この旅について
This activity requires at least 2 participants.
If you just visit Shaxi Ancient Town and explore a bit, it is very simple and you can gain some nice experiences. However, we started this travel line because we love Shaxi ourselves and go there almost every year when we have time. Our own travel in Shaxi is in-depth and special, involving the ancient town, religion, hiking and grottoes, and the life of local friends:
We take a mountain road we like to reach Shaxi, entering the town from a spot we favor. In the afternoon, we go deep into a valley to visit a thousand-year-old Buddhist cave complex rarely visited by people. In the evening, we buy groceries at the local market and visit our friend who lives in a traditional rural courtyard on a hillside, cooking dinner in the yard kitchen and staying overnight, chatting around a fire. The next day, we take a walk in the forest by a mountain lake and visit our friend's café.
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Going to Shaxi: A Beautiful Mountain Road
We set off for Shaxi after lunch, often taking the mountain road over Huacong Mountain instead of the expressway. Following this road, we wind up the mountain, overlooking the entire Eryuan Valley, with a stunning blue alpine lake on the other side. Along the way, we pass through large apple orchards—some people are cultivating new types of fruit in the deep mountains. After passing the mountain area, we arrive at a pass near Shaxi, from where we can see the entire town and valley: terraced fields, crops, villages, and the sky. It feels like crossing over the mountain and arriving in another time. The way you arrive and your first glance of Shaxi are very important to us.
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Entering Shaxi: In the Local Way
We walk along the Heihui River beside the fields, passing an ancient bridge where we often stop to watch ducks foraging and playing in the water, and cattle and sheep along the riverbank. We cross the Yujin ancient stone bridge, go through the East Gate, and visit the temple at the Four-Square Street. This is an important site for the local Azhali Esoteric Buddhism, featuring three-religion deities and historical murals. Four-Square Street, common in Yunnan towns like Shaxi, is the center of the ancient town. As an important stop on the historic Tea Horse Road, the Four-Square Street here is open, simple, and historically rich.
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Going to the Mountain Caves: History, Religion, and Nature
In the afternoon, we drive to a valley not far from Shaxi. The nearby forest, though scattered with thousand-year-old stone carvings, feels like a forgotten world, rarely visited by people. Compared to the scenic area around Shizhong Temple, this place, being in the wild mountains and quiet, has a more authentic historical atmosphere. We search for Buddhist grottoes from different eras in the forest, seeing remnants of the Nanzhao and Dali kingdoms' Buddhist dominance. Walking up the valley path, on the turtle-back stone, we can overlook the vast Shaxi valley with an expansive view.
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This place resembles the abandoned theme park in "Spirited Away"—traces are still there, stories remain, but because it is deserted, you feel the reality of stepping into distant, heavy history.
Visiting Our Friend: Shaxi Rural Life
In the evening, we go to the local market to buy groceries, then visit our friend Zidan at his place in the village. His home is a courtyard at the highest point in the village, also a guesthouse, where we stay overnight. The spacious and rustic courtyard has a kitchen, and Zidan grows some vegetables in the yard. After dinner, if it's cold, we start a bonfire in the yard and chat around it. Sometimes we also need to gather firewood from the woods behind the house.
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Waking up in the morning, from the second-floor terrace, we can see the entire valley where Shaxi Ancient Town lies, shrouded in the morning mist of rural life—a wonderfully charming moment. It also reminds me of the times a few of us would prepare breakfast in the kitchen, eat together, and then bask in the sun in the yard. It was winter then, and the tree was full of red persimmons. Those who woke up early would take a walk on the nearby hillsides and in the woods.
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We choose to stay here because it allows us to experience daily rural life, rather than the relatively homogeneous ancient town inns.
Second Day Afternoon: The Serenity of a Lake in the Forest
After lunch, we head to a lake in the forest. This lake is tranquil and beautiful, surrounded by dense forests and meadows. Not far from the lake, there is a café run by our friend. We have a cup of coffee there, enjoy a moment of peace, then take a walk by the lake, feeling the quiet and beauty of nature.
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Return: Dali
Late afternoon, we return to Dali from here. Having experienced the tranquility and beauty of rural life, it will be a different kind of trip, establishing a connection and memories with the ancient town, nature, history, and local people.
This activity requires at least 2 participants.
Time: 12:00 - 19:00 the next day.
Only bring personal overnight items.
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