6-Day Lijiang Trip: Disappointment Mixed with Unexpected Surprises (Day 1 & Day 2)

Let me first write about the overall feeling of this trip: we set off with high spirits but returned disappointed.

In short, when traveling to Yunnan, never sign up for a tour group that includes shopping. It's exhausting and humiliating. The whole journey makes you feel no joy, only the feeling of being a lamb to the slaughter.

But when we signed up, we couldn't tell it was a shopping tour at all. For example, an 'afternoon tea time' was just taking us into a house to drink Pu'er tea for half a day. After drinking, they asked each of us one by one if we wanted to buy, repeatedly.

What was most unbearable was the tour guide. The first guide on the road, also the one who stayed with us the longest, started talking non-stop from the moment she picked us up. She kept saying that not buying things meant we were letting her down and letting down the people of Yunnan. She talked about this the entire time. For three days, every day on the bus, she talked about this.

And that's not the worst part. The worst part? As soon as we got on the bus, she would start talking. She was supposed to talk about the day's itinerary, but she would drift off topic, even to the point of talking about her divorce and remarriage. In short, everything she said revolved around the idea that you must buy things.

The guide never had a pleasant expression the whole time, as if we owed her millions.

I'll explain later why this all happened.

Although the guide's service was extremely unpleasant, the rest of the group members were very nice. Many of us later became friends and planned future trips together. That was the biggest gain amidst the disappointment.

Since this is a travelogue, I'll write in chronological order.

August 29th Hangzhou - Kunming CZ5570

14:45

We were taken to Hangzhou Xiaoshan Airport by a friend who drove us. We arrived at the airport at 11:00, then went through security and checked in our luggage.

It's recommended to arrive at the airport 2 hours early to have plenty of time.

A review of China Southern Airlines' meal: generally better than Air China's. The self-heating rice had vegetables, meat, and something like jelly, along with small pickled vegetables, a bag of orchid beans, and a cup of yogurt. Overall quite abundant.

The seats had TV, movies, and music to choose from freely.

September 3rd Kunming - Hangzhou CA1754

20:25

On the way back, it was Air China, and the treatment was much worse. Only a sticky rice meal.

Nothing on the seats.

Since this trip was gifted by someone else, I'm not sure of the exact cost.

But we each had to pay an additional 880 yuan for the airfare and 200 yuan for a scenic spot ticket.

If we calculate a meal standard of 30 yuan per person, 7 main meals = 210,

5 nights of accommodation, even at 100 yuan per night, total 500.

So the cost would be about 1790 yuan.

Estimated total cost would be a bit over 2000.

Day 1, August 29th

We arrived at Kunming Airport around 17:00. Since it was a group tour, the company arranged a driver to pick us up. We waited for the driver for a bit. The driver who came was not the originally assigned one, but he explained, so we got in. On the way, the driver told us to get up at 6:30 tomorrow, breakfast at 7:00, and depart at 7:30. He also mentioned that near the hotel there was Guandu Ancient Town, where we could find many snacks. My friend and I decided to go there after checking in.

The drive took about 30-40 minutes to the hotel.

Hotel name: Tiandun Hotel in Guandu District, Kunming.

Ah, I'm not a professional travel writer, and I didn't plan to write about this trip when I got back, so I had to think hard to remember the hotel name. I only took this photo by chance.

To be honest, by the time we reached the hotel it was almost 19:00, so we couldn't be picky about the quality. We just thought we'd make do for one night.

The hotel was just average, very average. But luckily the room was quite spacious. As for facilities, forget about it.

So we dropped off our things and went out with my friend to find food. We asked the front desk, and they said there was a food street nearby.

We left the hotel, walked along the road to the right (forgive me, I can't remember the directions, only that we turned right).

It was about 1-2 kilometers away, taking us about 30 minutes on foot. First we came across a food street and found a rice noodle shop. A bowl of clay pot rice noodles cost only 10 yuan. But the taste was average, and the bowl had nothing but noodles.

This is the name of a food plaza, but due to the lighting, I couldn't see clearly.

After eating the rice noodles, we walked a few more minutes, crossed the road, and arrived at Guandu Ancient Town.

