Baimalongtan Hostel Lijiang

... though!

The role of women in China is interesting. In true Communist spirit these women cart out the rubble on their backs, hump the bricks and stone and wheelbarrow loads of cement. I doubt if any of the labourers get well paid but I do hope there is equal pay.

Spectacular mountain scenery, fertile plateau, blue skies, sunshine and wonderful walks would certainly make this an alternative candidate for Hilton's mythical paradise.

... Dancing Storyteller

... House. As for me, my goal was to get out of touristy Lijiang and enjoy the scenery for however long I deem appropriate. My first stop after about 3 hours was Naxi Family Guesthouse. The instant I entered their family courtyard I was charmed by the smile of the owners, the flowers and the incredible view from the terrace of the Yulong mountains. So, after a three hour hike, I decided to make this my first overnight stop. I set outside and ...

... del campo, y cuando ya estaba agachada dentro, me di cuenta de que algo se movia. Yo estaba al tanto por si me salia alguna rata del agujero, pero me fije un poco mas y me di cuenta de que estaba lleno de gusanos blancos. Arrggh, que asco! Si lo se, meo detras de un matorral.

Volvimos a Mama Naxi a punto para la cena. Esta vez nos sentaron con 3 alemanes y 3 israelies. Al cabo de un rato, cada grupo se puso a hablar en su lengua, asi que casi ...

The next morning, Caitlin and I woke up early (again to a rooster) to eat breakfast before heading for our bus that would take us to Lijiang. We almost took too long, but made it in enough time to pick out some seats in the corner of our bus. It was a smaller bus, a private bus. It was a better journey than the last but we still had too many rest stops, the occasional chicken or other farm animal in the road, and a very bumpy ride. After ...

... river and rode along a major highway before crossing a different section of the river for our lunch break. After lunch it was undulating ride passing small villages and terraced paddy fields before stopping at the first bend of theYangtze where it ...

... told me, "but I love being out in the mountains." This lack of interest does mean that an area like that around Thousand Tortoise mountain, a protected park, is almost unexplored by hikers, despite being on a visual par with a world-class site like Yosemite in California. All around us were deep romantic chasms and soaring peaks. In a few places, clearings in the trees denoted settlements of the Lisu tribe, but mostly this is uninhabited territory close to the point where Burma ...

... informations sur la ballade dans les gorges. Une jeune chinoise m'avait informé; je lui avais proposé de venir marcher avec moi. Le lendemain je me rendis donc a l'aube dans cet hotel avec mon gros sac; elle declina finalement mais me proposa de garder mon sac dans sa chambre. Cela pouvait paraitre incongru car je n'avais connu cette fille que dix minutes en tout, mais je decidai de lui faire confiance. Le probleme apres la randonnée ...

... hellish though, since our flight from Chengdu was delayed. It was supposed to leave at 10:50pm, but suddenly at about 9:30pm it started raining really heavily and there was thunder and lightening.... so no flight. We kind of stood around waiting for something to happen, watching lots of Chinese yell at the airport staff, until eventually we were all taken off to the "Airport Hotel" for the night. I was remembering the time Lauren & Mum had to miss a ...

... as soon as they started drinking Dr. Ho's tea. Dr. Ho is a self taught botanist and uses the native herbs and plants from the Yulong mountain area for his medicines. His knowledge includes over 2000 herbs, which he is currently teaching his son, also a doctor. The whole experience felt almost enchanted. I've never been a big proponent of traditional Chinese herbal medicine, but sitting there in that dusty, cluttered clinic with the bitter smell of herbs ...