Lijiang: Magical Even When Unplanned

📍 Lijiang · 👁 6001 reads · ❤️ 28 likes

"I only went out for a walk, and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in. Unreached landscapes are the last wilderness within."

— John Muir

The best kind of travel is when, in an unfamiliar place, you hear the stories of time and discover a long-lost emotion.

That Friday afternoon, as I buried myself in tedious work at my desk, an unexpected phone call seemed to breach the dam of stress that had built up all week. Despite some truly urgent matters, after a moment's hesitation, I opened the website and booked a flight from Shanghai to Lijiang for the next day. Let's go, to Lijiang!

Lijiang has always been a beauty I was reluctant to touch, because some say it's gorgeous, picturesque, like paradise; while others claim it's a tourist trap, where the unwary get fleeced completely. I stubbornly believe the former. Whether it's a spur-of-the-moment trip or not, no more worrying about whether the itinerary is perfect, no more fretting about being ripped off by illegal cabs, no more hesitating... Once you set off, the biggest hurdle is already overcome. It was only when I boarded the flight back to Suzhou that I realized: none of the beauty could have been anticipated. If you carry beauty in your heart, you'll encounter beauty; if you carry a dream, it will come true.

Yes, I had only three days. Three days in Lijiang are but a fleeting glance, inevitably leaving much of its charm unexplored. But that's life: while it leaves you with happiness, it also leaves you with anticipation.

In the old town, large swathes of Ming and Qing dynasty architecture remain intact. Courtyard houses in the 'three compounds with a screen wall, four-section compounds around five courtyards, and galloping-horse corner towers' style cluster together, emphasizing structural layout while seeking carved and painted decorations. They are outwardly rustic and inwardly refined, delicate and exquisite, hailed by architectural experts as a 'museum of folk residences.' Even more noteworthy, residents have always loved planting flowers and cultivating bonsai, earning the town the praise 'Lijiang prefecture has ever delighted in planting trees, and nowhere in this mountain town is without blossoms.'

Dashi Bridge (Great Stone Bridge) is the foremost bridge in the old town, located 100 meters east of Sifang Street. Built by the Mu chieftain during the Ming Dynasty, it is also called Yingxue Bridge (Snow-Reflecting Bridge) because the reflection of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain can be seen in the middle river beneath it. The bridge is a double-arch stone arch bridge, the arches supported by slabs of slate. It is over 10 meters long and nearly 4 meters wide, paved with traditional five-flower stone, with a gentle slope that makes crossing easy.

Sifang Street (Square Street) at the heart of Dayan Ancient Town is a famous snack street. For budget eats or local flavors, you can go to the various farmers' markets. Lijiang's bars are like the town itself: intoxicating by night, unadorned by day, with no pretensions to style, yet loved precisely because of their casual vibe. To the right of Dashi Bridge on Xinhua Street in Lijiang Old Town lies the world-famous Lijiang Bar Street.

The 'four-section compound with five courtyards' layout is a relic of Naxi traditional culture. It consists of the main house, the lower house, and left and right wing rooms—four or five buildings forming an enclosed courtyard. In addition to the large central courtyard, there are four small 'lejia' (sky wells) at the corners where the buildings meet. The central courtyard is the most communal space, the venue for family activities, while the four smaller courtyards serve as auxiliary spaces for ventilation and daylight.

At night in Lijiang Old Town, the air is filled with a soft, languid atmosphere.

The Ancient Town of Shuhe

Shuhe, called 'Shaowu' in the Naxi language, got its name from the treasure-shaped peak behind the village, a high mountain resembling a pile of riches. Over time, the name evolved to mean 'village beneath the high peak.' It is one of the earliest settlements of the Naxi ancestors in the Lijiang basin, and a well-preserved important market town on the ancient Tea Horse Road.

Shuhe Ancient Town nestles between mountains and water, with houses arranged in a picturesque jumble, facing fields and footpaths. To the north it overlooks Jade Dragon Snow Mountain; to the southeast are Xiangshan and Wenbi peaks. The scenery shifts with the seasons. At the village entrance are two springs; one pool is called 'Jiuding Dragon Pool,' also known as 'Longquan' (Dragon Spring). Occupying a central location among all Lijiang's scenic spots, it serves as a hub for visiting Lijiang Old Town, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Lugu Lake, the First Bend of the Yangtze River, and the Three Parallel Rivers scenic area.

