Dali, Yunnan is the only beautiful place where the four words of the idiom "wind, flower, snow and moon" are all taken up. The reporter has traveled to Dali four times, especially the fourth trip to Dali that ended not long ago. It has only been more than a month, so the wonderful experience is still vivid and vivid.

Flying in the blue sky (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The time is back to 2021.03.19. At around 5 a.m., the reporter set off early for Terminal 2 of the Capital Airport to start his first trip to Beijing this year. We will take Air China flight CA8328 to Dali Huangcaoba Airport. This trip was invited by Manager Shen Hui of Ctrip Travel to participate in a field inspection of Dali's residential cultural life organized by Sunac Southwest Cultural Tourism Group. A wonderful journey of flowers and snow is about to begin.

Dali Airport (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Air China flight CA8323 took off at 07:17 and successfully arrived at Dali Huangcaoba Airport at 11:20 after a four-hour flight. I remember that I first came to Dali in the last century. In April 1994, I came here with director Huang Jianzhong of Beijing Film Corporation and his party to select a location for the filming of the TV series "The Soul of Fishing City". Later, he visited again in November 1998 for filming Chinese ethnic sports special films and tourism. Walking out of the airport, Dali tour guide Tang Jia was already waiting at the airport exit with a smile.

Go to Dali City (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The car drove towards the city, and soon the beautiful scenery of the Erhai Lake came into view. Tang Jia also recounted the relevant situation in Dali. Dali is famous for its four characters such as "Xiaguan Wind, Shangguanhua, Cangshan Snow, Erhai Moon". It is not only unique in China but also in the world. It is now a city open to the outside world in the country and one of the first batch in the country. It is one of the 24 famous historical and cultural cities and 44 scenic spots announced in the country, a national culturally advanced city, and an excellent tourist city in China.

Street View in Dali City (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The reporter and his party drove to Dali Yiqingyuan Farmhouse to taste the first Bai-style lunch after arriving in Dali. The unique food left a deep impression on the reporters who first arrived in Dali on this trip. Especially when I saw that the delicious food at the end was quite similar to the oil cake in the north, I learned after asking that the place was called a roasted milk fan.

Dali guide map (Photo: Wang Jue)

After lunch, Tang Jia took everyone to drive to the ancient city of Dali first. This is the third time that reporters have visited this place. Tang Jia introduced that the ancient city of Dali is located in the northwest of Yunnan Province, at the southern end of the Hengduan Mountains, under the Cangshan Mountain and on the shores of the Erhai Lake. The ancient city covers an area of 3 square kilometers.

Dali Ancient City Wall (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The ancient city of Dali has a long history. It is referred to as Ye Yu, also known as Zicheng. Its history can be traced back to the Tianbao period of the Tang Dynasty. Yangju Miaicheng (near the three towers in the west of the city today) was built by Nanzhao Wang Ge Luo Feng. The current ancient city was built in the 15th year of Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty (AD 1382).

Group photo in Dali (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

When I came to the ancient city of Dali, I looked at the city gate building with the word "Dali" personally inscribed by Mr. Guo Moruo, a famous Chinese calligrapher and litterateur, when he came to Dali in 1961, which aroused my fond memories of taking pictures here several times. Similarly, everyone also left an unforgettable group photo here.

Photo taken in the ancient city of Dali (Photo: Tang Jia)

The reporter and his party walked into the ancient city of Dali from the north gate and wandered around, and saw the familiar lively scenes in the ancient city. The ancient city of Dali is about 1000 meters wide from east to west and more than 2000 meters long from north to south. There are three streets vertically from north to south, and five or six alleys from east to west. The houses in the city are all houses with civil structures and tile-roofed roofs, and most of the streets are made of bluestone slabs.

Wuhua Building in Ancient City (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

On both sides of this Gucheng Street running through the north and south, there are rows of shops specializing in marble products, tie-dyeing, straw weaving and other famous and special products, as well as full-flavored Bai restaurants. In particular, most streets have clear streams flowing from Cangshan Mountain, and simple and elegant traditional Bai houses can be seen everywhere. Residents here, whether rich or poor, have the habit of growing flowers and grass in the courtyards.

