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Published: October 24th 2009
OCT.4-8: The drive to Lijiang was enjoyable--the moutainside views were amazing! There were beautiful rice paddies, horses and cattle grazing, and clouds of mist envelopping the mountain villages...At one point, the mist was so heavy that it looked like we were inside a huge cloud.
(I'm unfortunately still waiting to get pictures from Aaron, who took most of the landscape pictures with his fancy SLR camera...)
We were curious to know how the villages were like...we actually asked our driver, Brad, if we could stop and go into one of the villages (but it would be hard to get there from the road and plus it wouldn't be very nice to just barge into these people's home).
We arrived in Lijiang around lunch time. At this point, we sadly had to say goodbye to Brad and Angelina. 😞 We took a picture with them (with Aaron's camera I think...so I don't have it yet). We entered the Ancient Town of Lijiang by foot and it felt like I had time-travelled. Adorning the ancient streets and buildings were gorgeous rows of flower pots & flower beds. You could also buy flowers (and they were very very cheap) at one of
the many flower carts.
Like in Dali, there were channels of water along the edges of the streets.
There was a main square in the middle of the town with a stage. During the day, there would be people in native costume dancing and singing. Also, there were some men who wore vests and hats made of yak hair (I think that is Naxi traditional clothing) who came with horses to offer rides around the town. The horses made the square smell yucky though...and sometimes there would be large puddles on the cobblestone road...I later came to the conclusion it was not water from the rain, but horse pee. 😞
ACCOMMODATIONS: We were staying at a hotel that was located inside the Ancient Town. There were SO many streets and turns and alleyways....it took a while to find the hotel.
"Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles". That was the name of our hotel---such a strange name! There were a couple hotels with the same name, under one company called Solo Wandering (that also owned & operated a string of bars with the same name).
There was a little black bird at the entrance of our hotel who could
A little lost
standing by some flowers waiting as Jess tries to ask for directions to our hotel...ehehetalk in a male and a female voice! He would say things like "Ni Hao". hehee
The hotel (which was a 5-star hotel) was something that I've never seen or experienced ever. As my friend put it, it is like a "rustic log cabin....but Chinese style"! It was like living in ancient China, in an ancient Chinese house. Once you got past the front desk, you're "outside" again. There is a courtyard right in the middle of this hotel. From certain rooms on the upper floor you could see the snow mountain. The only annoying thing about the hotel is that you could easily hear your neighbours--almost every morning, we were rudely wakened by children running around and shouting and people SLAMMING their doors for some unknown reason. The first afternoon we were there, we decided to take a nap before dinner and we were too lazy to close our curtains (the curtains of the glass "window/wall" that looks out into the hall) and at one point, my friend said she saw this man and his child peering in....ahhh! I asked Jess how to say "be quiet" in Mandarin in case we wanted to say something to our annoying
neighbours. ahaha...It went something like "Awn jing".
FOOD: Our first meal in Lijiang was lunch--we tried
yak meat (which was surprisingly very tasty) and
fried Yunnan goat cheese (which was oddly served with sugar, but I liked it). There was a man who went around with his guitar singing Chinese songs. And as we were eating, a lady approached our table trying to sell some silver jewellery.
We went out for dinner around 7:30 or 8pm. We wanted to try out a Thai restaurant that we had seen earlier in the afternoon but couldn't find it (I don't think I saw it ever again during our stay in Lijiang; it was difficult to navigate through those ancient streets!). So we decided to go to Prague Cafe (a place we had spotted earlier too).
We became regulars at
Prague Cafe. We went there every morning for breakfast and had dinner there almost each night! The food was AMAZING and the service was AMAZING! The waitresses were all so friendly and they spoke some English. Every time we asked for something or ordered something, they would say "Please wait a moment". There was a very steep and narrow staircase
Hotel 1
courtyard in the middle of the hotel. there was a big pond, which was the home to some goldfish. the stairs lead to a couple of the suites on the upper floor. that led to the upper dining area...I wonder how they manage to get up those stairs with a tray of hot drinks and food!
I ordered the
Naxi breakfast a few times--it came with a cup of Yunnan coffee (which was awesome), a choice of homemade bread or thick toast with strawberry jam (which was oh so delicious), Yunnan ham, potato pancakes (which were YUMMY), Yunnan goat cheese, and 2 fried eggs--all of that for 30 RMB, which is less than 5 CAD!
They a wonderful menu of Western, Chinese, and Japanese Food...desserts....drinks... They had the most wonderful western soups too---the best cream of mushroom soup I've ever had! The food was so good that we didn't have time to talk as much since we were all busy eating and I even forgot to take a picture of the food!
The restaurant had a good atmosphere: people would be hanging out enjoying a book and a cup of coffee (they had a little library where you exchange used books or buy them) and it was always a full-house with lively conversation and music.