When Xu Xiake traveled through Zhishan's Jietuo Forest, he passed this way and wrote: "I crossed a stone bridge over a dry gully, looked west at Zhonghai, where willows shadowed meandering water, and a large settlement stood nearby—this is Shihoyuan." 'Shihe' is the ancient name for today's Shuhe Ancient Town. The Tea Horse Road, which opened during the Tang Dynasty, ran from southern Yunnan through Lijiang to Lhasa in Tibet. Over more than a thousand years of operation through the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, it promoted economic and cultural exchange among the ethnic groups along its path. Shuhe is a well-preserved post station on the Lijiang basin section of this route.

On Wenzhi Lane of Wuyi Street in Lijiang Old Town, after a long period of decline, narrowness, and disorder, the bustling scene of the past has returned: shops line the street and pedestrians weave through. Who would remember that in this ancient lane there once stood a famous Naxi medical clinic, 'Shaoheng Tang'?

In the Guangxu-era 'Lijiang Prefecture Gazetteer – Biographies', it reads: 'He Yujie, styled Shizhao, a nephew of Kun. Filial and friendly by nature, he studied Confucianism in youth. His ancestors were versed in medical theory, passed down to Jie, whose skill became especially refined. He excelled at treating typhoid fever and achieved remarkable results with other illnesses as well. He cared nothing for the cost of medicines and was anxious to attend to the sick, thus living up to the ancient principle that medicine should benefit heaven.' This high praise for Mr. He Yujie is also full recognition of 'Shaoheng Tang'. During the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty, the magistrate of Lijiang presented a plaque reading 'Three generations of Confucian physicians.'

At night, Shuhe Ancient Town acquires an extra touch of homely bustle. We finally got to try the long-anticipated Little Pot Rice, and it was truly delicious. I'd seen many recommendations for it, so I made a point of eating it in Shuhe, and it did not disappoint. The other dishes were also excellent. The restaurant had a nice ambiance, attentive service, and reasonable prices. All in all, a very satisfying experience!

Love at Lashihai

'Lashi' is a transliteration from ancient Naxi: 'la' means barren flat, 'shi' means new, hence 'new barren flat.'

The Naxi say that beyond the mortal world and heaven, there exists a sacred and tragically beautiful Yulong Third Kingdom, beneath snowy mountains and flowing springs, where sun and moon shine together. Going there with your beloved promises a carefree, everlasting union. In this Third Kingdom, parental dictates, matchmakers' words, and all worldly forces cannot separate lovers. Because of this legend, young men and women deeply in love adopted the custom of 'die for love'; Lashi Township, a land of river bends, became the 'home of love suicides.'

After the revelry, we just sat by the lake, quietly gazing at the stars.

Returning year after year, singing season after season, watching the sunrise at dawn and the sunset at dusk, in that pool of limpid light they eulogize a tragic yet eternal love. The Naxi say that beyond the mortal world and heaven, there exists a sacred and tragically beautiful Yulong Third Kingdom, beneath snowy mountains and flowing springs, where sun and moon shine together. Going there with your beloved promises a carefree, everlasting union.

After December in winter is a good time for birdwatching. Every year around 30,000 migratory birds of 57 species come here. The best times are dawn and dusk, when the birds are most numerous and the lake scenery is at its most beautiful.

Every winter, throngs of migratory birds arrive to spend the winter, settling at the foot of the mountains and in the marshes around Lashihai. Could it be that the Naxi youths who died for love have transformed into these birds flying wing to wing? The mortal world denied them the happiness they dreamed of, so their souls sprouted wings and flew toward that ethereal, peaceful Third Kingdom. Yet as the sunlight falls day after day upon this homeland of long rivers and crisscrossing mountains, they can never completely forsake it.

Travelogue Directory

1. Lijiang Old Town

2. Shuhe Ancient Town

3. Lashihai

Travel Information

Hotel Index

Guide Index

Flight Index

Website Navigation

Travel Index

Cruise Index

Corporate Travel Index