Lijiang

Lijiang

This is the nicest place so far. The old town is completely pedestrian and a World Heritage Site. Our driver stopped at one of the gates on the main road and our luggage was taken by cart to the hotel. Val and I have a big room with a big bathroom; everything plumbed in this time, but no door, so no privacy for toilet use! M's single room,however, had been flooded and the carpet was completely saturated. A de-humidifier was running. If it was me, I would not have accepted this for a minute but we were miles away from reception and feeling tired after the trip. She did not sleep well, needless to say, but was given another room next day.

Val and I left her in Lijiang to walk around the old town and do some sketching, whilst we went on the scheduled trip up to the Snow Mountain. We went up by cable car to  3,200 m. and then walked on a wooden pathway to the Spruce Meadow (very beautiful in winter with snow, also in spring with wildflowers). Wrong season for us! Vast numbers of Chinese tourists queued for everything, but most of them were going up to the glacier, the highest accessible point in China apart from Everest. They had all hired bright orange long down coats and many carried small portable oxygen canisters. They were ascending to 4,500 m. And would not see anything as we were already in cloud. It was an experience for us and we didn't suffer at all from the altitude. The best coffee ever was consumed when we got down to the bottom again.

Looking into our room from the bathroom.

Our hotel in the Old Town, which is a World Heritage Site.

Brandon, our guide, at the top of the cable car.

Walkway to the Spruce Meadow.

Naxi Village and Afternoon in Lijiang

We had lunch on the way back at a traditional Naxi village. We also bought freshly cracked walnuts from a little old lady street vendor. I was also tempted buy more indigo tie dye: this time a bedspread (or could make 2 tablecloths).

Nut seller.

Evening in Lijiang is pretty spectacular. All the lights come on which outline the roof lines, red lanterns dance in the breeze and all is reflected in the stream that flows through the old town. Couples strolled about (this is a famous honeymoon destination). We had dinner at a restaurant which served both Asian and Western food; I couldn't resist a hamburger and locally made wheat beer. Stomach getting decidedly fatter. Later I met Mr Putin outside the waxwork museum.

Dali

Dali

"Water water everywhere"

Nonstop downpour outside, rain bouncing off the pavements, lying in pools, shoes saturated, trousers wet from dripping umbrellas. More water INSIDE, due to ridiculous bathroom plumbing. I had a lovely hot bath, pulled out the plug and suddenly the bathroom floor was awash. There was no pipe to drain the water away; it was actually designed like that. The bath just sat there looking good but completely unusable; and no warning sign about it. We had to use towels to make a channel towards the tiny grate in the middle of the floor.

In the rain we visited the Wuhou Temple Complex. We went to the top of the hill and walked back down, looking at shrines and Budhist temples on each of 11 levels until we had heard enough from our guide, Selina, and asked to go back to our hotel. We cancelled the proposed boat trip on the lake, because 2 hours with no views except swirling mist didn't appeal. This lake used to have fishermen with cormorants, as seen on TV, but the practice was recently banned by the Government because of pollution!  See:

http://en.kunming.cn/index/content/2014-01/09/content_3478359.htm

The Dali hotel was beautiful in traditional design with gardens, pagoda style roofs, white walls with painted designs of lotus flowers etc.  The mountain views were all shrouded in mist. The Breakfast Room on the 4th floor did allow us to see over the town next morning and we enjoyed a really excellent Western Breakfast with fruit, yoghurt, porridge and lots of hot coffee.

Twins at Chengdu Airport at 6.00 am, waiting for the flight to Dali.

Scenes around our hotel (in the rain!)

Xizho

On the way to Lijiang, our guide Selina took us to a small town with a large food and vegetable market. We were able to observe such things as pigs entrails, trotters, brains and liver, a whole lamb cut up into various sections including the head, and all manner of fruit and veggies and herbs.

Later we went to Selina's home village to visit an embroidery school, where we saw 6 girls working on the most intricate designs with tiny needles and fine threads. They were in an outside courtyard with their coats on. By the age of 25 their eyesight is not good enough for them to continue with this work. Val bought a small embroidered picture of the cormorant fishermen on the lake.

After that we went to a tie dye specialist: a family of 4 generations working there. Behind their courtyard walls were the most wonderful materials, all died with indigo using local plants which look a bit like nettles. I bought myself a waistcoat and M bought a loose linen jacket, three quarter length and very stylish.

By this time everyone was in need of lunch, but we couldn't have anything till we arrived in Lijiang at about 2.30 p.m.

In the wet market: chillies, lamb, mushrooms.

Cinnamon sticks, live chickens for sale, rice ready for harvest when the rain stops.

Embroidery school; fine embroidered picture on the right.

Embroidered scenes. These were hugely expensive, representing months of work. Val bought a small picture of a boat on the lake, done by students in training.

Grandmother at the indigo and tie dye workshop. This business has been going for 4 generations. The indigo plants grow in their garden and resemble nettles.

Lunch spot. Note the animal skin over the window sill.

Inside the restaurant: trying to show the head and the tail of the skin, but cannot  determine what the animal is! The local beer was great!

Chengdu pm

"The beds in the East are soft".

(Anthony and Cleopatra, Act 2, Scene 6)

At the Sunshine Hotel, the beds and the duvets are the softest I've ever encountered. They even managed a bit of sunshine for our afternoon sightseeing expedition. First (following a delicious lunch) was the Wuhou Temple, where many legendary heroes and emperors have larger than life statues. Our guide, David, told us all the local legends but it's impossible to recall them today! 

