Dali in Panorama

It's easy to see why Dali has become such a popular tourist destination. Few places can match its setting, lying on a long plain flanked on one side by the high (over 4000 metres) serrated peaks of the Cangshan Mountains (Azure Mountains) and on the other by the 42 km-long Erhai Lake. Eighteen brooks tumble down from Cangshan, watering the fertile plain and emptying into the lake. East of the lake, which averages just under 7 km in width, rise the smaller, ruddier, more barren hills of the Phoenix Mountains. Steamers and fishing boats ply the waters, the boats sometimes in fleets, with white triangular sails aloft to catch the wind.

The best long range view of the valley is from the Wanghai Pavilion on the hill in Erhai Park, at the south end of the lake. One can also see why it became an important political centre in ancient times, for it was a simple stronghold to defend. Entering Xiaguan, the commercial metropolis at the south end of Erhai, from the east one has to descend a high mountain via a pass that in the pre-Mongol period was walled and fortified. At the northern end of the valley, above the village of Shangguan, lookout posts provided a view north past the lake and could alert the defence well in advance of any invasion from that direction.

The posts at Shangguan are still there, as are many of the religious and secular monuments of the Nanzhao and Dali eras. Ming and Qing temples add to the area's historical legacy. The old towns of Dali and Taihe retain much of their traditional layout,so it is very easy for the visitor to appreciate Dali's place in history, with so much evidence of it all around.

Dali also exhibits a strong ethnic accent. The valley is home to Han, Hui and Bai, but it is the Bai who arouse the most attention. Theirs are the elegant stone houses with wood-carved decorations. They are the women who wear the bright vests, aprons and fancy head-dresses. The Hui can be equally conservative, but they don't stand out like the Bai. The latter's only real competition for tourist attention are the Yi from above Xiaguan and Midu County, who dress even more ornately than the Bai and are frequent visitors in the Xiaguan and Dali markets.

With monuments and temples to visit, a lake to sail upon, fishing life to witness, busy markets to attend, mountain trails to hike and a famous old city to wander around in, Dali offers many ways to enjoy one's time. Besides all that it is also a handicrafts centre, specialising in marble work, woodcarving, tie-dyeing, embroidery and painting, thus giving visitors a broad selection for their souvenirs. In recent years it has also become a place to find handicrafts from Guizhou, too, as traders from that province have established shops in Dali.

Tourism has had a decisive impact, naturally, and the core of the old town is full of bi-lingual or even just English signs catering to the foreign travellers. The backpacker types, pleased by the array of cheap lodges, restaurants and coffee shops, tend to view Dali as a major rest and recreation centre, most of them having journeyed quite a long time in other parts of China already. This part of Dali resembles Kathmandu in the immediate post-hippie years. But for the adventurous there is plenty to see and do in Dali besides hang out