Tiger Leaping Gorge

The Tiger Leaping Gorge is the most popular natural attraction in Yunnan. Fortunately we hiked to gorge on the off season, so we had the trail to ourselves and our choice of hostels. We left Lijiang at 7:30 am and drove two hours north to the gorge.

The southern gorge trail is lined with rice terraces. 

Further up the trail the gorge is dotted with Naxi villages

The gorge is lined with snow capped mountains

Profile picture?

The moon

The gorge was very steep at points, especially so at the section called the '28 bends'

The gorge trail had us cross several mountain streams that feed into the gorge

One of the guesthouses we stopped at along the way for a rest and some food. I regret not getting the foot massage...

Well we didn't have the trail completely to ourselves...

Waterfalls on the gorge

No one told me I need a swimsuit for this

After eight hours of hiking we stopped at Tina's guesthouse for the night. Tina's is halfway along the gorge trail. In the morning we hiked two more hours to see the Tiger Leaping Stone before catching a bus to Dali. The Tiger Leaping Gorge gets its name from an old Chinese myth: a hunter was in pursuit of a tiger on the gorge. The tiger was able to evade the hunter by leaping onto a giant stone in the gorge and then again to safety on the other side.

The middle gorge, site of the tiger leaping stone

The trail to the Tiger Leaping Stone was very steep...

Is this safe?

For the less adventurous there is another way down the gorge

Bottom of the gorge

The Tiger Leaping Stone

I claim this stone for CHINA

Lijiang

The train from Kunming to Lijiang was 10 hours. We opted for the overnight train to conserve daylight hours for sightseeing (and to save money). We got into Lijiang at 7 am.

Sunrise at Lijiang train station.

Lijiang is in a mountainous region of northwest Yunnan province. It is the largest and best preserved old town in China. Because of its natural and architectural beauty it has become a major tourist attraction. The city was once the political and cultural center of the Naxi people. Today the old city is mostly guesthouses and boutique shops selling native garb, silver, crafts, native music and food.

Lijiang is surrounded by mountains

One of the quieter streets in Lijiang

Lijiang is know as the Venice of southern China for its extensive canal system.

Naxi people working in Lijiang

A canal in the town square

Looking down one of the hilly streets of Lijiang

Kunming

Christmas day I boarded a train to the first destination on my two month vacation: Kunming. The train took 33 hours to reach Kunming. I don't want to talk about it. Kunming is the capital and largest city in Yunnan province. Yunnan is in south central China bordering Tibet, Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam. It is China's most ethnically diverse province with over a dozen non-Han Chinese peoples. Yunnan is an important agricultural region that produces the bulk of China's tropical fruits, coffee, and some of the best rice. Kunming is known as the Eternal Spring because its perpetually temperate climate. Xi'an was below freezing when I left, and Kunming was above 60 when I arrived. The city is small by Chinese standards: between 3-4 million people. However the city will have the fourth largest airport in China by the end of the year, as the central government plans for Kunming's population to top 20 million. Because it is still small and relatively poor (aka unindustrialized) the air was noticeably cleaner than Xi'an's. Here are a few photos of the city:

Kunming/Yunnan government complex

The West Pagoda which faces the identical East Pagoda

A park of painted trees. This is a common phenomenon in China.

A corner building near Kunming's flower market

Puppies for sale. 180 RMB.

Another corner building.

The rooftop terrace of our hostel.

Kunming Skyline looking west.

Sunset looking east towards the central Kunming mosque.

I'm famous!...time to leave

Well after nearly five months of living in Xi'an, the local media has finally recognized me as the star I am. By local media, I mean the free monthly expat magazine. And by recognized, I mean a rather unflattering photo of me eating pizza at an expat Halloween party.

So without further adieu, I present my fifteen minutes of fame in China:

Xianease Expat Magazine, December 2011 Issue

Expat Halloween collage. Look closely, I'm top right of the left page.

The December issue of the Xianease makes that Halloween slice of pizza seem like it was eaten just yesterday.

In other news, I have submitted all of my grades for the fall semester. This means I can now embark on a two month whirlwind tour of Southeast Asia. Here is an outline of my itinerary:

I leave today for Kunming, the capital of China's exotic Yunnan province. I'm going by train (33 hours, wish me luck). From Kunming I will head 10 hours northwest to Lijiang to see the Tiger Leaping Gorge. I head south to the ancient town and backpacker paradise of Dali to celebrate the New Year before returning to Kunming.

From Kunming I go to Singapore (BY PLANE!), with a 20 hour layover in Hainan Province--China's Hawaii. From Singapore I will leisurely spend two months making my way back to China. I have no set itinerary or timetable for the journey, but it will go something like this:

SINGAPORE

MALAYSIA

Kuala Lumpur

Georgetown/Indian Ocean Beaches

THAILAND

Phuket/More Beaches

Bangkok

Chiang Mai

CAMBODIA

Siem Reap

Phenom Phen

Sinhanoukville/Pacific Beaches

VIETNAM

Ho Chi Mihn City

Nha Trang/Beaches

Hanoi

From Hanoi I head to China by train. I will stop in Guilin, a chinese city world famous for its stunning scenic beauty, before returning to Xi'an.

I won't be traveling with my computer, so I dont know how often I'll be able to update this blog over the next two months. I will make sure to take many photos along the way, and I will post them as often as I can. 

XMAS

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Over the past few weeks its been beginning to look a lot like Christmas...sort of. Very few Chinese are christians, but that has not stopped Christmas from becoming a holiday that is celebrated. Mostly the holiday has caught on through retailers who want to capitalize on the holiday's commercial success in the States. The following are some of the holiday decoration I've seen downtown.

CHRISTMAS IN XI'AN

A christmas tree complete with presents in the hostel I like to stay in

Stockings at the front desk of the hostel

Santa is on the doors of nearly every store in Xi'an

A modernist christmas sculpture

This apparently is Santa's favorite hotpot restaurant

Santa holding up an LED billboard

This christmas present is bigger than my apartment

What better to get the one you love for christmas than a couple bottles of tea?

Peppermint pillars

Christmas sales at the Time Traveler With Love store

More Santa on storefronts

A fairly large Christmas tree. Looks like they ran out of ornaments for the bottom right side.

Santa's Chinese name translates to "Christmas Old Man" 

Why not spend Christmas at one of Xi'an's hot springs?

SIYUAN CHRISTMAS CEREMONY

To celebrate Christmas, the International School at Siyuan University put on a special ceremony. Of course the foreign teachers were special guests, so we got front row seats for the two hour event. After watching the show, I fully understand why Christmas is and will always be less popular than in America.

Waiting for me at my front row seat were complementary seeds, fruit, and tea to be enjoyed during the performance.

Student musicians--playing the Sax, Trumpet, Flute, Piano, and two Chinese instruments I dont know.

Here are some videos of the performances:

MY CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

Here is my Christmas decoration, a paper snow globe that my family sent me. Thanks Mom, Dad, and Virginia; I love you.