Three Pagodas 三塔寺 @ Yunnan

Date: 28/12/2008
City: Dali, Yunnan
Remarks: Day 6, Three Pagodas


聚影池 reflection pond reflecting the image of the Three Pagodas

If you have had enough with the old towns in Yunnan, the Three Pagodas is a nice place to get away from the bustling life in town. The Three Pagodas is near the Dali Old Town and is visible from the Dali Old Town. It took us around 30 minutes to walk from the Dali Old Town to the Three Pagodas, which was a bit longer than what we had expected, but one can always take the bus, trishaw or taxi there.

The Three Pagodas is a tranquil park with little tourists, suitable to those who are not interested in praying and burning incense. Entrance fee is RMB120/person, RMB60 for students. The Three Pagodas, as its name implies, comprises three independent pagodas made by brick and covered with white mud. The pagodas are beautiful and balanced, and uncommon in the ancient Buddhist architecture in China. The three pagodas form a symmetric triangle with one of the pagoda leans toward one side.

We should have stayed in the park for around 2-3 hours. Though we were very tired when we left the Three Pagodas, we found it expensive to take a trishaw. The driver asked for RMB10, and that was only a trishaw! He had asked for way too much and we just did not like being overcharged. So we, irrationally, decided to walk from the Three Pagodas back to Dali Old Town, and the driver followed us half the journey, for like 15 minutes! I guess the driver could hardly understand why these people were so stubborn. Obviously were tired to dead, but still, refused to pay 10 bucks for the ride. As soon as the driver gave up, we stopped at the nearby bus station and took a bus back to Dali Old Town (RMB1 per person). We were way to tired to continue walk back!!

Shuhe Ancient Town 束河古鎮 @ Yunnan

Date: 27 Dec 2008
City: Lijiang, Yunnan, China
Remarks: Day 5

Shuhe Ancient Town 束河古鎮 was indeed the third old town in our Yunnan Trip. Never thought of going that many old towns in one go, but once again, plan never catches up with changes.

We planned to go Jade Dragon Snow Mountain 玉龍雪山 but the wind was too strong that the whole glacier was shut down. Our driver suggested this place so here we were. in Shuhe Ancient Town 束河古鎮.

The Old Town of Lijiang was usually referring to the bustling Dayan Town,  but in fact the nearby Shuhe Ancient Town and Baisha Ancient Town are also included in the UNESCO World Heritage. Shuhe Ancient Town was one of the earliest settlement of Naxi ethnic group in Lijiang, a well-preserved market town on the Cha Ma Road. It only took about 10 min drive from Dayan Town to Shuhe Ancient Town.

Shuhe Ancient Town charged entry fee of RMB 30 and Old Town maintenance fee of RMB 80, but we have escaped from it by entering via the side door as suggested by our driver. wakaka

It was quite a nice old town, kind of like the commonly referred Old Town of Lijiang (Dayan Town), but in a smaller scale and in a better version. Better in a sense that the Shuhe Ancient Town has less tourist, and has still remain a certain degree of authenticity. There were beautiful traditional Naxi houses and cobbled streets. Many old Naxi houses are now cafe, guesthouses, restaurants and souvenir shops, but the houses are well preserved with its authenticity than those in the Old Town of Lijiang.

There were many horses for tourist ride in the town. You can almost saw it everywhere in town and people kept asking like every 5 minutes. And since there were so many horses in the town, you have to be careful while wandering around, be careful if the horses, as well as be careful if the horse shits on the streets!!

I heard from a tour guide in a museum in Shuhe Ancient Town regarding the "sky burial". Turn out the Naxi ethnic group also has the customs of sky burial. The dead was incised and the first knife was exercised by the the family member of the dead!!

Dali Old Town 大理古城 @ Yunnan

Date: 28 Dec 2008
City: Dali, Yunnan
Remarks: Day 6, Dali Old Town 大理古城


Dali old town is located in Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture (大理白族自治州) in northwest Yunnan, 13 km from the New City of Dali, at the foot of Cangshan Mountain. It was the home of the Bai ethnic minority, an ancient Chinese city with history dated back to the Ming Dynasty. The bus from Lijiang to Dali took us around 3 hours.

