Traveling the World

As you wake up from a good night’s sleep, you decide that today you will tackle the Dali wall. From the center of the old town, you stroll leisurely around the streets until you reach the target: the massive fortress walls. The 30 steps are no problem as you jump up two at a time. Seconds later, you reach the top. Wow! The brilliant blue sky and few clouds allow for an amazing 360° view of the area. On one side is the old town, while on the other is the new town. Looking east is the famous and very beautiful Cangshan Mountains, and to the west is the stunning Erhai Lake. The radiance of the sun’s rays, coupled with the strange calming effect of the natural beauty surrounding you in all directions creates a euphoric sense in your mind.

You think to yourself, “It can’t possibly get much better than this,” until seconds later you are hounded by a little old woman hoping to sell you a picture of yourself drooling over Dali’s beauty for 10rmb. It’s at that moment you return to your senses and remember where you are: a backpacker’s haven, but a tout’s haven as well. You take the pictures you find breathtaking, and quickly leave the wall for breakfast and to get away from the plethora of vendors trying to hawk their wares.

This photo was taken where you climb up to the wall surrounding Old Dali, in Yunnan province. Even though this may look like just another wall in China, it’s not. The walls surrounding Old Dali that separate it from the newer section of Dali referred to as Xiaguan seem like a time portal. The old town and its fortress walls were built in the middle of the 14th Century, when the Ming Dynasty emperor Hong Wu reigned. The walls acted as a deterrent for hordes of thieves and bandits, and allowed the residents to feel safe, thus increasing the trust people had in Hong Wu.

Hong Wu was a man with great military prowess, and as a result ended the Yuan Dynasty by capturing Beijing in the middle of the 1300s. As a result of his military actions, the Mongols were forced to retreat to the Mongolian steppes.

The Cangshan Mountains are a very peaceful place located next to the town of Dali, situated in Yunnan province. Further away from the town on the opposite side is the famous Erhai Lake with minority groups living on the far side of the lake. Stone pathways have been carved out of the side of the mountain for maximum viewing pleasure. After taking the gondola ride up to the start of the walkways, you can go down a path and across the bridge.

After you pass the shaky wood bridge, you can cross some stones set in water and jump across to the stone I can be seen sitting on here. Further away from this stone you can see what appears to be a shrine, but because it’s separated by water, I didn’t bother taking my shoes off in the 55F/13C weather to find out more!

The beautiful thing about Yunnan province is that not many Han Chinese (they make up about 90% of China’s population) people live here, so you get to see how the other ethnic groups live. The largest represented ethnic group in Dali is the Bai.