SHOPPING: Most of the things we saw were hand-made. Most of the stores sold similar
Hotel 2
Hallway leading to my room, which I shared with 2 friends (the last one on the left). The suite across from our's had 2 bedrooms, a little kitchen, and a room with a mahjong table. items: pashminas, shawls, jewellery, beads, Naxi paintings and wood carvings, tie-dye clothing, leather, silver, etc. Some of the clothing was nice, but they weren't really my style---tie-dye and long skirts and flowy pants. It was cool to see the craftsmen/women at work making the scarves and jewellery and paintings at the entrance of their shop.
Although there were TONS of shops, we didn't spend all of our time shopping. 😊 I learned to wait...to not buy something immediately when I saw it because a few stores down, they would sell the exact same thing at a lower price. For example, my friend bought these nice pouches with Naxi characters painted on them....and the next day I went to another shop & found the same pouches and was able to buy them for half of what my friend paid.
Some of the stores had signs that said "no bargains", but for the stores where you could barter (though we usually didn't barter for small items..,) I learned that the best strategy is to tell them you'll pay half of the price they've quoted & if they say no....start walking away...and they usually will give it to you for the price
Hotel 3
our room. see what I mean about there being a random window that lets everyone see into the bathroom??? Fortunately, there were curtains. The toilet and shower were in the same glass enclosure...and the sink was right outside that enclosure. If one of us went to wash our hands or look in the mirror and another one of us was using the toilet or showering...it was a bit awkward. you asked for (or maybe 10 RMB more than your price). I bought a few gifts and a couple bracelets and souvenirs. I was happy.
There is one shop in particular that I want to mention. It's run by this couple and their 9-year-old daughter (who was so sweet and so smart!). The family lives in the side/back area of the shop. The father does most of the wood carving and painting...and the mother and the daughter make jewellery and accessories. They were such friendly people. The daughter, in particular, made an impression on me. She was so cute and always had a beautiful smile on her face. It was so cool to see how she helped to run the shop. We went to their store 3 times. One time, I was looking at the bracelets and she came up to me & motioned to one of the bracelets...like she was suggesting a good colour or style for me. And when we finished picking out our items, she would quickly go to get a bag for our items & I also heard her whisper to her mom to give us a better price. 😊 The five of us went
Hotel 4
If we didn't draw the curtains, we could see what was happening outside in the hall and into the room across from our's...or other people could look into our room. It was a bit strange. to a store to buy some treats and snacks for this 9-year-old girl. When we gave her the little treats, she was SO happy. It was such a simple gesture on our part, but I could tell by her eyes and by the big smile on her face that it meant a lot; it made me remember that little things like this can go a long way! Immediately, she and her mom went to choose bracelets to give to us as gifts.
We visited their store one last time the night before we left Lijiang...and we took a picture with the little girl. She wanted to give each of us a pair of earrings...but we wouldn't take them because they had already given us bracelets earlier. She was just so sweet and I wish her all the best!
So one thing that I noticed about the people there is that they are all happy and friendly and caring...and they seem grateful for the little things in life which I take for granted sometimes. They lead simple lives--they don't live in grand houses nor do they have fancy cars....and it doesn't seem like that matters at all to them. It's
Hotel 5
We had a large-screen TV and a computer w/ Internet access. I tried to stay away from the computer...but we all ended up checking our e-mails on our last night. like they know and value what is (or what should be) priority in life.
Day excursions: We stumbled upon this local travel/tour company next to the Prague Cafe and was curious to know what kind of things to do or see around the city. So we ended up signing up for a day-trip to do some
horse-backing riding and boating! We paid something like 140 RMB each person (it included all the fees and transportation). Before we got there, I was imagining that we would be riding a horse on flat land or along a river. ahaha...as we started going...I found out we were going to go up a mountain!! The path that we would be taking was along a part of the
Silk Road! I was SOOOO excited for it. Not only was this my first time riding a horse, but it was just so surreal that I would be on the Silk Road---something that I had only ever read about & studied about in History class before.
I named my horse
Brownie. ehhee....Brownie was such a nice, gentle horse! Though at times, he (or she, I didn't know) would get distracted by some plants or flowers
& would take a break to have a munch. The path was kind of wet and there was a stream flowing down. Sometimes, the path got slippery (especially when there were lots of rocks and stones in the way) and I could feel Brownie's hooves slipping. But he was very good and kept me safe. My guide taught us a few things to make the ride easier on the horse: lean forward & put your legs back when going uphill and lean backwards & put your legs forward when going downhill. We went at a leisurely pace so I was able to take in the beautiful trees, water and the landscape of the mountains. I asked my guide to teach me to say something in the Naxi dialect. I learned how to say "Ni la la" which means "hello"!