I like the Dali Old Town more than the Old Town of Lijiang. Although the Dali Old Town is again another major tourist spot with lots of tourists, I noticed that the town has made its effort in maintaining its authenticity comparing to the Old Town of Lijiang. It feels less touristy and more comfy walking around the Dali Old Town. The Dali Old Town is a pleasant ancient town with well-preserved traditional houses and cobble paved streets. The town is laid out on a typical north-south, east-west axis with four main city gates and ancient city walls.

You can have a gentle walk within the Old Town. The town isn't a big one and a walk wouldn't take long. There are food stalls, antique shops, travel agents, guesthouses, bars and restaurants for the tourists for sure, but also flower stalls on the streets, banks, supermarkets, and some other local shops as well for the locals.

You can as well get up to the city wall for the overview of Dali Old Town. You got to admire the mainlanders. They can charge you anytime anywhere. There was even a counter on the city wall and you had to pay to walk around the walls. The counter did not look like an official one at all. It was just a table which seemed to be run by a random local. You got to pay RMB2 before you can walk around the city wall.

PS1. Notice there are many stalls/ hawkers selling strawberries on the street. Seems like strawberry is the local specialty in Dali.

PS2. It was very enjoyable to sit at the outdoor table of one of the bars in the Foreigners Street, a street full of bars and restaurants, to catch the vibe. We sat there for hours just to lay back. There was a group of Bai people passed by our bar, seemed like having some kind of traditional wedding ceremony. Very interesting to get a glimpse, and very glad to know that the Dali Old Town is still alive, with people living inside, telling stories, at the same time creating their own stories.

Ganden Sumtseling Monastery (松贊林寺) @ Shangri-la

Date: 24/12/2008
County: Shangri-la, China
Remarks: Day 2, Ganden Sumtseling Monastery (松赞林寺)

Ganden Sumtseling Monastery is one of the most important Tibetan monasteries in  Southwest China. It is situated 5km from the city of Zhongdian and is more than 300 years old. Built by the Fifth Dalai Lama, Ganden Sumtseling Monastery had undergone a massive restoration after the extensive damage it had in the Cultural Revolution. It is now the largest Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Yunnan with around 600-700 monks living inside, and is regarded as one of the main attraction in Shangri-la.

 It is a huge complex and one have to walk up hundreds of stoned steps from the entrance gate before reaching the main temple. I guess it was because of the high altitude, I had already panted after walking a few stairs. It took me quite some time to finally reach the main temple. On the way up, there were a lot of Tibetan children in Ganden Sumtseling Monastery asking for money, following you throughout the walk. And they only asked the girls, but not boys!! I understand it is commonly found in many places, but I don't like it at all. They should be in school, having their education instead of begging for money. Gods know what their parents are thinking.

Ganden Sumtseling Monastery is huge and magnificent, spreading along the hill scope. It is also known as the Little Potala Palace since it is modeled on Lhasa's Potala Palace. There are Tibetan prayer wheels along the way. Remember to give the prayer wheels a spin (spin clockwise). Each spin represents you have chanted scriptures once. Like many other temples in China, photos are not allowed inside the temple. You can get a nice panorama view of Ganden Sumtseling Monaster in Gulong Village nearby.

PS1. Ganden Sumtseling Monastery don't have discount for students (Disappointed).

Old Town of Lijiang 麗江古城 @ Yunnan

Date: 26/12/2008
City: Lijiang, Yunnan, China
Remarks: Day 4

去雲南沒有去過麗江古城就像沒有到過雲南。麗江古城是雲南一主要旅遊點，是聯合國教科文組織世界遺產，有超過800年的歷史。麗江古城的舊建築是獨一無二的，融和了雲南的納西文化和傳統的中國文化。麗江古城是一個很大的古城，保留了其歷史悠久的城市景觀和它獨有的古老而複雜的供水系統。麗江古城的古老供水系統今天仍然運作，河流和小橋在舊城區幾乎無處不在。

