There is always a reason to come back to Diqing & Lijiang

On January 23, 2019, I came to Yunnan again after two years.

On the way, I really felt how much I loved this land in northwest Yunnan.

In the past, I only knew that there was a snow mountain in Yunnan called Yulong Snow Mountain. But when I started to get in touch with the outdoors, I learned that there is a sacred mountain in northwest Yunnan called Meili Snow Mountain, and there is a village there called Yubeng Village. So, my yearning for there began to grow little by little, "I want to see the Rizhao Jinshan Mountain in Meili, and I want to hike Yubeng" - this was the starting point of this trip.

I suffered a lot when I was in western Sichuan. In addition to missing home, I also wanted to enter Yunnan as soon as possible. On January 23, 2019, we set off from Xiangcheng and entered Yunnan. At 8:30, the lights at the Rural City Passenger Terminal were not on yet, and there was only a faint dim light from the ticket check-in area, but this could not conceal my joy of entering Yunnan. On the way from Xiangcheng to Shangri-La, we encountered many falling rocks, but we also encountered green terraced fields.

When the whole view of the snow-capped mountains gradually came into view, I knew that northwest Yunnan was not far away from me, and my expectations for Shangri-La also increased little by little. After getting off the bus, the innkeeper came to pick us up at the bus station. The boss was very enthusiastic and introduced us many things about Shangri-La.

After putting down our luggage, we went out and had the KFC at Shangri-La that we had been missing for a long time. At a crossroads at Dukezong, we walked all the way to Shika Snow Mountain, trying to get closer to Shika. Along the way, you can see the towering Shika. No matter where you are, it is there. It was at this time that I suddenly fell in love with this place leaning against the snow-capped mountains. Afterwards, we walked around the Dukezong Ancient City. Many shops were closed in the off-season, but it was precisely at this time that the ancient city gave me a quiet and warm sense of beauty.

Little boy helping to show the way

In the evening, we went to the place recommended to us by the innkeeper, Zaya Tusi Manor. In fact, I don’t like to include this kind of commercial-flavored place in my itinerary, but maybe it’s because it’s recommended by the innkeeper or because this place has a unique charm. I always like this place. Went there twice. Here, I tried drinking butter tea and highland barley wine for the second time. I also ate a lot of meat, watched Tibetan dances and listened to Tibetan songs. Although it is the off-season, there are not as many people in the manor as there are in the peak season, but the atmosphere in the manor is still great, and I am not happy for a moment. The last part was the bonfire. I didn’t participate in the big team and dance with the crowd, but it was fun to watch and take photos from the sidelines.

The next day we were going to the most important place of the trip. After more than four hours of driving, we passed Baima Snow Mountain and finally met Meili Snow Mountain. When Meili appeared in my sight, "This may be the most beautiful snow-capped mountain I have ever seen." But I think it is not enough to describe it as beautiful. It should be described as sacred and awe-inspiring.

After lunch, the hotel owner took us and Xiao Huang to go to the mountains to see the Meili Thirteen Peaks. It looked like Xiao Huang had experience in mountain climbing. The boss called Xiao Huang and he obediently ran to the back seat to prepare for mountain climbing. We sat quietly for a while at the commanding heights of the mountain, facing the sacred mountain and feeling its majesty.

In the evening, we ate the earth-pot chicken recommended by the boss at the hotel, and I had three bowls of rice. After eating, I went for a walk with my friends and bought dry food for the next hike. Along the way, I was looking for postcards. I went into several stores and bought a lot of them. Postcards may be the only thing I am willing to spend no matter how much money I have. When I walked into a supermarket, I was attracted by their unique postcards. I flipped through the pages and saw a book. I liked this place, so I started buying it again.

The next day I waited with great anticipation for the sun to shine on Jinshan Mountain. The weather was not very good that day, there were dark clouds, but the boss said "you can see it". We walked out of the hotel and walked all the way to the observation deck. Little by little, the snow-capped mountains peeked out from the dark clouds, and we saw the Rizhao Jinshan Mountain. It is hard for me to imagine that among the dark clouds, I can still see the Rizhao Jinshan Mountain. It is even more spectacular. When I returned to the hotel to have breakfast, the boss said, "Because you were sincere when you walked around the mountain yesterday." No matter whether this was a joke or not, I feel very lucky to be able to see the golden mountain with the sun shining like this.

