We took a quick two hour train ride to Dali, then boarded a bus to get to our hostel, The Lily Pad. We were packed like sardines onto the bus and the two girls above were nearest to me, so I kept asking them questions about where we were, how many more stops, etc. to make sure we got off in the right place. After we got off of the bus, they requested a photo together.
One thing that has been great about this trip is that I have gotten tons of Chinese practice. I have needed to ask questions about bus routes, trains, directions to hostels and restaurants, and had conversations with the people in all of those places forcing me to practice Chinese in ways I don't practice at home in Changchun. Honestly, I bet we couldn't even have done this trip of city hopping last year, but this year, with one semester of language learning under our belts, we have been able to do and see so much more!
This man was in our same compartment on the train. He was very kind and spoke slowly and clearly so we had a good conversation all in Chinese. He told us that he sells coffee in Lijiang and Dali so he does lots of traveling between the two cites. Later that night as Chip and wandered around the old town of Dali, we found his shop. He helped us to pick out some coffee, so we snapped a quick photo.
Dali, like Lijiang, has beautiful mountains. It also have lots of shops that sell minority goods.
With the help of our hostel, we arranged a day trip on a boat to two small islands. It was a very Chinese experience. In fact, we were the only four foreigners on the boat.
When we stepped onto the ship, they gave us fabric heart necklaces.
It was sunny but quite windy.
This is the first island. You can see from the photo that it was not large. There were hundreds of people on the boat, but we all crammed onto the small island.
Sellers had all sorts of fish and birds on sticks
We got some fried potatoes and a pineapple on a stick.
Island #2: Bigger and quieter
Because we were the only foreigners, we got lots of attention. This photo was on the boat with a couple of Chinese girls who wanted to practice their English.
Back on the boat, we watched a Bai (minority group) dance and had a three course tea. The first tea was very bitter, the second tea was sweet, and the third tea had a strong ginger flavor.
After the show, we got a picture with one of the dancers.
We stopped at a restaurant after we got off of the boat. We asked to see the menu and they invited us into the kitchen to see the veggies and spices and told us they serve mostly fish. We pointed to the fresh vegetables we wanted and they stirred fried them up for us. Jeanna was the only one in our group who cared much for eating fish, so we ordered her a small one. They pulled a small fish out of well, a canoe full of water and fish. He flapped around and they asked Jeanna if that one was okay. Then they killed it. Right in front of us. I turned my head just in time.
Jeanna's before and after photos of her delicious fish
One stop left in Yunnan: A couple days to rest in Kunming before Thailand Conference.