There wasn't much scenery. The entire place was filled with vendors selling all sorts of things: silverware, various snacks, jade, and many other items.

Luckily we went there on the first day and learned about silver prices. We randomly asked a few shops how much silver cost per gram, and most said around 10 yuan.

This kept me alert during the rest of the trip, saving me a lot of trouble.

Also, my friend and I each bought a hat because the UV rays here are very strong. Remember to protect yourself from the sun.

We returned to the hotel after 23:00, and it was 1 or 2 AM by the time we washed up and went to sleep.

Day 2, August 30th

Early in the morning, at 6:30, my friend and I quickly got up and went downstairs for breakfast. But we found everyone saying we were supposed to gather at 7:00.

So my friend and I didn't even have time for breakfast. We quickly packed our things and rushed to the bus.

But we were still a few minutes late past 7:00. The guide's face turned sour, and she started nagging about it as soon as we got on. I felt a bit wronged, so I said, 'Didn't they say gather at 7:30? That's the information we got.'

The guide completely ignored my question and kept criticizing us for being late.

I stopped arguing after that, but this trip had already started on a depressing note.

There were 27 people in total, organized into 12 family groups. After we all boarded, we set off for the Stone Forest. The journey took 2 hours, and the guide talked non-stop the entire time. But she didn't say a single word about the itinerary or safety precautions. She only talked about not being late and respecting her. This went on for 2 hours. Many people couldn't take it, so some started to sleep. Then she began attacking those who were sleeping, saying sleeping was disrespectful to her.

Fortunately, we finally arrived at the Stone Forest. When we got off, she quickly summarized the itinerary, time, and precautions in just a few words…

Then we started touring the Stone Forest.

The scenic spot was okay, but there were too many people, all heads.

The site is huge, but we only had 2 hours to explore. So at 11:30 we gathered and set off again, heading for lunch.

I didn't take a photo of the lunch. The contract said the meal standard was 30 yuan per person.

But that table of dishes was definitely not worth 30 yuan. I didn't eat, but I noted some cheap and typical dishes that appeared in every meal afterward:

1. Braised potatoes with meat (mostly potatoes), braised tofu, green vegetable soup, wood ear mushrooms, cabbage, and scrambled eggs.

I don't remember the others clearly, but basically, these dishes were standard in every meal we had.

However, the food wasn't the main issue. The main issue was that during meals, people kept coming to sell wild mushroom sauce and beef sauce. They promoted this product throughout the trip.

After lunch, we got back on the bus and had 'afternoon tea time.'

So they took us to the following place to drink tea, euphemistically called 'afternoon tea time.'

The tea drinking place was right here. I bought a tea cake for 290 yuan. At first I thought it was okay, just a couple hundred yuan.

But after our group finished buying, the salesperson announced a promotion: only families who had bought earlier could buy another tea cake for 100 yuan. I suddenly felt cheated, but I had already paid, so I just swallowed it.

It was too obvious a scam. At one point, someone went to the bathroom, and the saleslady demanded they come back to this room, saying they needed to check attendance.

Finally, when no one else wanted to buy, they let us leave.

As we came out, I secretly took a photo of one corner of the building and quickly got on the bus.

After tea, they took us to Chuxiong to check in.

I didn't take a photo of the hotel. It was even worse than the first night's.

After checking in, my friend and I asked the front desk and the security guard about nearby places. We learned there was a Yi People's Ancient Town, similar to a snack street. Being a foodie, of course I first asked where the food was.

Honestly, we didn't really eat much during the whole trip. Many snacks looked unappetizing.

Maybe the free time my friend and I had every evening was actually the most comfortable part for us.

We took a taxi there, costing 7 yuan. On the way back, we found a direct bus, so we paid 1 yuan each and got off right at the hotel.

A reminder: when traveling, it's best to have some small change. We had to search through our bags to find coins.

Also, for the rest of the trip, we followed this schedule:

Wake up at 6:00, breakfast at 6:30, depart at 7:00 sharp.

I truly felt exhausted. When we returned to the hotel, after washing up, I lay on the bed and chatted with my friend for a while. It felt like back in school, whispering with a roommate in the dorm. We talked until we gradually fell asleep.