Overlooking the ancient city (Photo: Wang Jue)

The layout of the ancient city of Dali is in a chessboard style, with the north and south gates symmetrical to each other, forming the main road pattern of the ancient city of Dali. The center of the city is closer to the west, and the north-south axis is not centered, forming an urban layout in which the west is more important than the east. The intersection of the east and west gates is based on the principle of "no justice should be taken in the east, west, north and south" in Bai architecture.

Wandering around the ancient city of Dali (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The ancient city has a radius of twelve miles and has four gate towers and four corner towers. There are four city gates on all sides of the city wall, namely Erhai Gate (also known as Tonghai Gate) at the east gate, Shuanghe Gate at the south gate (also known as Chengen Gate), Cangshan Gate at the west gate, and Santa Gate at the north gate (also known as Anyuan Gate). There is a moat outside the city. It was rebuilt many times in the Qing Dynasty, and the city maintained a typical chessboard structure. The north and south gates were symmetrical, and the streets in the city were crisscrossed, making it known as "Nine Streets and Eighteen Alleys".

Photo taken in front of the city gate (Photo: Yang Yang)

What catches people's eye in the ancient city is the city's unified architectural style, appropriate scale, and simple city appearance. Some old houses in the streets and alleys have flowers and trees, and the scene of "three families have a well at one eye, and one household has several pots of flowers". A large number of buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties and the Republic of China are still preserved in the city. Temples, academies, churches and other ancient buildings are dotted in it, such as the Chiang Gong Temple, the ruins of Du Wenxiu's Marshal Mansion, and the Catholic Church.

Foreigner Street Archway (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Visiting the ancient city of Dali again feels like it has changed a lot. Some attractions were not in my impression of more than ten years ago. For example, the Foreign Street in the ancient city. After consultation, I learned that the original name of Foreign Street was "Guoguo Road". It was named to commemorate the people of Yunnan opposed Yuan Shikai's declaration of emperor and raised troops to protect the country in the early Republic of China. The "Guguo Road" runs east-west, with a total length of 1200 meters and a width of 7 meters. It is paved with bluestone slabs. The most prosperous one is the middle section, with a total length of 185.6 meters. It is one of the earliest and most well-known foreign streets in China.

Street View of Foreign Street (Photo: Wang Jue)

After finishing sightseeing in the ancient city of Dali, I came to the Erhai Lake for the third time. I remember that several times I came to Dali to visit the Erhai Lake, I boarded boats and cruised.

Scenery of Erhai Lake (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

This trip is to stroll along the Erhai Ecological Corridor to Fenghua Xueyue Square. This is also the former Longkan Ancient Ferry. The scenery here is beautiful, with clear water and blue skies, and flying seagulls, attracting many newlyweds who took wedding photos this time.

Photo taken by the bank of Erhai Lake (Photo: Yang Yang)

The Erhai Lake Ecological Corridor is a boundary between people and the lake. The lake is more than 50 kilometers long. Visitors can not only take a sightseeing battery car to view the scenery along the lake, but also rent a bicycle to ride or stroll around to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Erhai Lake.

Fenghua Xueyue Square (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

It is said that the ecological corridor is physically separated to provide the Erhai Lake with 'air'. Connecting the villages along the coast will turn the traditional Bai villages with their own characteristics into "a string of pearls surrounding the Erhai Lake." Sightseeing along the ecological corridor, a picture of nostalgia is slowly displayed in front of people.

Wedding photos taken by the sea (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

With the completion of the Erhai Ecological Corridor, the bank of the Erhai Lake has transformed from a large area of farmland and buildings in the past to today's fully functional walking paths and bicycle paths. Now it has become a beautiful scenery where Dali City blends with water. Every day, countless people from all directions come here to ride, walk and swim.

Longkan Gudu Wharf (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The Hilton Dali Hotel where I stayed that night not only had first-class facilities, but also had excellent surrounding environment. When you pushed open the balcony of the guest room, you could see the rolling Cangshan Mountain, while the other side of the hotel faced the vast Erhai Lake. The scenery around you is so beautiful.

