Dali

Today we flew to Dali. At the airport we met our guide while in Dali, Zhao, and our driver that would be with us from Dali to Zhongdian, Mr. Su.

It took about 40 minutes to drive from the airport to our hotel, the Regent Hotel. After we checked in, we headed to the Dali Old Town in order to go to a bank since some of need to exchange some traveler's checks.

From Dali, we drove to the Bai minority villages of Xizhou and Zhoucheng.

At Xizhou, we went to see a Bai dance show. At the show, we we served tea. The first cup was bitter, representing life's hardships. The second cup was sweet, representing life's joy. The third cup was pungent with an aftertaste. The Bai word for "pungent" sounds similar to their word for "affectionate", and this last cup of tea represents friendship.

At Zhoucheng, we had lunch and visited a tie-die shop. From there, we drove back to Dali and got on a boat to cruise Erhai Lake and visit Jinsuo Island.