dali

The driver decided to take the windy, backroads to Dali, so although it was beautiful we didn't arive till 8.30pm. We checked into our cute family-run hotel (free internet & laundry, yay), then went out for a meal to celebrate the birthday girl. We had organised a humungous cake (even though the surprise got spoilt!). We had a bit of a dance to the terrible music chosen by the DJ, with Alan (the 80yr old) getting right into it! In the morning Emma, Helena & I hired bicycles and headed out into the countryside, to the Shaping Markets (apparently a 2hr trip). We passed through some very small towns and saw lots of workers in the fields. It was quite a nice trip, but had some tough parts going uphill! We passed a couple on a motorbike, who informed us the markets were 35km from town! At that point we were about halfway, so we continued on. With no road signs, we reached a very industrial town & asked for directions... somehow we had passed the bloody markets. So we headed back (added another 10km onto the trip), then FINALLY found the place 4hrs after leaving town! We were buggered, so we ate lunch at a food stall & had a wander around. Considering how far we had come, I was expecting a pretty amazing market- was a bit disappointing. There was no way I was riding back into town, so we flagged down a bus, payed them way too much money, got our bikes tied to the roof and headed back to Dali. It was so far, I even had time to nap on the bus! Had a lazy afternoon, heard the adventures of other people in the group. We had a group dinner at a Tibetan restaurant, which was really delicious! Had a drink afterwards,and hobbled home in pain. I was sad because we had such a short time here, and there seemed to be heaps to do.