I truly realized I had arrived in Yunnan on a slightly exhausted morning.

The air was dry. Breathing became deliberate, as if I had to remind my body to inhale a little harder. But when I looked up, the mountains in the distance were bright and the snow line was sharp, almost unreal like a background plate.

That was when the trip really began.

Dali Ancient Town | Wind Has a Shape

If Lijiang feels like the density of people, Dali feels like the presence of wind.

Walking into Dali Ancient Town, there was no heavy pressure from noise. Streets were open, and your sight could extend farther. You could vaguely see mountain contours in the distance, with low Bai-style buildings nearby. Clean walls, restrained colors.

The pace was clearly one beat slower.

You naturally walk slower and are more willing to pause: sit outside a cafe and watch people pass, or just stand at a corner and let the wind hit your face. In Dali, wind is not background. It is part of the environment itself.

Compared with many cities that keep pushing stimulation, Dali works the opposite way. It gradually removes attention pressure and lets you settle down.

If there is one distinction, Dali is better for staying than for checking off attractions.

But after staying longer, another side appears.

A coffee booth every few steps, flower-circle vendors, and constant repetitive setups. It is interesting at first, then quickly feels like a highly replicated “artsy template.”

Overly uniform cafes, repeated decoration patterns, and slightly forced atmosphere create subtle fatigue. Things that should feel like real life become less real after excessive amplification.

Another surprise was rhythm at street level.

My first impression was that people in Dali were actually in a hurry: less yielding on roads, frequent horns, a bit impatient. Management also felt loose in places. That created some distance in how I perceived the local environment.

On day one, we grabbed simple food: grilled erkuai.

It was saltier than expected, so we switched to a nearby rice-noodle place.

By then we were already tired. The city felt slow, but moving around was not effortless.

On the way back, we bought Jiahua flower cakes. That was a pleasant surprise: rich filling and actual rose aroma rather than cheap sweetness.

The next day at noon we returned to Dali Ancient Town, bought a large flower crown, and had mint-fried ribs, stir-fried mushrooms, and mashed potatoes.

We planned to visit Longkan Wharf later, but ride-hailing kept failing. It was genuinely hard to get a car there.

So we stayed nearby and just walked with the wind for a while.

Halfway through, we bought bread from “mystery bread uncle” again. He was so warm and kept offering us more.

Later we had Dai-style pounded chicken feet from another place.

Then both of us ended up taking turns running to the restroom.

The spice level was far beyond expectation. Even for me, it was hard to handle.

By this point, our impression of Dali had already declined a little.

It was still comfortable, but mixed with several mismatched experiences.

So we did not hesitate much. After two days, we left for Lijiang.

Lijiang Ancient Town | Density and Mood

When we arrived in Lijiang on the first day, it was almost noon.

This segment started in a hurried and uneasy way.

We left Dali early in the morning. What should have been a normal city transfer became stressful because ride-hailing kept failing. We waited by the road for a long time until a driver finally stopped and agreed to take us to the station. At that point the only thought was: do not miss the train.

At the station, timing was tight. Security lines were chaotic. We moved through the crowd in a rush, a little disheveled but lucky enough to catch the high-speed train from Dali to Lijiang.

Then once the train started, everything suddenly quieted down.

We got lucky with the last-row seats: no one behind us, little disturbance around us. The cabin was calm, and vision opened up as if we were temporarily pulled out of the morning’s mess. But the train passed through many mountain tunnels, ear pressure kept pulsing, phone signal dropped in and out, and there were a few temporary stops. It was not ordinary boredom, but a kind of stalled feeling wrapped by mountains and tunnels.

Until finally, Lijiang Station.

Learning from Dali, we did not rely on ride-hailing this time. We chose a cheaper and more efficient option: the city-operated shuttle directly to the ancient town north gate. Six yuan per ticket, clear route, and close to our hotel.

That straightforward transport immediately reduced stress.

On the shuttle, we also learned the operator offered Shangri-La group tours. After a brief introduction, we signed up for the next day on the spot. The sales pitch ended just as the bus arrived, everything completed naturally within the same ride.

After getting off at the north gate, direct sunlight pressed down hard. While walking to the hotel, a local aunt kindly reminded us to protect our skin and use sunscreen. It was a small reminder, but memorable.