Black fried dough sticks (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The morning at the Hilton Hotel where I stayed was not rich, but it didn't matter. The main reason was that one of the black fried dough sticks was a highlight. According to the chef, it was made with cuttlefish juice. It looked scary but took a bite. It felt really good. This was also another unexpected gain from the Dali cuisine taste after tasting the Ba mushroom fried rice in the Aishangjunguo pot, so the two delicious foods were particularly memorable.

Looking at Cangshan from the hotel balcony (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

When talking about Cangshan Mountain in Dali, the reporter was very moved. He drove into the city several times in Dali. Although the majestic and undulating Cangshan scenery always came into view, he had never been there once. This four trips to Dali finally realized the dream of climbing Cangshan.

Group photo at the foot of Cangshan Mountain (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

On the morning of March 20, after leaving the hotel where they stayed, the reporters and his party arrived at Cangshan Scenic Area shortly after driving. It turns out that Cangshan Scenic Area is so close to the hotel where I stayed. The first trip to Cangshan in the four Dali tours, the reporter took the cable car from Cangshan Ximatan to the halfway up the mountain and started the Cangshan tour.

Cangshan Mountaineering Cableway (Photo: Wang Jue)

Cangshan Mountain is the main peak at the southern end of the Yunling Mountains. It consists of 19 peaks from north to south, starting from Dengchuan in Eryuan in the north and ending at Tiansheng Bridge in Xiaguan in the south. The 19th peaks of Cangshan Mountain are majestic and form a strong contrast with the beautiful scenery of the Erhai Lake. The peaks from north to south are: Yunlong, Canglang, Wutai, Lianhua, Baiyun, Heyun, Sanyang, Lanfeng, Snowman, Yingle, Guanyin, Zhonghe, Longquan, Yuju, Malong, Shengying, Buddha Ding, Ma 'er, Xieyang.

Scenery of Cangshan Mountain (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The altitude of each peak in Cangshan Mountain is more than 3500 meters, and the highest peak, Malong Peak, reaches 4122 meters. Due to its high altitude, the peak is extremely cold and is covered with snow all year round. The snow scene in Cangshan Mountain is extremely crystal clear under the sunshine, white and flawless. Beautiful and spectacular.

Cangshan Check-in Place (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

It is said that the snow in Cangshan, which is not used in summer, is the most famous "wind, flowers, snow and moon". A legend records that one year, plague was prevalent at the foot of Cangshan Mountain. Two siblings used the magic they learned to drive the god of plague to the top of the mountain and buried him in the snow and froze to death. In order to prevent the god of plague from being resurrected, my sister became the snow god of Yeti Peak and forever guarded Cangshan Mountain. The grandeur of Dali's mountains and rivers is inseparable from the snow-covered landscape of Cangshan Mountain.

Photo taken on the sightseeing platform (Photo: Tang Jia)

Excellent works of poetry left by ancient and modern literati: Yang Sheng 'an in the Ming Dynasty said that it was "covered with snow on the top, white clouds on the mountainside, and clever and magical craftsmanship, each showing its own skills." In the poem stele of the old man Huang Hua in the Yuan Dynasty, he wrote that "Jade dragons hung on the Gui Jing Terrace, and the mountains were flying snow and the wind and wind." In the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Laiyi, a scholar of the Hanlin Academy who sent Monk Wuji back to Dali, also described the majestic snow scenery of Cangshan, which is comparable to the mountains of Europe.

Cangshan Xuanxue (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Although it was impossible to climb 19 peaks during this trip to Cangshan Mountain in Dali, the reporter felt very content to climb the Cangshan Grand Canyon viewing platform at an altitude of 2,660.74 meters.

Cangshan Grand Canyon (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Cangshan has beautiful natural scenery and a collection of scenic spots. The ancients even summarized the various natural landscapes of Cangshan into the eight scenic spots of Cangshan. Therefore, it is spectacular to watch the scenery of the Grand Canyon hidden between Malong Peak and Shengying Peak. The canyon has jagged rocks, thousands of feet tall walls, vines and vines, and ancient trees, which is very primitive and wild.

Photo taken in Cangshan Check-in

On the afternoon of the same day after the wonderful trip to Cangshan, the official opening of the on-site inspection and experience activity of Dali's residential cultural life organized by Sunac Southwest Cultural Tourism Group was also ushered in. The reporter saw that Dali's small courtyard project relies on Cangshan Qingbi River, with its own location advantages and the theme of ecological health. It can be said to have created a new model of ecological living for Chinese families and become a beautiful scenery in the ancient city of Dali.

