It was time to leave Banna and fly to Dali. Goodbyes to Sam (we’ll never forget the great food he ordered for us) and we were on the way. New guide, new driver, new hotel…The Dali Hotel in the old town. No link to this one and hopefully they are out of business. What a dump…dirty and decrepid with dead bug spots all over the walls. I’ve since found out that is usually a sign of bedbugs! Ugh, and it’s really a surprise neither of us had bedbug bites from the two nights in this dump. The only thing The Dali Hotel had going for itself was…location….location…in the middle of the old town close to “Foreigner Street” with a few western-style restaurants and lots of people selling embroidered cloth, old hats and other curios on the street.

In 1999, we never saw any Westerners other than ourselves until Lijiang but, the times…they are a changin… Now, Dali is one of Yunnan’s most popular tourist destinations. One of the major draws (for some) is the ability to freely smoke marijuana that grows in the surrounding hills.

Dali was the ancient capital of the Bai Kingdom during the 8th and 9th centuries. Old Dali City (current pop: 40,000) was rebuilt in the 1400′s by the Ming Dynasty and many buildings were still standing when we visited.

Dali area map, Yunnan Province, China
Dropped the suitcases and immediately went to visit the famous Tang Dynasty Three Pagodas. We walked there but most people rent a bicycle and explore the Dali area biking to the different attractions. These Three Pagodas were built of brick, covered with white mud during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). They are a landmark of Dali City and have survived disasters galore for more than 1000 years. Very impressive and an avid photographer could probably spend an entire day watching the light change on them and taking the perfect picture. Where we…spend about 50-10 minutes appreciating the views and tell the guide…”okay…let’s go…” Our guide became very quiet and a short time later told us, “I am sorry I am such a bad guide.” It took another 10 minutes to make him understand that is why we travel by ourselves if possible. We come…we look…we go….unless something is stupendous, and it had nothing to do with his ability.

famous Tang Dynasty Three Pagodas, Dali 

one of the Three Tang Dynasty Pagodas, Dali
What wasn’t as impressive were the hordes of little stands in front of the Three Pagodas selling objects made of marble. Vases, ashtrays, animals and colored stone with clear mountain landscapes. Dali is famous for the marble it produces, primarily used in construction and for decorative objects like those just mentioned. Besides the sellers, contractors were quarrying marble from all around The Three Pagodas with jackhammers, and other tools…very noisy. Warning: be careful handling these marble pieces because they break easily. We learned the hard way!

Around Erhai Lake is Wase, a Bai town. Over 80% of China’s Bai ethnic minority live around Dali and have occupied this area for 4000 years. A big tourist draw. We walked through Wase, visiting a “for tourists” courtyard and filled with Bai women dressed in their colorful outfits… They looked rather bored…

Wase Bai Town outside of Dali, China 

typical Bai courtyard, Dali, China 

Bai women guides around Dali, China
Back to the old town with a chance to just walk around the easily walkable Dali, browse the shops and veg out. Was it our favorite place in Yunnan? No…