Dali, China
Two of the most amazing days I've ever had were spent in and near the city of Dali. We
arrived at 5:30 a.m. and went to drop our bags off at our hotel, which had
looked incredible on the web-site. Not only did they let us check in, but the
hotel (the San Ta Yuan) was even more lovely than depicted, built to emulate a
Ming Palace and made up of a series of rooms arranged around courtyards with
pools; gardens, and quaint stone bridges. It's on the grounds of the Three
Pagoda Temple -- to my mind the most beautiful sight in China. The somewhat
austere ninth century cream colored central pagoda is 16 stories tall, the 2
flanking pagodas are slightly more ornate 10 story white marble structures. The
vista changes constantly -- each shift of position and variation in light
presents a different tableau. Every sighting was a new thrill. The view in the
reflecting pond was particularly breath-taking.
Youshou - Market Day
We arranged for a trip
to Youshuo, where it was market day. What an experience!!! The ride there was
fascinating -- people cultivating fields using methods thousands of years old.
Not a machine in sight, but rather sickles, flails, winnowing baskets, and ox
drawn ploughs. It is impossible to describe the market -- the sights, the
sounds, the smells. We were on total sensory overload. People from a wide
variety of ethnic minorities were there to do the weekly shopping, all dressed
in their colorful native costumes. The merchandise included everything
imaginable: live fish, tools, baskets, shoes, brooms, strange-looking
vegetables, chickens, pigs, rope, spices, slabs of meat, clothing, even dentures
(people were having them made on the spot from teeth they selected from the
array on the table).
Youshou - Market Day
On the way home we
stopped in Xizhou, a town known for its Bai architecture. Bai houses are
courtyard houses, often white plastered on the exterior and painted with
curlycue geometric designs or friezes of Chinese-style landscape paintings. Many
windows have intricately carved wooden shutters and doors are surrounded by
elaborate frames. The bigger houses are 2 stories high, with a balcony running
around the inside second story.As we were wandering around this picturesque
village we suddenly heard firecrackers, signalling the advance of a funeral
procession. An incense table was set up, the procession arrived, musicians
played, mourners mourned, and the procession moved on to repeat the process.
The next day we took a
"cruise" on Erhai Lake and visited a captivating old Guanyin Temple (and its
somewhat tacky neighbor, the Tianjing Pagoda) and Jinshuo, a Bai fishing
village.
Dali itself is most
attractive -- a large ancient city gate in each direction as well as a central
gate structure, marvelous Bai buildings, and a magnificent waterfall that
descends for 4 blocks coursing under bridges, along columns, through zig-zags
and gates. At night, it is tastefully lit up with white lights limning the
various structures. And the shopping in Dali is excellent, particularly for
tie-dyed items ( although the term "not colorfast" took on a whole new dimension
when I attempted to launder my purchases.) We were delighted to discover
Salvador's, which sells sandwiches, real coffee and cappuccino, and home-made
ice cream.That night we shared our sleeper train compartment back to Kunming
with a guy who not only snored, but talked in his sleep and smoked in a
non-smoking compartment.
Mimi Santini-Ritt 2004