After banana and chocolate pancakes and strong
coffee we are off on the 3 and a half hour bus journey to Lijiang. Scenery is great, terraced fields and
mountains, plus some scary drops off the sides of the roads. Conversation on the bus made sure we got a
free tour guide to take us to the hostel we were staying in which was up in the
old town, a fair trek in the sun from the bus station in the new part of
town. The hotel was set in an old Naxi
style building and courtyard, it looked good, even if we had to use a bucket to
flush the toilet and despite the sporadic hot water.
 |
| Lijiang |
After an explore not sure whether or not I liked
what I saw. Lots of beautiful old wooden
houses, cobbled streets and water channels following down the streets, all
perfect, but this place had obviously cashed in on its popularity so was full
of Chinese tour groups and new shops had just moved into old buildings. A strange juxtaposition of mobile phone shops
and traditions crafts. Walk further away
from the main tourist areas and get lost amongst the houses, this was much
better, people doing their washing in the waterways in the street and going
about their daily chores. Some small
cafes with wooden balconies meant we could sit above the busy pedestrian
streets and enjoy some noodles and cold beers whilst missing nothing of the
atmosphere from the street below.
 |
| Black Dragon Pool |
Whilst in Lijiang we decided to check out the
Black Dragon Pool park. This is supposed
to be one of the most photographed things in China, so of course had to oblige
and add to this. It was a good view of
the lake, pagoda and mountain despite the Chinese lack of planning by
thoughtfully adding a pylon in the centre of the frame! The park was a restful place to be, plenty of
chance for some snoozing, and games, whilst Naxi people in their traditional
blue and white clothing did the same around us.
We had come this way to western China with a
plan in mind. That was to walk Tiger
Leaping Gorge. We had heard this two day
walk was one of the best and it didn't disappoint. Leaving our main bags in Lijiang, and hoping
they would be there on our return, we took a mini bus to near the start of the
gorge, stopping on the way to see the first bend of the Yangtze river, and then
a dilapidated taxi into the gorge itself.
From the outset the scenery was breathtaking. Steep sided gorges and blue water bubbling
away below. The traditional story for
the gorge tells of a tiger jumping from one side to another, hence the
name. We followed the road / track for a
while, until some local peasant farmers point the way up the steep track to the
path towards the top of the gorge.
 |
| 1St bend in the Yangtze |
Walking along this narrow path the views in the drop down below got
better and better. We saw no tourists,
we had this gorgeous place to ourselves.
In parts the path got very narrow and almost dropped away, in other
sections we skirted ledges and waterfalls hugging the rocks as we rounded
bends. Half way along we stopped for the
evening. Even out here in this remotest
of parts of China a local family had established a guest house, and what a
place it was. Sat on the side of the
gorge, wooden chalet type buildings were to be our cosy accommodation for the
evening. Thick blankets on the beds and
charcoal burners under the table to warm our legs. The view from the toilet was probably the
best you will ever get!
The family fed us well, breads, traditional
Chinese fare and pancakes and cold beers as well. A great place to rest our weary legs and sit
chatting into the night. No light
pollution, no noise, perfect.
The following day after a leisurely breakfast of
fresh coffee, juice and baked breads we set off on the path once again. Several hours later after more stunning
scenery we started to climb down into the gorge. Once we reached the water a small patrol boat
arrived and for a small fee the ferry would take us across the river to the
other side. A steep climb back up the
opposite side of the gorge followed but the view remained great. As the trail ended we made the decision to
spend one more night in this magical place and checked ourselves into Snow Flowers
home stay. Traditional Naxi food, and
hot showers, followed by time spent sitting on the deck outside eating banana
toffee and drinking coffee and whiskey.
The stars were as clear as they could be and filled the sky with the
backdrop of the snow capped mountains behind, a perfect way to end several
pretty much perfect days.
No comments:
Post a Comment