MY EXHILARATING & MEMORABLE HOLIDAY IN YUNNAN - PART 2

ST Jimmy | Monday, April 07, 2014 | | 0 comments

(Foreword: This is the continuation of the immediate last posting, i.e. Part 1. Please read and view Part 1 first so as to get a better sequential overview of my group's itinerary between Kunming at one end and Shangrila at the other end, with Lijiang in between, in our visit to Yunnan Province, China.)

*Still in Lijiang side:

(We arrived near the foot of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain - ready to go up by cable car.)

(Long queue at the cable car station just to go up in the morning.)

(View from the cable car I was in......also capturing another car descending from opposite direction)

(Brrr, very cold with strong wind.....-8 degree....at 4,500 m. The highest base is 5,500 m. Not many visitors were seen venturing up further up by foot.)

(Last shot of Min Tet for the album......before leaving the mountain area.)

(One of the scenic spots in the park near the mountain.)

("Impression of Lijiang" show in the outdoor theatre with the real mountain as the backdrop)

(An upper reach of the Yangtze River)

( Male toilet with a view. The toilet cubicles are on the right - with red curtains.)

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(The first bend of the Yangtze River in the upper reaches.)

(The Tiger Leaping Gorge......halfway before reaching Shangrila city. The outcrop in the centre of this snapshot (right side of the bridge) resembles the head of a roaring tiger.)

(Do you see the statue of a tiger in the centre?)

(A closer view of the gorge at lower ground.........with a "welcome" tiger statue.)

(Heavens! Walking down to the lower base of the gorge was without much sweat for senior citizens. But climbing up 500 steps to leave the base..........was really physically taxing to us. We gasped for air and had to take rest breaks a few times before reaching the top. More challenging than climbing the steps of Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur?.......I thought it was so. Bear in mind oxygen in higher altitudes is thinner, which could cause breathlessness unless one is physically fit.)

(Visitors can opt to be carried up and down by very fit human bearers.....pay a fee of course.)

(A landmark in the Jade Water Village.)

(It's Spring in March.......so flowers started to bloom in Jade Water Village.)

)

(Tibetan Mastiff, popularly known as "lion dog" - also an attraction to me. This was the first time I saw the world's most expensive dog......said to be able to fetch as high as RMB1 million.)

(Yaks in close range.)

(Shuhe Ancient Town - "must see" which tourists should not miss.)

(The 500-year-old bridge.)

(Part of the bridge with solid cut-out stones as the pavement.)

(One for Buck Kooi's album.....this very old resident of the ancient town said she was 100 years old.)

(An old refurbished country home converted into a lodging house....with a vegetable plot attended by some local farmers. The village environment attracts tourists who like countryside charm.)

(Another two old lodging houses
among the several ones to suit the
liking of tourists.)

(The people of Yunnan seem to like pet dogs which are huge in size, like this one shown above and the one shown just below. Can you tell which pedigree or breed?)