古城裡是不准車子行駛的。在老城區的街道是鵝卵石鋪成的。街道兩側的房子大多是兩層高，有磚瓦的屋頂，二樓外部有走廊。

雖然這是一個古老的城市，但是它保育得很好，很熱鬧，而且高度旅遊化。雖然我去的時候是在冬天，應該是淡季，但是麗江古城仍遊人如鯽，到处都是遊客。整個古城沿著舊城區的街道走兩側都是賓館，紀念品商店，酒吧和餐館。所以，如果你在想像著一個細小的而寧靜的古城，麗江古城完全不是那一回事。我想現在應該沒有很多當地居民仍住在的舊城區裡。

然而，這個古城仍然是一個很棒的地方，一個買紀念品的地方和一個很有趣的地方。古城有一條街整條街都是酒吧和餐館。傍晚和晚上的時候整條街的酒吧門口都站着酒吧的職員，大聲的歡呼和唱，試圖蓋過另一家酒吧的声音。晚上走這條酒吧街是一個非常有趣的經驗。


Going Yunnan without visiting the Old Town of Lijiang is almost like you haven't been to Yunnan at all. It is a major attraction in Yunnan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has a history of more than 800 years. The buildings of the Old Town of Lijiang is unique to other ancient Chinese cities with the representation of Naxi culture and tradition. The town is a big one and has retained its historical townscape and its ancient complex water supply system which still functions today.  You can see rivers and bridges almost everywhere in the Old Town. Cars are not allowed in the Old Town area and the streets are paved with cobblestones. Most of the houses in the Old Town are two-storeyed, with tiled roofs and an external corridor.

Though it is suppose to be an ancient city, it is very well restored, very bustling and very lively.  The town is highly touristy. Although I was there in winter time, which was supposed to be the low season, the town was still flooded with tourists. Guesthouses, souvenir shops, bars and restaurants are all over the town. All different kind of shops are along the streets in the Old Town. So if you are thinking about a small, quite ancient city, the Old Town of Lijiang is totally not the case. I don't think there are much local inhabitants still living in the Old Town nowadays.

Nevertheless, the town was still a great place for souvenirs and a fun place to stay. There is a street full of bars and restaurants. It is very rowdy in the evening and at night where the bars trying to ousting each other by cheering and singing aloud. It is a very interesting experience to walk via the bars at night just for the cheering.

Tiger Leaping Gorge 虎跳峽 @ Shangri-la

Date: 26/12/2008
County: Shangri-la, China
Remarks: Day 4, Trekking in Tiger Leaping Gorge 虎跳峽

"Am I out of my mind? Why am I risking my life treking 2-3000 metres above sea level?!"

That was I was thinking when I was trekking at Tiger Leaping Gorge in Shangri-la. I had never thought of go hiking in Shangri-la at all before the trip, but it became one of the most memorable experience I had in Shangri-la.

Tiger Leaping Gorge was one of the deepest gorges in the world. It is about 60 kilometers north of Lijiang Old Town lying between Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (Yulong Xueshan) and Haba Snow Mountain (Haba Xueshan). It is part of the Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas World Heritage Site. Legend says a tiger jumped across the river at the narrowest point in order to escape from a hunter, and hence its name. Tiger Leaping Gorge was divided into Upper Gorge, Middle Gorge and Lower Gorge. Lower Gorge was well maintained and paved and was where most of the tours clustered. Upper and Middle Gorge were relatively more remote with much less tourists, with just a fair number of trekkers.

Tiger Leaping Gorge was not in our plan indeed, but it was on our way from Shangri-la to Lijiang and was recommended by our driver. Why not then.

Our driver brought us to Tina's guesthouse in the Middle Gorge. We stayed there for a night (25 Dec) and rented a guide at RMB 180 to bring us down to the rapids of Middle Tiger Leaping Stone early next morning (26 Dec). The beds of Tina's guesthouse weren’t particularly comfy but they were at least warm.

We dated our guide at 7:30AM, but it was still a total darkness out there. So we waited for the first glimpse of light before descending down the cliff to the middle rapid (at around 8AM). There was essentially no path at all, but a sheer trail descending directly near Tina's Guesthouse to the river bank. The dirt path was extremely friable and dry, as well as very steep. It was very slippery and dangerous. The scenery was gorgeous, but I was too busy to keep myself safe on the path and had no extra hand in taking much photos. The Middle Tiger Leaping Stone was at the middle rapids. It wasn't easy to get down to the very bottom to the middle rapids. Going back up was even more difficult. We had to climb "the Sky Ladder"!! A ladder that was VERTICAL up to the sky, and for sure there was no safety net underneath!! (We only came to know that there was indeed a alternative path to go back, without the Sky Ladder after climbing the Sky Ladder. And the guide told us nothing about the alternative path!!)

