Yunnan and its treasures

The third step of our China-journey in August 2007 was Yunnan and its well worth sight seeings, the Stone Forest, Dali capital of the Bai kingdom Nanzhao, Lijiang, the city of the Naxi minority and Zhongdian, the ShangriLa of Yunnan which actually is located in the southeast of Tibet.

I start this set with photos from the Stone Forest, my second visit after 8 1/2 years the infra structure has unbelievable increased. The 120 km from Kunming to Shilin was a drive for 3 - 4 hours, now easy can go in 1 1/2 hours by a 6 line motor-way. The Stone Forest still is an important sight seeing point in Yunnan although its a meeting point for thousands of tourist from all over the world seeing this fantastic nature heritage.
The second step was Dali (or Da Li) its a little city with a few straight streets out of which the wide shopping street with old houses. Dali can be a relaxing stop in between being a very popular backpacker destination and to find cheap budget hotels and guest houses. The very important destination is the park of the Three Pagodas we spent half a day, and it wasn't enough. We thank very much our tour guide Daisy, a origin Bai Chinese young and gentle lady who also give us a lot of impressions outside the normal tourist programs. We still keep in close touch with her hoping to see her soon again.
The third step was Lijiang, an ancient city and the center of the Naxi minority culture. Every traveller visiting once Lijiang and its back around will wish to return to this nice place as soon as possible.
Going from Lijiang to the north of Yunnan, which was the southern part of Tibet before, we crossed the Yangtze River in a (still) beautiful and untouched landscape behind the Jade Snow Mountain. There the Jangtze roars through a gorge which is called the Tiger-Leaping-Gorge. The Chinese government has floated proposals for a hydroelectric dam on the Jangtze River since 2004. The project would displace up to 100,000 people to the north, mainly the Naxi minority, to a Tibetan area with harsh climate and the staples are such unfamiliar crops as barley and potatoes; virtually stop the flow of the upper Yangtze River, and irreparably alter the landscape of the Tiger Leaping Gorge.

The third step of our China-journey in August 2007 was Yunnan and its well worth sight seeings, the Stone Forest, Dali capital of the Bai kingdom Nanzhao, Lijiang, the city of the Naxi minority and Zhongdian, the ShangriLa of Yunnan which actually is located in the southeast of Tibet. I start this set with photos from the Stone Forest, my second visit after 8 1/2 years the infra structure has unb…  (read more)