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Tibet On The Horizon
As the sun sets on Shangri-La we ready our bags for an early flight to Lhasa. Even if people here don’t live for a couple of centuries as in the fictional Shangri-La this town was good to us. Great family style dinners at the CrossRoad guesthouse, local peaks to climb, yak pie and Tibetan disco…
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Light A Couple Of These And Your Sins Will Be Forgotten
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Morning In Shangri-La (really this time)
Minds giddy with the thin air of 3200 meters we are closing in on Tibet. Already Yak carcasses are dangling from store fronts and prayer flags are everywhere.
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On the Road to Shangri-La: Tiger Leaping Gorge
A towering redwood above the apple tree that is Hell’s Canyon in Oregon, Tiger Leaping Gorge soars some 3900 meters above the water of the Yangzi river. The Yulong Xue mountain, i.e. Jade Dragon Snow mountain stands watch with its 5500 meters. Enjoy the sight while it lasts as plans to dam the river will…
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Yin and Yang: Laborer and Folklore Disco
Lijiang is a place of extreme contrasts as hords of affluent Chinese tourist with fat Canons with L-lenses dangling from their necks amble through the narrow alleys of this ancient city come outdoor shopping mall. The stores sell some interesting trinkets that show local color and the bars have women dressed in local tribal outfits…
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Looking at Yulong Mountain from Lijiang
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German Bakery
The things you discover after spending three or four days in place make it worthwhile to stay long enough to see beyond the surface. On our last morning we met the owner of this impeccably run German bakery. What an opportunity for locals to learn German baking and perhaps set off to run their own…
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All Hands On Deck For Rice Harvest On Lake Er
Enjoy that rice, it was a lot of trouble to grow and harvest.
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Mystery Courtyard
For all the bustling and excess of the main streets of Dali there are plenty of stories to be learned beyond the surface. The Mosques reminders of a late 19th century uprising to found a Muslim state. Back streets covered in grain to be dried. Uniformed schoolchildren walking in small groups nearly always with the…
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Could You Say ‘No’ to This Man?
Near the top of the chair lift leading some 500 meters up the slope of Dahei from Dali sits a small temple. After making it through some harrowing bus rides unharmed we had the intention of making a small donation thanking the spirits for their kindness. Curiously we peek into the temple and observe the…