2014 Oct - Yunnan Photography Trip to 丽江，香格里拉

Shaun Lau and I decided to take a few days off to go to somewhere scenic in China for photography, and we preferred free and easy, and cooling climate.

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Day 1 - Singapore -> Lijiang 丽江

丽江古城

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We took a direct Tiger Airways flight from Singapore Changi Airport to Lijiang Airport.

Once landed at Lijiang Airport, this put us 2,400 meters above sea level.

We met up with the tour guide and the driver. They provided a MPV to pick us at the airport and transported us to the Old Town of Lijiang 丽江古城. We stayed at a local resthouse 客栈 in the eastern part of the old town; 丽江王府饭店. The rest of the day was free and easy on our own. Hence, we explored the old town.

Below three sections of well. The last one is used for cooking/drinking.

Dayan (大研), commonly called the Old Town of Lijiang (丽江古城) is the historical center of Lijiang City, in Yunnan, China. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The town has a history going back more than 1,000 years and was once a confluence for trade along the "Old Tea Horse Caravan Trail". The Dayan Old town is famous for its orderly system of waterways and bridges, a system fast becoming but a memory as the underground water table drops, probably due to over-building in the suburban areas.

Lijiang's culture combines traditional Naxi culture and incongruous elements learned from Ming dynasty Han Chinese traders who settled in the region centuries ago. Naxi people have kept alive a timber and mud brick housing style which they learned from Nanjing traders. Local carpenters still build elaborately constructed timber house frames from memory without blueprints or other diagrams. These houses are often enhanced by detailed flower and bird carvings on the windows. The carvings are now made by ethnic Bai artisans, but attention is given to depicting the flora and fauna of the four seasons in the traditional Han Chinese manner. Even impoverished farming families gather their resources to install carved windows, and seem to consider them more important than furniture for the house. The window panels are available for sale to tourists.

The Naxi people learned Chinese classical music from the visitors from Nanjing during the Ming Dynasty and continue to play that music even to this day, long after the art died out in other parts of China. The old musicians have been organized for regular performances in Dayan Old Town and less regular performances in the outlying villages.

Side by side with this well preserved evidence of Han culture resides Naxi local culture, and this can be seen in the old town and on many street corners even today in the form of circle dances, attended by young and old from the local neighborhoods. Circle dancing in costume is also a custom of the Tibetan people to the north of Lijiang and of the Bai people to the south. Previously there were substantial Tibetan and Bai settlements in Dayan Old Town but most of these people have been resettled to districts away from the tourist areas. Tibetan circle dancing can be seen occasionally in Dayan Old Town and more regularly in private gardens and Nongjiale 农家乐 gatherings of local Tibetans. Both Nakhi and Tibetan circle dancing are practiced outside of the town's Tibetan temples Wenfeng Si 文峰寺on Wenbifeng 文笔峰 Mountain, Zhiyun Si指云寺 near Lashi Hai 拉市海 Lake and Fuguo Si 富国寺 on Jade Dragon Mountain玉龙雪山, especially on temple festival days.

Lijiang old town was too touristy. Most of the shops were tourist traps so you might just want to buy some small and cheap souvenirs. Do not expect to shop lavishly here.

The rain came and went in short bursts at this time of the year, and at this high attitude. Thus we always carried an umbrella with us.

The old town has many drains and streams where the water usually comes flowing from Lashi Lake.

Sifang Street 四方街

We walked through an open market.

Tiny lobsters for sale

Soon it was nightfall.

Plenty of street food stalls

Lots of tourists and locals alike would stroll through the alleys.

We stopped by an open air bar to have beer and watch a local cultural performance. And we strolled back to the resthouse and rested early for the night.

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Day 2 - Lijiang 丽江

玉龙雪山，拉市海，束河古镇

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The plan was to set off very early in the morning to drive all the way to cable car station of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain 玉龙雪山 so as to beat the tourist crowd. Unfortunately the tourist groups had the same plan as well. Hence we queued for 2 hours just to board the cable car to go up the mountain. It started to rain heavily while we waited. The summit of the mountain stands at 5,596m, some people will need oxygen tank to go up. Everyone was encouraged to rent a small tank of oxygen.