Next on the agenda was a walk on Ancient Street, with lots of interesting  little shops. I bought two little bowls and M bought a proper artists or calligraphers brush. There were more tempting establishments but our schedule was tight, and we were due at a Tea House next. Here, the oldies were more interested in playing Mahjong and wanted us to join in, but only M knew the rules, and furthermore we needed to get back to the hotel for a shower and a beer. We rounded off the day with dinner at the hotel's Korean Restaurant. The food was nothing special (I think because David had chosen cheaper dishes, rather than the traditional sizzling Korean BBQ, in order to keep us under budget on this all-inclusive tour). Also, I had to get the female supervisor to tell off 2 men who were smoking in complete disregard to the notices on the wall. I was rewarded by a thumbs up from another western couple who were dining nearby!

We went to a show of many different acts, including Chinese opera, traditional instruments, acrobats, comedy acts (in Chinese) and the grand finale - the changing masks show. It was all very skilfully done : a wonderful performance all round!

Early to bed, as we had to be up at 3.30 a.m. To catch the 6.35 flight to Dali.

Lunch spot, inside and out.

Approaching the temple.

Inside the temple.

Bonsai display in the park.

Playing mahjong at the tea house.

This lady has just won!

Changing Masks Show.

Pandas

Panda means

"Big and fat"

Noted by French missionary 

1960 to 1980 pandas sold to west

Lack of bamboo

340 in panda base

1800 in wild

Farmer jailed for trapping P's

Ps don't know how to mate at first

Twins born usually

(Notes after introducion by our guide)

Chengdu

A very full day of sightseeing was planned. Firstly, a drive through horrendous traffic to the Panda Research Base, the top attraction here. There are about 340 now in captivity and about 1800 in the wild, as a result of the very successful breeding programme. Pandas live to about 30 years in captivity, 25 in the wild, where they are busy all day looking for food. The park itself is lovely, with bitumen paths winding their way through groves of bamboo. We were fortunate that it had stopped raining, but lots of fungi had sprung up in the wet conditions.

We saw several fully grown pandas, each one in its own enclosure, some lazing over branches, reclining on platforms apparently asleep or else engaged in their daily business of stripping and eating bamboo. They eat between 15 and 30 kilos per day, and in the Research Base they also get supplements of "panda cakes" made with egg, rice and corn. They usually have twins, but normally the mother picks the strongest and lets the other one die in the wild.  In the Research Base, the newborns are cared for by the staff. They are tiny at birth, only 100 gms in weight and live in their own baby panda nursery. We saw four in a large square cot, but couldn't linger for long watching them, as the guard hurried the queue along, reminiscent of the Crown Jewels or Tutenkhamen's tomb!

Entrance to the Panfa Research Base

The park grows lots of bamboos for the pandas to eat. The pic shows mist irrigation for the bamboos.

Panda eating

They strip off the outside of the bamboo, cast it aside and chew the softer inside.

This one looks to have had enough!

Baby pandas asleep in their cot. The pic is blurred because the guard was hurrying the queue along.

"5 star " toilet in the park. Most public toilets in China are pretty basic: squat style and smelly! You are not supposed to throw paper into the toilet as it blocks the drains.

The three intrepid travellers pose for a photo!

Chengdu

We arrived this afternoon (plane was 1.5 hours late) and it was pouring with rain. It hasn't stopped since! We are in the Sunshine Hotel!! The traffic from the airport was horrendous. The worst news is that I can't blog in China, nor use Google. The authorities have banned the use of these sites and many others! What a big pest! Will have to keep a diary and write it up when I get home.

Traffic outside our hotel

Day One To Chengdu

Our Cathay Pacific flight left Perth at 5 minutes to midnight.  It was absolutely full on a Saturday night. The announcement from the flight deck told us that the captain was a woman. The flight was somewhat turbulent, but I did manage about 4 hours sleep out of the 8. The food was just OK - I had a prawn stirfry, but the man next to me struggled with a huge piece of lamb backstrap that he was unable to cut up with the puny knife provided. Breakfast was not good either. I was in Premium Economy, but M and V were even worse off in Economy where breakfast was served in a little box with no hot food and no coffee offered!

(When I tried to post this earlier from Chengdu, I discovered that Blogger is one of many sites banned by the Chinese Govt.  However, on arrival in Hong Kong, I found that the ban didn't extend to there; I was free to post again, using my diary entries which I'd written every day throughout China).

Hong Kong Airport, 19 September, 9.00 a.m.

Spring in Perth

New babies everywhere!  This is a big family of ducklings.  The parents are on duty 24/7 looking after them.  If any predator comes too close, the babies are hurried into the water by Mum.  Dad stands guard onshore till they are all safely away.

There are 4 cygnets in this family.  Dad was particularly aggressive towards me as I approached with my camera.  He spread his wings and flew straight at me before I scrambled away.

Nothing to fear at Wireless Hill, where the wildflowers are in abundance after the winter rains.

Kangaroo Paws

Cats Paws

Orchids

Top left: Bacon and Egg Plant; Top right: Granny's Bonnet; Bottom left: Orchid; Bottom right: Milkmaids

Donkey Orchids

Left: Wattle;  Right: Bacon and Egg Plants