Erhai Lake Dali

Today we are in Dali, or "backpackers heaven" – so called because of its quaint, quiet and decidedly trendy Old Town. I hadn't originally included Dali on the itinerary as me and trendy don’t particularly go well together, but, given that it’s sort of on the way from Kunming to Lijiang, had decided why not? Especially after I …

After the excitement and activity of trekking in Yunnan we moved to Dali – 185KM south of Lijiang and also an historic town.

We drafted this blog in a car on the notional 4.5 hour trip from Lijiang to Dali. The story continues:

We are 3.5 hours into our drive to Dali: Golden Week traffic is horrendous and we have spent 45 …

Lijiang to Dali was quite a long ride on a public bus. We were all sad to leave Lijiang behind and not really looking forward to sitting on a crowded bus for hours. But, true to form, we grab snacks for the ride and settle in.

Our Dali hotel was a surprise, with it's huge lobby and very un-wild appearance! We are always happy to see …

... , Jiangsu and Shandong provinces as well as Chongqing Municipality. A crowd of more than 700 people cheered at 4:45pm at Erhai Lake in Yunnan's Dali City, which was thought to be the best location for observation. "Too beautiful. I'm lost for words," ...

... I was still happy to have discovered this place. Dali is a charming city sandwiched between the mountains of Cang Shan and Erhai Lake. Based on a recommendation, I checked into Jade Emu, owned by Dave an Australian, and is one of those places that just ...

... hurry to do anything. We also hired a guide and white breadloaf van to tour the fertile farmlands and villages around Erhai Lake. First stop: Shaping Market. At Shaping Market, the saleswomen were ready for tourists, with plenty of coins, ...

Overlooking the ripening winter wheat and vegetable fields, Erhai Lake, Dali's three pagodas, and the old town, Wu Wei Temple remains a mountain haven for Kung Fu practitioners. The temple is tucked into a pine forest on the slopes of Cang Shan, which ...

... of Tibetan, Burmo, and Han language and culture--Dali is a melting pot. At the center of Bai culture is Erhai Lake and the old town of Dali. It is here that I have been meeting all kinds of people: dancing the Raoshaling Bai folk dance, cormorant ...

... some locals and 3 other tourists.  It was lovely; the view of the cloud covered mountains, the view of the city below and Erhai Lake, the streams and waterfalls, and the mix of colors - red, green, orange and yellow of the forest. Heading into the ...

... nbsp;After I run into Tony again, we have been out and about in Dali and its surroundings, including some of the villages around Erhai Lake. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Er Our group of three extended to 5 people; one of the girls I met in Zhongdian ...

... on the way down, but as usual, a lack of red wine prohibits me from elaborating further.) Lush valleys, waterfalls, breathtaking views of Erhai Lake... we don't need to go into specifics do we? We know you'd rather look forward to the 6000-odd photos ...

... Spain vs Germany. After two days in the old town we decided to move to the village of Shuang Lang, on the western shore of Erhai Lake. Our hostel, Sky and Sea Lodge, lived up to its name fully as we were only a few steps away from the lake. ...

... small. Basically it is all tourist shops, and of course crammed with Chinese tour groups. Later in the day we went to the Erhai Lake which is just outside town. We were thinking there would be some nice lakefront restaurants to relax at, but there was ...