Following the hotel owner’s advice, we chose the local Tibetan method of trekking through the mountains to get to Yubeng from the countryside in Nepal. We met three young ladies on the road, so we planned to hike together. On the way we saw a burst water pipe and encountered a rainbow, walked through the Ninong Gorge and met horses and mules, encountered a small waterfall and saw many green plants.

Following the advice of a team from Ninong, we chose to live in Yubengshang Village. We met a flowing stream on the road. Instead of walking on the wooden bridge, we chose to walk on the water. The rocks on the water were too slippery and I fell into the water. My coat got wet and my lower body got wet. God knows how sad it was for me to fall into the water during my period and the water was still so cold. After cleaning up the mess, I still did not choose to cross the river from the bridge. Because of fear and slippery feet, I stood on the rock for a full fifteen minutes before I dared to jump to the big rock on the opposite side. (Actually, if it wasn’t for my slipping feet that made me jump forward, it must have been more than fifteen minutes.) After falling into the water, all I could think about was going to the hotel to take a shower, so I walked at the front the whole way without taking a break. .

In the evening, we settled at Juese Butter Tea, where we could see the snow peaks in front of us. The owner of the hostel cooks delicious food. It was the first home-cooked meal I have had since I have been on the plateau for so long. In the evening, I sat in front of the electric heater to keep warm and chatted with the young lady I met that day. However, it was a pity that I didn’t take a photo. That day, in addition to debating whether to go to the Ice Lake or the Divine Waterfall, we were also debating whether to set off the next day or wander around the hostel.

I originally wanted to get up early to see the sunshine on the Jinshan Mountains, but when I opened my eyes the snow-capped mountains had already been illuminated. Because I caught a cold the day before and was not feeling well, I didn’t plan to hike. I wanted to “retire” here with my two young ladies. But when I got up to wash up, I remembered the scenery of the glacial lake described by the guy at the hostel that night, and I couldn't help but want to take a look, so we were on the road again. There was snow all the way, and there was ice all the way, and it was exactly how I imagined it should be.

When we arrived at the Xiaonong Base Camp, we had the egg fried rice that we had been craving for, plus a piece of corn sausage. It was simply a delicacy on earth. After filling our stomachs, we continued towards the glacial lake. After a very difficult climb up through various types of hard and soft snow, we finally reached the top of the glacial lake. Because the glacial lake was covered with thick snow, we did not go down. As the saying goes, "It's easier to go up the mountain than it is to go down the mountain." Although I was wearing crampons when I went down, I was really afraid of falling, so we used skiing on the way down. It can be said to be very interesting. The more we slide, the more addictive we become. The sky suddenly changed, and light snow started to fall in the air. In order to get back to the youth hostel before dark, we sped up our pace. There were various slippages along the way, but there were no accidents.

(The egg fried rice is also so delicious8!)

On the last night of Yubeng, we sang and told stories with other friends in the youth hostel. When it was almost my turn, I looked at my phone and saw that I met him in Aden on January 26, the day last year. Time flies so fast, one year has passed. There is a hint of emotion, but being able to tell this story calmly to this group of friends who have just met is also a kind of growth. I believe that there will be many stories worth discovering and meeting on the road.

On the third day of the rain collapse, we changed our original plan and planned to stay in Shangri-La for another day. The proprietress of Mei Duo said it was too dangerous to leave from Xidang, and we had to hurry, so we decided to leave from Ninong. It took us less than three hours to get from Juese Butter Tea to the Nigerian countryside. After riding all the way, we returned to Shangri-La, stayed at the boss’s inn again, and went to Zaya Toast Manor again.

This time, at Zaya Toast Manor, we thoroughly ate the meat that we didn’t eat enough the first time. The innkeeper and Xiao Bu both gave us meat (the two of us were probably starving to death). It will still be exciting to watch Tibetan dances and listen to Tibetan songs again. This time, I joined the crowd and danced with everyone at the campfire.

On this day, I took photos with the innkeeper and Xiaobu.

