Xiaguan - Dali: The ancient city - Touring in Thailand, Cambodia and China 2007/8

February 12, 2008

Xiaguan - Dali: The ancient city

Again sunny and very windy but now the wind is in our favor as we head north along the west side of Lake Erhai towards the ancient city of Dali, always with the mountain ranges on either side of the lake in view.

On the way from Xiaguan to old Dali: Fertile soil on the shores of Lake Erhai

The city is surrounded by a wall with four main gates, we enter through the East Gate, newly constructed in the old style, and proceed through the streets of an ancient city which has been well restored without destroying its old character.

A great part of the old town is pedestrian zone, and it's teeming with sightseers. I read that Dali is a backpackers' Mecca, but I see none. A great number of the people on the streets must be Chinese tourists on New Year Holiday. Or is it always this busy? It's too crowded to cycle across town on the main thoroughfare, about two kilometers, so we push our bikes through the throngs, admire the old stone houses and colorful shops and end up at Jim's Tibetan Hotel on the other side of town outside the city walls.

Wang ba or Internet cafe: Where we work on our journals

Enticing customers: The uncooked food is often displayedon the steps in front of the restaurant

Young women from the Bai minority: They aren't selling anything but I think they must be part of the tourist office's program to add to Dali's flair

Jim's is more expensive than our usual choice of hotels but it is very pretty and has one salient advantage: the beds are heated, a welcome feature when the 14 degrees centigrade in the room starts getting to you. When planning this part of our trip in Yunnan, I was aware that we would have these temperatures. Of course, 15 degrees is fine for cycling, especially if the sun is shining. What I didn't take into account was that when you're not moving or warmed by the sun it can feel pretty chilly.

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