We've felt from the beginning of our stay that Dali's tourist-heavy old town was not quite the place for us.

Even so, our early morning walks have always been rewarding, and today's was no exception:






Today, however, we also did a little bus trip to the bottom end of Erhai, the big lake that Dali nestles on. This is where the big, modern version of Dali is situated, and as I said when we arrived here, this was where I originally thought of staying when I was looking for Dali accommodation.

As it turns out, I think those first ideas were probably right, and if we return (and I certainly would return), this is where we'd base ourselves. The town itself is modern and bland, but its broad streets are very walkable; it's where the train station is, so you could do little trips to places nearby; the lake and the river that flows out of it are very picturesque places to hang out; and the big park that straggles up the hillside would be a good place to walk in the early morning (it was a little hot at noon when we were walking there, but we did climb up as far as a lunch spot pavilion).

But let's backtrack slightly. The bus ride (which you can again pay for via your trusty Alipay app) takes about 40 minutes, and costs 3 yuan (GBP 0.30).

We got off near the river, and walked into the centre from there:




The parks along here were full of that delightful Chinese normality that I'm not sure you find anywhere else in quite the same form. Someone had brought his trumpet to practise. Someone else was wringing a tune out of one of things you blow down but operate via a keyboard. An elderly couple had brought along their karaoke equipment, and were sitting by the path singing along together. Nearer the area where the river exits the lake, you start to see the swimmers. This is obviously a recognized custom, as some basic facilities have been provided where people can drop off their stuff, and get changed.


And, of course, there are people dressed up to the nines having their photos taken...:




The lake, of course, is exquisite:





We rounded off our little excursion with our second visit to China's Luckin coffee chain. Both times we've paid half the price shown on the menu... We think what happens is that we give our order, and the staff then enter it on their app... Because it's all remote-ordered, this stuff. The app's the Thing. We sat sipping our lattes, watching the manic preparation of coffee, which then sits in to-go bags until the app customer (or, presumably, his/her delegated delivery person) collects it. We're just a few flying hours from home, but it is a very different world, for sure...


After that, back on the bus for our last evening in the old town.

Tomorrow, back to Kunming...