The round trip to the rapids of Middle Tiger Leaping Stone took us 2.5 hours. The trip was tough and exhausting. However, when I now looked back after a few year, it was one of the most memorable part of my Shangri-la trip and was all worth it.

PS. What ironic is that while we were walking with extremely causion, our guide was walking very easily in his leather shoes!! As if it was nothing at all.....

0度以下的普達措國家公園 Potatso National Park (Pudacuo) @ Shangri-la, China

Date: 25/12/2007
County: Shangri-la, China
Remarks: Day 3, Potatso National Park (Pudacuo) 0度以下的普達措國家公園
Webiste: http://www.puda-cuo.com/

在幾年後寫這篇遊記的時候，普達措國家公園的景色都回到了我的腦海內。我是最近才發現原來普達措國家公園是中國大陸第一個國家公園。無論如何，普達措國家公園是一個去香格里拉的時候必須去的地方。普達措國家公園香格里拉距離22公里，位於中國西南部的雲南省。參觀普達措約需用半天左右。

普達措國家公園位於海拔3,500米到4,000米以上，主要景點包括屬都湖，Militang牧場和碧塔海。普達措似乎保育得很好，在公園沒有太多的人/商業活動，配套完善。在遊客中心支付190元的入場費後，人們可以坐穿梭巴士往來散落在公園的風景名勝區。巴士上有導遊向您介紹景點的特色。主要景點均設有棧道供遊客漫步，應該相當容易和輕鬆的步行旅程。
PS。然而在零下10度的天氣下走棧道則絕非一個簡單的任務!!

因為是冬天的關係，Militang牧場的草地已經乾了，但屬都湖和碧塔海依然風光如詩如畫。屬都湖和碧塔海都被覆蓋著茂密的森林山包圍着，湖上覆蓋著一層薄薄的冰，你可以在湖面看到完美的倒影。我可以想像在春天和夏天的時候普達措會是多麼的美麗。

冬天最好的就是沒有遊客，整個普達措只有我們（湖邊的長凳上都結了像水晶似的冰）。我們可以遠離遊客的喧囂，可以盡情享受普達措自然的魅力，享受它應有平靜和安靜的。

PS。學生有50％的折扣！如果你有學生證，記得要帶上！

Having writing this few years later, memory of the heavenly landscape of Potatso National Park all came back to my mind. I only came to realise recently Potatso is indeed the first national park in mainland China. In any event, Potatso National Park is a must-go when visiting Shangri-la. It is located 22km away from Shangri-la, in southwest China's Yunnan province. A visit to Potatso would take up around half a day.

Potatso mainly comprises of Shudu Lake, Militang Pasture and Bita Lake, elevates from 3,500 meters to 4,000 meters above the sea level. Potatso appeared to be well preserved without much human/ commercial activities in the Park. The supporting facilities of Potatso was well developed. One can took the shuttle bus at the visitor centre after after paying the entrance fee of 190 Yuan. There was tour guide on shuttle bus introducing you the scenic spots and the bus would take you to the scenic spots scattered in the park. One can trek the well-built wooden pathway around the lakes. The walk should be easy and relaxing.

PS. It wasn't really an easy walk at all under the freezing -10 degree though.

The meadow of Militang Pasture had dried out since I was there in winter time with temperature of -10 degrees, but the scenery of Shudu Lake and Bita Lake were picturesque. Both Shudu Lake and Bita Lake were surrounded mountains covered with dense forest and covered with a thin layer of ice on the surface and you could see the perfect reflection from the lake surface. I can imagine how beautiful Potatso would be during spring and summer time. The best part of going during winter time was that there wasn't any tourist but us (you can see from the crystallized ice on the benches along the Lakes), so we can still enjoy the natural charm of Potatso. The Park was as calm and quiet as it should be, free from the hustle and bustle of the tourist. 

PS. There's 50% discount for students!! So, remember to bring your Student ID card if you have one!!