The Jade Dragon Snow Mountain forms the bulk of the larger Yulong Mountains, that stretch further north. The northwestern flank forms one side of the Tiger Leaping Gorge (Hutiao Xia, 虎跳峡), which has a popular trekking route on the other side. In this gorge, the Jinsha (upper Yangtze) River descends dramatically between Jade Dragon and Haba Snow Mountain.

We went up to the cable car station at the top but it was raining heavily and there was heavy fog, thus we could not see much due to low visibility. We went down the mountain and went to see the Impression Lijiang Show instead.

Impression Lijiang is a magnificent outdoor singing and dancing performance demonstrating the tradition and lifestyle of the local ethnic people. It is another creation of famous Chinese director Zhang Yimou. 

The show is innovatively staged in the morning and afternoon, at 3,100 meters (10,100 feet) above sea level with Jade Snow Mountain as the breathtaking backdrop.

• Director: Zhang Yimou

• Type: Open-air show with real scenery

• Location: at the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain at 3,100 meters (10,100 feet) above sea level

• Length: 1 hour

Next we proceeded to 茶马缘 of 拉市海 to experience riding ponies.

Riding to experience the Ancient Tea and Horse Road 茶马古道 is the other must-try activity to get close to the local special culture. The ancient Tea and Horse Road 茶马古道, similar to the 丝绸之路 Silk Road, was an important trading route in the southwestern part of China and the horse was a significant form of transport on this route. Different from the tall and big horses on the grassland, the horses in Yunnan are small, but good at long-distance transporting. Consequently, it may feel different during the ride.

Next we proceeded to the actual lake of 拉市海. Here we sat on the long boat to tour the lake.

The weather was very good at this point. It had stopped raining and it was a sunny day. The lake water was very clear. The water from this lake feeds to the drainage and streams in Lijiang old town.

After the tour, we returned back to our hotel at Lijiang old town to rest for the night.

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Day 3 - Shangrila 香格里拉

长江第一湾，虎跳峡，香格里拉

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We checked out of the hotel and drove northwards towards Shangrila 香格里拉.

Our first stop was the 长江第一湾.

A scenic and hiking area near Lijiang is the First Bend of the Yangtze River 长江第一湾. It is only about 50 kilometers or 30 miles away from Lijiang. It is called the “first bend” because the river makes a 90 degree turn from south to east within a distance of 1 kilometer. The place was important militarily because big armies crossed the river at that point, and it was a place where Tibetans came down to trade with the people living in the area. It is an interesting scenic area, and there is hiking and other outdoor activities in the area.

Most people go to the river bend on the way to Tiger Leaping Gorge. The scenery is interesting. The town of Shiguzhen (石鼓镇) is at the bend, and there is a market area where people come to buy and sell goods. The land around the river is passable on foot, but mountains block the region south and north of it, so it was an important route for armies marching through the region. It is said that Zhuge Liang (220-280) who was a famous strategist crossed here with his army. The great Mongolian emperor Kublai Khan’s army crossed at this point in the 13th century to attack Dali. In 1936, the Chinese Red Army crossed here during their long march, and there is a Red Army Memorial Hall in Shiguzhen. Besides shopping and visiting the memorial, there is some hiking in the area, and you can ride on boats.

The town of 石鼓镇

We stopped over for lunch at the 一湾饭店

It was a family-style eating place, and we ordered a pot of wine chicken. The kampong chicken was freshly slaughtered. Thereafter, we got to climb the hill at the back of this eating place at no fees involved as we ate at their eating house. From there, we captured the photographs of the river and town at the vantage point at the peak.

We climbed a couple flight of steps to visit the Red Army Long Changzhengguo Lijiang Memorial Hall 红军长征过丽江纪念馆

In 1936, the Chinese Red Army crossed here during their long march, and there is a Red Army Memorial Hall in Shiguzhen

Next destination was the Tiger Leaping Gorge 虎跳峡

The Tiger Leaping Gorge trek (虎跳峡; Pinyin: Hu Tiao Xia), near Lijiang, is one of the finest treks through some of the most naturally beautiful and diverse landscapes China has to offer. The trail runs high on the northern side of the gorge passing through quiet villages, shady forest, blustery precipice and verdant terraced farmland. The snow covered peaks of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山; YuLong XueShan; 5596m) and Haba Snow Mountain (哈巴雪山; Haba Xueshan, 5396m) shadow either side of the gorge.

