Lijiang - Shangri-La (by bus)
Ernest joined in on the bus ride to Shangri-La but took his bike, enabling him to
return by bicycle instead of hiking the gorge. I was excited about the bus ride and
thought it was quite a novelty. Shortly after departing the town of Lijiang, the bus
headed up a mountain. Soon, one could see Lijiang in the valley far below. The
bus slowly snaked up and down near-vertical mountain passes and I was thankful
not to be on the bike.
Following more than four hours of bouncing, the bus arrived in Shangri-La. The
name conjured up images of a mythical paradise; instead, I found the town over-
commercialised and, at an altitude of 3,300 metres, icy cold. Albeit immensely
touristy, Shangri-La had an old town area featuring a strong Tibetan influence. In
ancient times, the area was the fiefdom of three sons of a Tibetan King. Today, the
majority of the population is still Tibetan. With its fascinating ethnic culture, it's an
interesting place to explore.