Lijiang

Our bus was very plush- wide leather seats and 3 TV screens, playing Charlie's Angles (dubbed in Chinese though). However, I began to yearn for the overnight trains... we broke down and had to stop 3 times, and then wait an hour for a new bus to pick us up! The scenery along the way was really beautiful though- lots of rice paddies, huge mountains & valleys, little villages... such a nice change from the busy cities we have been visiting. I also had some interesting (squat) toilet experiences. Firstly, little old ladies not bothering to close the doors; one woman facing bum out (lovely view); a communal trough that everone squats over- so much fun! Haha. We arrived in Lijiang quite late, and followed the narrow cobbled streets of the Old Town to our very cute guest house. That night we explored the town and its beautiful buildings, canals & bridges (and lots of Chinese tourists!). The following morning we got up very early to empty streets, and walked to the top of Lion Hill Park. We watched the sunrise from the top of Wangu tower. Was very pretty watching all the old style rooftops become light. There were a whole heap of Chinese men taking photos with massive lenses & tripods (compensating for something?). We sat in a little cafe to warm up with hot tea, and became the subject of a few photos from passers by! There was some Naxi (minority group) dancing going on in the town square which we enjoyed. We then explored Black Dragon Pool, which is a lovely big park & lake area. We wandered around the peaceful gardens, with the stunning Jade Dragon Mountains in the background. Was so nice being away from the hectic-ness of Chinese cities. There was a Culture Research Centre that we had a look at, and a young Naxi guy was more than happy to explain the Dongba culture of the Naxi people. It was really interesting. After a huge morning, I lazed around in the afternoon, before enjoying the dusk view of the town from Mel's balcony high on the hill. In the morning, we got organised to leave for our 2 day trek.