This was the first time flying since being back in China. I planned this trip with Morgana, Tricia, b and Daniel. I met Tricia at an event last year and she messaged me about getting together for a dinner. I now have a wide circle of friends from other schools who have similar interests.
We were tested again for covid 19 as it was recommended to have a test completed within 7 days of travel. By the way, this is my 8th virus test. Many Chinese hospitals will not test foreigners and the one international clinic charges 10 times as much. We found a clinic that would test us.
We flew into Dali and a driver took us to Old town. Dali Ancient Town is one of the most famous ancient towns in China. As a major stop on the Ancient Tea Horse Road, or Southwest Silk Road, it is a town full of historic sites and traditional culture.
In search of lunch, we wandered the stone paved streets of the old town. We looked at the traditional architecture of the Bai ethnic minority. We stopped at a restaurant to try their local food and found snacks to take on future hikes.
Hidden Hotel guest house and the map
Our guest house is very beautiful. There is a central garden courtyard with a stream that had crayfish, crabs, and fish.
The Bai architecture has three buildings forming a U shape with a fourth wall forming a screen. The courtyard is in the middle. The houses are built of brick and wood. Bai houses are decorated with black tile paintings, woodcarvings, and crafted marble objects.
The map they gave us covers many of the places we are going. The old map feel is genius. The square is where we are staying and we plan to view all the places inside this square and sights outside. The area is 3 square km or 1 square mile inside.
People
We were exhausted. School just ended and this year everyone was on edge and pulling double duty. School itself is always such a race. The first few days of vacation seem normal but then you crash. That was today. All of us just needed to lay down. I napped for three hours. When we woke up there was a different vibe in the streets. There were lots of vendors and we decided to do what I love, just eat street food.
We ate some of the street food along the way then took the rest to this little night club we had seen earlier.
History of Dali
- In 738, the Nanzhao Kingdom was established with Dali as its capital.
- In 937, the Kingdom of Dali emerged.
- By 1000, Dali was one of the 13 largest cities in the world.
- In 1253, the Mongols conquered the city and ended the Kingdom of Dali.
- In the early 1400s, the old Dali City was rebuilt by the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), and it still stands in a similar layout today.