The only time I really got scared was when, after a 10 minute break, I got back onto my horse & my guide told him--in the Naxi dialect--to start walking...and he got up a little on his hind legs & attacked the horse next to us.
One thing that bothered me was seeing other people, who had a different guide,
use long sticks to hit (though probably gently) their horse to make them run and gallop. All five of us had to stop to the side to let those people go ahead.
We didn't go through the entire route because some of us (though not me) were starting to feel tired & some areas were starting to ache. hehe I think we rode for 2 hours or so??? Anyway, towards the end of the ride...when we were on flat land again...I asked the guide (well Jess translated for me) if Brownie could start running. So my guide started to run and Brownie followed suit. I just wanted to see how it was like. It was fun!!!
After the horse-back riding, we went to the "lake" (though I was told it used to be a field that got flooded...and so now it's a lake). There were several couples getting their pre-wedding pictures taken. Thank goodness the brides had rental gowns on...they were standing in the mud and one couple was posing with a horse! But I guess the lake and the mountains did create a nice backdrop for their pictures.
The water was quite shallow and you could see lots
Naxi characters
carvings of some Naxi characters on the post of plants and other things that had grown wild. The water was kind of dirty looking, but it didn't smell bad or anything. The scenery was beautiful. There was a little island in the centre of the lake, with a single tree standing in the middle of it. And there were mountains surrounding the lake and you could see a mirror-reflection of the mountains in the water. We didn't have to paddle or anything...we just sat in the boat and enjoyed the ride. There was man who sat at the back of the boat who steered with the help of a long bamboo stick.
We went reeeeally slowly; it almost lulled me to sleep! One of the other boat guides started singing some Yunnan/Naxi folk songs...it was nice!
Another day trip we took was to a different
ancient town...it was only 20-30 minutes away. It was similar to the ancient town of Lijiang, but smaller and not as busy. It was another beautiful, sunny day. Perfect weather to walk around and shop. We also found a little cafe. I enjoyed some nice hot green tea and a slice of banana-walnut bread!
Night Life: The first night in
Flowers galore
and corn. Along the way to Lijiang we passed by fields of corn stalks. I saw some huge piles of orange-kernelled corn and some were in rows being layed out to dry. I'm not sure what they do with all that corn. I didn't see a lot of corn on the menu at the restaurants or anything. Lijiang was a bit disappointing because by the time we finished dinner (and we took our time and had dessert & everything) and by the time we were able to find a place to go to, there was not much going on. We had wanted to find a nice bar to sit in and watch some performances. We learned that about a year ago, a new regulation came into place--music and performances were to end by 11:30pm and almost all the shops & restaurants were to close by 1am. I heard they came up with that regulation because in previous years, it got pretty wild at night and people were complaining so they wanted to control the noise level....and also because Lijiang is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
So the next couple nights, we headed to dinner earlier...so we could catch the shows, which began at 8pm. They have nightly shows at the bars with traditional Naxi singers and dancers and performers from other minority groups/tribes (some of them were Tibetan...and there were a few performers who of the Mosuo group--a matriarchal society that does not practice marriage.). The music and dancing was beautiful and very upbeat. The performers
Guitar man
he was singing by the restaurant where we were eating our lunch all wore dresses and clothing with colourful beading & jewellery. The girls all had interesting up-dos and the guys all had long hair. One of the performers kind of freaked me out--he was a 60-year-old man dressed as a woman & he sang very very high-pitched songs. From time to time, they would yell something that sounded like "Ya sho, ya sho" and we would pound these bricks of wood on the table (that the bar provided) & respond by shouting "Ya ya sho"!
Our table was right by a huge window, so as people were walking by we would wave to them & sometimes we would ask them to come join us. It was a nice way to meet new people and it made things more fun! 😊 There were also flower girls going around the bars selling roses--targeting men to buy them to give away to performers or whoever (for 10 RMB a piece).
It was much colder in Lijiang, since we were higher up in the mountains. I had to layer up with a hoodie and my raincoat. But the air, like in Dali, was so fresh and sweet. The sky was a gorgeous
Fried Yunnan Goat Cheese (w/ Sugar)
in the very top left corner of the photo...you can see a little of the yak meat dish. blue. Everything seemed to run at a different pace. It was relaxing and easy-going....it was so nice there that none of us wanted to leave. We didn't get to go to the snow mountain...but that's ok. It'll just be one out of many reasons why I should make it a point to go back to Lijiang some day!
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queens
non-member comment
oh my!
a good looonngg read! i could almost smell the air when you described your experience in dali! just almost! sniffffffffffffffffffffffff .. ahhhhhhhhhh ... and when you come back to t.o, we'll make fried goat cheese!