We loaded our luggage into the van for our trip to Lijiang, but before leaving Dali, we went to a Tea Culture demonstration. The rows of seats had tables, and we sat in the front row before a small stage. The first tea served was bitter, made from green tea directly from the fields. The second tea tasted much sweeter, brewed together with thinly sliced cheese, sliced walnuts and honey. It was served with a fork to eat the cheese and the walnuts. Lastly, but probably our favorite, was a ginger tea made of seven ingredients including ginger, honey and peppercorn. While tea is served, the Bai dancers put on several performances, the last of which was their wedding dance. An unusual part of the ritual dance is that the bride gets pinched by the wedding guests; the more pinches, the more good luck will follow. The bride wears sunglasses to hide her tears as she must move from her parents’ home to live with her husband’s family.
All of the Chinese ethnic minorities we have encountered have traditional garb, and these days it is usually worn only by the elder women. Our guide explained that the design of the traditional headdress for women in Dali incorporates four unique images – wind, snow, flower and Moon. First, the headdress is in the shape of a crescent moon. The white tassel hanging down signifies the wind, the white fringe running along the top represents snow, and the bands of flowered material represent the flowers.
We headed towards Lijiang, but stopped in the town of Xinhua, another Bai ethnic village where the women wear blue caps topped with a Chairman Mao hat. After walking the village, our guide steered us to Farmer’s Restaurant where six of us ate a seven course lunch for ¥40 or about $6. Xinhua is noted for their silver, and at one time the back streets were home to many silversmith families where people learned the trade before going out on their own.
Probably the most interesting area was the large plaza in the center of the town off of the main thoroughfare where groups of boys played, but stopped to yell “hello” as we walked by. At the far end of the plaza, elevated from street level, a group of older men sat at several tables playing Mahjong. It was the old retired men’s club where they play all day long, leaving when hungry only to return for more Mahjong. In addition to the players, other men looked over their shoulders intently watching the game.
We arrived in Lijiang in the late afternoon. No vehicle traffic is allowed in the Old Town where our hotel is located, so hotel personnel brought a cart to transport our luggage to the hotel several blocks away. Following with our backpacks we arrived and met our new guide for this segment of the trip. Her name is Elena, and we also met Charlie, the owner of the local tour company who invited us to dinner. We went to a restaurant named “Eight”, which is a good auspicious number; it’s the sign of infinity. Charlie ordered a typical Naxi meal with the Naxi Hot Pot as the main course, accompanied by an azalea flour egg pancake and a dish made from lily petals. Dali beer and decent Chinese red wine complemented the meal.
A side note you may find interesting is that pouring beer to the top of the glass is a sign of respect, yet pouring only a half cup of tea shows respect for your guest. Also, when seated at a large table, you can knock twice on the table to say “thank you” to someone rather than say it.
Our itinerary will change. Rather than spending two nights at Luguhu Lake, we decided to go to the lake area one day earlier and return to Lijiang in time for the Olympic torch run. Thank goodness for the flexibility of our small private group to change plans when another opportunity arises.
If you are confused about the Naxi and other ethnic minorities we’ve mentioned, don’t feel bad, we can’t keep them straight either since there are 53 of them. The Naxi, who are descendants of the Tibetan nomads, number approximately 300,000 and call Lijiang their capital. Their religion called Dongba, which mixes elements of Daoism and Tibetan Lamaism.
Here’s knocking twice to you reading the blog.
Garry, Tamara and Rich
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