Charming old town of Lijiang

 

Lijiang is the place to be if you have an acquired taste of the ancient old towns of China. Indeed, when I was at Lijiang, time seemed to fade away from the modern world. Lijiang is a small city in Yunnan province, China, and has an 800 year history from as  early as the late Song Dynasty. Lijiang  is built where the Jade River divides into three and its streams form the canals and waterways which flow along the old town streets.

 

We jetted off to Lijiang via China Eastern. To get to Lijiang, we need to transit at Kunming Airport. The total journey was approximately 5 hours.

 

 

My first glimpse of sunrise

 

 

Upon reaching Lijiang in late spring, we were greeted by a friendly driver from Bruce Chalet, known as old Mr Wong. Mr Wong gave us a short introduction of Lijiang and how it became famous after an earthquake in the 1960s.


1. Bruce Chalet

Bruce Chalet  is situated at the foot of Jade Dragon Mountain (a very famous mountain in Lijiang) and within short walking distance to "Shu He" old town. Bruce Chalet is a hidden gem. The entire building is 2 storey high and is constructed entirely of solid wood. These wood not only gave the building a solid foundation but also creates an old charm for the building. It was as if we were transported back to 1000 years ago to the "Wu Xia" era.



@ Bruce Chalet

 




Bruce's Chalet



View of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain


Upon entering the main door, I was taken away by the beauty of the courtyard. There were a wide variety of flowers, greenery, pavilions and a pond, just like an ancient painting. We had reserved a courtyard room at level 1 and the view was splendid. The owner was of course, Mr Bruce, a young chap in his early thirties from Hongkong.



Courtyard view from our room



Very comfortable bed





Very antique look door





Greenery pavilion at the courtyard





Cranberry at the courtyard

 

 



Fresh fruits placed in our room upon arrival

 

Bruce was friendly and gave us useful tips on how to take shortcuts to Shuhe old town. He also recommended us on where and what to eat. It was also thoughtful of him to place a bowl of fresh fruits in our room upon our arrival. The room was spacious and comfortable and the bed had a heater to warm us up, especially when the temperature was only 5 degree Celsius. While Bruce Chalet provided complimentary breakfast, the breakfast was very simple, consisting of bread, egg, ham and coffee.



Walking to the pantry



2. Shuhe Old Town

 

The entire village of Shuhe exudes tranquility. As I passed through the village, admiring the ancient wooden houses, rice paddy field and the women doing their chores at the river seems, I feel a whimsical feeling of peace that was bestowed to this village.

 

Shuhe old town preserved the ancient buildings delicately made of bricks and wood. I never got tired of looking at those ancient buildings which were full of character. The pathways were made of cobblestone and can get quite slippery after light drizzle.

 

There were a number of eateries in the old town and you will be amaze to find a handful of pubs at the old town where local young artists sang the modern Chinese pop song. We had our lunch at the "Granny's House". The restaurant had a nice ambience over-looking a miniature garden. We ordered their local fried fish and one plate of vegetables with a unique name known as "Shui Xing Yang Hua" - Loose woman. Overall, Naxi food had a rich taste and can be over-salty for some.

 

Veggie known as "Loose Woman"

Naxi Fried Fish

We strolled along Shuhe old town after lunch and saw several artist painting along the street, grannies selling fresh fruits and strawberries. The strawberries were small but very sweet and it was very cheap at only RMB18 for a bagful.

There were also many cafes along the street and the aroma of the Yunnan coffee might be too hard for anyone to resist when passing by. We had the luxury of time to sit in the cafe, sipping the unique bitter and sour Yunnan coffee and simply just watch the time goes by.



cosy place to sit and relax



After a nice coffee break, we continued to explore the old town and we wandered off to a place where we can get a stunning view of the entire quaint old town.


view of shu he old town



cobblestone walkway

  

As evening approached, it can be quite cold, dropping to 1 degree in late Spring. We hurried for dinner before returning for the night. We settled for a nice soupy dumpling noodle at one of the restaurant in Shu He. It was delicious!

 3. Jade Dragon Snow Mountain + Blue Moon Lagoon

On the 2nd day, we set off to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. This mountain is by far the most odd-shaped and majestic one that I've seen in China.

 

 

 

 

 



We took a cable car to the middle tier of the mountain and enjoyed our stroll at the National Park, which housed a variety of fauna and tall pine trees. Indeed, it feels like walking through an enchanted forest in winter, except that the leaves are turning green and there were no traces of snow. We can see horses and pony gazing the grasses, sheeps and peacocks wandering about and of course chirping of the sparrows.

 

 

 

 

Further in, you can get some pray campanulas, write your wishes and hand up on the bamboo or rent some nice Mongolia costumes for great cam whoring session in front of the majestic Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.

Descending from Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, we went to the blue moon valley which was another picture perfect site with wonderful view of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, layers and layers of miniature waterfall and turquoise green lakes. There were plenty of big hairy oxes lazing by the lakes waiting for tourists to ride.

 

 

 

 

 

We headed back to Shu He for our dinner. We had a nice hot pot dinner, coupled with Naxi fried rice and bamboo rice. The hotpot was fantastic but my hubby finds it way too salty for him. The bamboo rice was however a disappointment.

 

 

 

After a hearty dinner, we walked back to Bruce Chalet through the quiet village. It was lucky for to catch a glimpse of the beautiful sunset on our way back.