0度以下的香格里拉 Shangri-la @ China

Date: 23/12/2007

Location: Shangri-la, China

Remarks: Our routes

我是12月去香格里拉，是冬天的時候。這不是一年最佳的旅遊時間。一個字來形容12月香格里拉的天氣，就是冷，0至-10度左右的冷，加上平均海拔超過3000米的香格里拉，冷天氣和可能的高原反應，如頭痛，胸悶，可以使您的旅程開始得很慘。

香格里拉位於西藏，雲南，四川的交叉點。該地區居住著許多不同的民族，其中藏族人口佔多數。壯觀景色和豐富的文化使香格里拉這土地非常有魅力。

除了0度以下的冷天氣外，12月的天氣其實是蠻不錯的。乾燥，而且沒有什麼雨水。天空是明亮和清澈的藍色，景色蔚為壯觀。而且冬天去香格里拉的好處就是沒有什麼遊客。所有的地方(對的，是所有的地方)都只會發現了一兩個遊客，就是這樣。只要你想留，你可以留在你喜歡的地方多久就多久，可以盡情享受不受旅客打擾的香格里拉。而且在這個淡季的時候東西也便宜得多，食物，租車，酒店，紀念品，什麼都便宜多。

我們坐了從香港飛往昆明機場，在昆明住了一晚，並第二天早上坐飛機昆明至香格里拉。香格里拉的機場很小，我們的飛機是機場裡唯一的飛機。我們的飛機停在跑道上，我們走出飛機就像主席一樣，哈哈。走出機場後也完全不必擔心如何從機場去酒店，十多個司機在機場外向我們招手。所以，你可以隨便挑一個一輛價格合理的車，應該只用花幾塊錢。 （但要注意，我這經歷的時間是在冬季。不知道旺季期間是什麼樣子的）。

昆明的天氣並不冷，穿薄外套已經足夠了，感覺就像1X度左右。但是，香格里拉是冷得多。在走出機場之前，我們把我們所有的衣服都穿了上身。機場裡有一個溫度計，是 -8度！我們每次說話的時候都有白煙從口裡冒出來!!

PS。人們通常從南到北，從昆明開始，然後向北走去香格里拉，但我們採取了相反的路線。反而，我們先去香格里拉，再往南走回昆明。

I was in Shangri-la in December, winter time. It's not really the best time of visit in the year. It was cold, around -10 degree, and together with the average altitude of over 3,000 meters of Shangri-la, the coldness and the possible altitude sickness with symptoms like headache, chest distress and so on could make your trip started miserably.

Shangri-la county located at where Tibet, Yunnan and Sichuan met. The land was very attractive and charming  with the spectacular scenery and the fascinating ethnic cultures. The region was inhabited by many different ethnic groups, with Tibetans took up the majority of the population.

The weather in December was indeed quite nice. It was dry with little rain. The sky was bright blue and crystal clear. The scenery was spectacular. And there were good thing going Shangri-la during winter time as well. All the places we went were not packed with tourists. You could only found a couples and that's it. You could stay wherever you like, stay as long as you like, indulge yourself into Shangri-la without being disturbed by the travellers. And things were much cheaper over there during this slack season too. The food, the rented car, the hotel, the souvenir, everything.

We took a flight from Hong Kong to Kunming Airport in Yunnan, stayed in Kunming for one night, and got on the flight from Kunming to Shangri-la directly the morning next day. The Shangri-la was much smaller, there was only one plane, our plane in the airport. We walked out of the aircraft like Mr President, haha. And we need not to worry about how to get from the Airport to your hotel. When we walked out the Airport after putting all the clothes we had on us, there were dozens of drivers coming to you. So, just pick the one with a nice car and reasonable price. Should only cost a few bucks. (But beware, that's what I experienced in winter time. Not sure what it's like during peak season.)

The weather wasn't cold in the Kunming. A thin jacket was already enough. It felt like around 1x degrees. But Shangri-la was much much colder. There was a thermometer in the Airport, and it was -8 degrees!! There was white smoke coming out from your mouth every time you speak.

PS. People usually go from the south to north, started from Kunming, to Lijian and then Shangri-la, but we took the opposite route. We indeed went to Shangri-la right away, and travelled downwards back to Kunming.

#travel, #travelblog, #Shangri-la, #China