The name of the inn is Shangri-La Jinya Xianke Zangshi Inn. The boss is a Sichuan native and he is very kind. The boss will try his best to personally drop off and pick up the guests in the inn wherever they go. The boss will always let the guests drink water. We drank ginger tea and let ourselves make tea leaves to drink. The grandma at the manor is also very kind. The design of the inn is great and full of Tibetan charm. This is a warm inn.

Xiaobu from Zaya Tusi Manor is a very caring guy, he will pay attention to many details. The first time I came into contact with him was when I was at the manor for the first time. When I stood at the door of the manor and wanted to take pictures of the door curtain but couldn't, he noticed it and helped me call away the guests standing aside. When we came to the manor for the second time, Xiaobu had two drinks with us. (I have to say, highland barley wine is really bitter) He also boiled brown sugar water and brought it to the inn when I felt uncomfortable in my stomach. This is a warmth that is difficult to feel in a foreign land.

It is precisely these two temperatures that have become the reason why I will come to Shangri-La again. Therefore, Shangri-La has become a warm place in my heart.

After bidding farewell to Shangri-La, we arrived in Lijiang. This was the first time I fell in love with a place in western China. In Lijiang, I fell in love with the feeling of being very close to the clouds and seeing the mountains when I looked up. When I came to Lijiang this time, what I was most looking forward to was Brother Xiaopeng’s ten-year backpack. There are many large dogs in Backpacking Ten, and the Backpacking Ten’s atmosphere in the off-season is still very good. At night we sat by the campfire and listened to strangers playing and singing, and from time to time we would sing along. We sat there for two or three hours.

When we got up in the morning, we walked around Shuhe Ancient Town. This place has not been fully commercialized and it is the off-season, so we will feel comfortable wandering there.

We returned to Backpacking at noon. We didn’t plan to go out for food. Sitting on the balcony on the second floor basking in the sun, we decided to “order takeout!”. After lunch, the sunshine became harsh. We hid in the bookstore and started chatting. We sat there for three hours. Unable to sit still, we went out for a walk again. I went into the postcard shop and bought a bunch of postcards and bookmarks. On the way back to my ten-year backpacking trip, I searched for the way to the train station using Google Maps. "It's a three-and-a-half-hour walk," I said, "There's still so much time, why don't we walk there?" "Okay!"

Back to Backpacking After ten years of packing, we packed up our bags and set off. Not long after we set off, it started to rain. We took out the raincoats we bought in the back mountains of Qingcheng and continued hiking. There was a problem with the navigation, so we asked the uncle on the road how to get to the train station. The uncle said, "You can't walk there. Taking a bus only costs one or two yuan, and taking a taxi only costs dozens of yuan." I replied "It's okay! We like walking!" (The two of us smiled at each other, but it was actually a hearty laugh.) On the road, we saw a big tree hanging salt water. We laughed all the way because our shoulders were sore and we couldn't carry our luggage. It was a joy in suffering. For four hours, I walked from the countryside to the main city and then to the countryside, from rain to stop rain to light rain again, from day to night, and finally arrived at Lijiang Railway Station. “On the first day of our trip, we hiked three stones, and at the end of the trip, we hiked to Lijiang Railway Station. It was a beginning and an end.”

After taking a train all night, I came to Kunming and got on the plane to say goodbye to this place. After staying on the plateau for a long time, I still feel a little uncomfortable coming back to Shanghai. I always feel sleepy because of too much oxygen, and I can't even be energetic when I eat.

I like the feeling of being on the road because there are many new things waiting for me to discover. Because I don’t like punch-in travel, I also like to go to places I’ve been to and like over and over again. I think it would be a good thing to stay in one place for half a month to experience it in depth. The twenty-day trip was generally a retracing of the same old path, but it allowed me to see many different scenery, meet many novel things, experience unique experiences, and make many new friends. , precisely because we are on the road.

On the day I was in Lijiang, the official account of Ten Years of Backpacking posted a picture about volunteers, and I became interested. I think maybe this summer I will go to Shangri-La store of Backpacker Ten Years to work as a volunteer for a month. Even if I don’t apply, I will stay in Shangri-La for half a month to fully experience this warm land.

So, see you in the summer.