A scene at the foot of Cangshan Mountain (Photo: Wang Jue)

Accompanied by Wang Yongfu, manager of Sunac Southwest Cultural Tourism Group, everyone personally experienced a series of modern cultural tourism life scenes with the theme of "Dali's Small Courtyard" at the event site, through what they saw and heard, which was pleasing to the eye and feast the eyes.

Inspecting the living experience (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The last stop of the four Dali trips was to Xizhou Ancient Town in Dali. Xizhou is one of the birthplaces of Dali culture. It was already a place where the Bai people lived as early as when Liuzhao and Heman coexist. It was originally a city of Dali Heman. Shi Wanshou of the Sui Dynasty once stationed troops here, so it was called "Shicheng" or "Shishi". The old capital of Nanzhao in the Tang Dynasty was also built here. It was called Dali City at that time. At that time,"there were many people living in the city" and it was one of the "ten temples" in the Nanzhao period.

Taking a photo with Yang Yang and his wife (Photo: Wang Yongfu)

On the morning of March 21, the reporter, Pu Hongbing and Yang Yang took a small sightseeing bus in the ancient town to visit Xizhou. Xizhou Town is located in the north of Dali City, bordering Cangshan Mountain in the west and Erhai Lake in the east.

Corner of the upper food stall in Xizhou Town (Photo: Wang Jue)

Xizhou is also the hometown of the movie "Five Golden Flowers". It is also a famous historical and cultural town and one of the key overseas Chinese towns in Yunnan Province. It is a famous historical and cultural town of the Bai people with a history of more than a thousand years.

Xizhou Zhengyi Gate (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

At the same time, this is the third time that a reporter has entered Xizhou Town in Dali. Walking into the small street of Xizhou, the impression of that time has disappeared. Xizhou Town has hundreds of Bai residential buildings with their own characteristics in the Ming, Qing, Republic of China and contemporary periods.

Walking into Xizhou Town (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Viewed from a distance, Xizhou looks like a simple and elegant city, more like a huge museum of residential buildings. The unique shape and the almost perfect structure give people a sense of solemnity and power yet yet light and lucid, simple and elegant yet free and free texture and beauty.

Overlooking the corner of Yan's compound (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Xizhou is centered on Sifang Street, and ends at Tianzhuang Hotel in the north, Fuchunli, Caiyun Street, and Yanyi Lane in the south, the middle section of Shishang Street in the west, and the protected houses of the two houses on the east side of Zhendong Highway in the east. It covers an area of about 17.32 hectares. It gathers most of the key protected houses and protected houses, and also includes the Yan, Dong and Yang compound, which are listed as key national cultural relics protection units.

Visiting the Bai people's old house (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Due to time constraints, the reporter and his party focused on visiting the Yan Family Courtyard and its museum. Walking into the tall and complex gate with curved corners and cornices, you will find a courtyard with "three squares and one curtain". There are calligraphy and paintings on the curtain wall, and swaying flowers and trees, making people look glorious. After entering the hall, there is a courtyard with "four-in-five courtyards". There are leaky corners and courtyards, extending in all directions, like a maze.

Xizhou Old Building (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Behind the winding path leading to the secluded scenery is another "four-in-five-patio" compound with a unique sky. In the deepest backyard, there is quietly a Western-style villa and house. It adopts a modern architectural form and has a basement, balcony, corridor, floor-to-ceiling glass windows, surrounded by flowers and trees bonsai, giving a quiet and unique environment. Although washed over the years, the red vermilion doors and windows and the marble carved white fences still retain their glory of the past.

Photo taken in the countryside of Xizhou (Photo: Pu Hongbing)

After the sightseeing in Xizhou Town ended, the reporter's four trips to Dali came to a successful conclusion. Although the trip to Dali is only a short three-day trip, it can be said to be a quick look at Dali, but the trip is full of rewards. Dali's Bai cuisine culture and colorful Bai song and dance performances have left people unforgettable. A beautiful aftertaste. Goodbye Dali! I will come again if I have the opportunity. (Photo and text: Feng Ganyong)