Lijiang I caught a bus about 10 km ... read more

I caught the 8.30am bus to Songpan, a town 300kms north of Chengdu and only 100kms from Jiuzhaigou Nature Reserve. The trip took about 7 hours and I found it quite interesting following the river and passing near the epicentre of the devestating 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Most of the towns that were destroyed are full of new housing with only some remnants to be seen, including a few bridges that had collapsed which they haven't done anything about. The other interesting part was a definate tibetan feel the further we got from Chengdu which was reflected in the houses as well as the people. Arriving in Songpan and seeing the renovated city walls and temples I was worried that it might turn out to be another Chinese tourist town, but after going for a walk I ... read more

After arriving back in Kaili after a disappointing night in Chong An I hopped straight on the bus bound for the Miao tourist town/village of Xijiang. The trip took about an hour passing some nice scenery along the way and then we were dropped off at the entrance gate at the top of the hill. I paid the $16 entry fee and joined about 100 Chinese tourists to have a look from the viewpoint over the town. The view was pretty good and after taking a few photos of the Chinese tourists dressed in traditional clothes I walked down the hill, across the river and eventually found a nice room in the main street above a candy shop for $11 a night. That night whilst I was having dinner at a cheap barbecue place I started ... read more