By the side of the mountain gorge, one could still see the ancient tea and horse trade road 茶马古道 used by the tea and horse traders who ply the road to Yunnan on horse-drawn caravans.

Next, we continued our journey northwards to Shangrila.

This was the MPV which we sat in, together with the driver (who was a local Naxi tribeman) and the lady was our tour guide.

After a few hours drive, we arrived at the rest house in Shangrila.

It has a Tibetan design, and the room comes with WIFI, hot water shower and satellite TV channels.

香格里拉大山家客栈 （Nadashanjia Inn）No. 57 Hongxuelang Jinlong Street , Dukezong Old Town, Shangri-La, China

龟山公园大佛寺

We strolled out of the motel and walked down to the nearby Buddhist temple.

We passed by several local shops and eating houses.

龟山公园佛寺

A gigantic prayer bell where you are supposed to push in a clockwise direction while you pray.

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Day 4 - Shangrila 香格里拉

香格里拉, 普达措国家公园, 松赞林寺

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Potatso National Park or Pudacuo National Park 普达措国家公园; is a 1,300-square-kilometre (500-square-mile) national park located in Shangri-La County, Yunnan Province . The park was announced on June 25, 2007, and is notable as the first national park in China to meet International Union for Conservation of Nature standards. It incorporates the Bita Lake Nature Reserve and the Duhu Scenic Area in the Hongshan region.

The park is about a 50-minute drive from Deqin. It has two lakes, a visitor center, several interesting minority villages, lush forests and pasture views. From the visitor center a park bus takes visitors to the first stop, 13 km (8 mi) away from where there are several miles of raised wooden walkways around the 120-hectare (300-acre) Shudu Lake (属都湖).

The next bus destination is Bita Hai Lake (碧塔海), 3,500 metres (11,482 feet) above sea level. It is surrounded by dense forests. The bus stops a few feet from a wharf from where visitors can take a boat ride around the lake and to the island in the center. Price for the boat ride is 50 Yuan. It is just over 1.6 km (1.0 mi) from where the boat disembarks to the bus pick up point. Alternatively, one may walk down the 1.9 km (1.2 mi) path from the South entrance and hike to and exit the park from the West entrance. Getting to the West entrance requires both a boat and ferry ride. The entire hike can take 4–6 hours. Riding horses are also available.

Next we went to visit the Songzanlin Monastery 松赞林寺.

Songzanlin Monastery is the largest Tibetan Buddhist temple complex in Yunnan Province. It is called the Little Potala Palace. In 1993, it was listed as a Key Provincial Protection Unit of Cultural Relics by the government of Yunnan Province.

• Chinese: 松赞林寺

• Age: originally built in 1679 A.D

• Height: 3,380 meters (11,090 feet)

• Location: at the foot of Fopingshan Mountain (佛屏山), about 5 kilometers or 3.1 miles north of Shangri-La.

It was a main temple used by Tibetans who lived in Yunnan, Sichuan and Tibet and other areas in the southwestern part of China. It is said that the Fifth Dalai Lama decided the location though divination and gave the name—Gedansongzanlin (噶丹松赞林).

At its height, the monastery housed 2,000 monks. Now about 700 monks live there or around the region.

We alighted near the lake and walked through a small path along the lake to the entrance of the monastery.

There were livestocks like ducks and the locals planted vegetables in their backyards.

Here is the entrance to the monastery.

Many steps to climb just to get to the monastery.

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Day 5 - Lijiang

Lijiang Old Town

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We took the MPV back to Lijiang, checked into the same hotel in Lijiang Old Town by late afternoon and spent the rest of the evening walking around the Old Town.

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Day 6 - Lijiang -> Singapore

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After breakfast, we set off to the Lijiang Airport and took a direct flight back to Singapore.