MCA Lijiang Hotel

... can very
easily find natural foods that are wild or small-farm grown without
encountering any processed or manufactured items pushed from a factory
conveyor belt. And with very little effort, you can feast on wholesome foods anywhere, anytime, simply by eating what the locals eat.
Simple Yunnanese peasant fare easily qualifies as wholesome by any modern, trendy yardstick for healthy living.
(Source: China Daily)

... change. After all, the ice fields in the majestic
arc of peaks that runs from China to Afghanistan are melting in large
part because of greenhouse gases emitted thousands of miles away.Orville
Schell, the director of the Asia Society’s Center on United
States-China Relations, is the author of “Virtual Tibet: Searching for
Shangri-La From the Himalayas to Hollywood.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/ 26/opinion/26Schell.html?_r=1

... culture secretary, was marrying his Chinese partner
Lucia in a pre-revolutionary ceremony.
"We went back to what a wedding would have been like pre-1949 - that
involved us going through the streets with a sedan chair carried by my
family," Hunt says, recalling how he had to undergo a series of tests
before his family could carry away his bride ...

... then on to finish the last 2 hours before dark. This part of the walk we passed swveral waterfalls tumbling down the mountain side We arrived at 6.30pm with half an hour of light left. Nath & I got a dorm for 15 yuan for the night ( about $3 each!!) The air was VERY chilly now & we neded to rug up as we sat on this rooftop deck to look over the huge mountains so close & straight opposite us. It ...

... It has influences from Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. Further up on Sleeping Lion Mountain we visited Wengu Pavilion. The word Wengu in Naxi means hill. In 1997 this 2 storey building was erected. It is 33 m high and has 16 pillars. We walked down the hills and I bought a hair pin (10 yuan) since my hair is out of control these days. She showed Bill how to do it, but he is not sure if he could show me. At the hotel it started raining around 7:00 ...

... BUT it was NOT love at first site... from the airport, we got into the city via shuttle: no problem here. then we took a cab to our hostel: problem. the cab dropped us off in an area and just pointed in a general direction while indicating we needed to take a left around the corner to find the guesthouse. again, problem. we had no idea where we were and in which direction we were going. (remember: the chinese are NOT ...

... the help of small stone bridges, about the weeping tree branches dangling close to the water, and the quaint feel to the town. And we weren't disappointed. What we weren't prepared for, even though we had also read about them, were the crowds of tourists we had to elbow our way through, literally, come evening. Traditional homes have been turned into endless tacky souvenir shops and cafes. Although quiet and easily dismissable during the day, at night ...

... cars or even motorcycles there. Quite a few villagers have horses to use to get supplies up and down the mountainside. We saw quite a few pigs and chickens which stay right next to the houses or in the case of the guest house are caged in the courtyard outside the kitchen window. The views of course were amazing. Jack talked to quite a few of the villagers. We met a lady who had a loom and made aprons. A man invited us in to see his wood scuptures. Jack ...