Dali but not Salvador

Arrived in Dali City the new part at 6am. I have found that at airports, trainstations etc, if you wander around with a backpack, someone will come up and ask you what your are looking for or point you in the direction of a bus etc. This time I was searching for the buses in this bus area and was guided to the correct minibus. Arrived in old Dali at 7am, too early for anything except to see the sunrise. Which was pretty impressive. So despite my backpack on my back I walked around for an hour taking photos. Now booked into the Old Dali 4 Seasons hostel. Ok ish. So may try for another once people have checked out of Jim's Tibetan hotel, where I had wanted to go.

Dali is amazing. It is like stepping back in time and very very laid back. It is quite an old town in parts, although some of it is being "renovated" but not in total keeping with the old. Some of the buildings are so old and crooked. It was great to walk the streets this morning before all the traffic started. Although many school kids were up and running just before sunrise. Being dropped off by parents, grandparents etc. on bikes and motorbikes and god knows what else. It was fun to watch them get their breakfast at the stalls. In Xi'an too I often saw them being taken home. Some of the kids say hello and then giggle shyly when you acknowledge them with a hello in return.
Walking around this afternoon, I got a better feel for the place. It is definitly a backpackers place as many of the cafe's are very backpackerish with with lots of cushions and names like Lazy Lizard etc. Still it has loads of charm and character. I just love the place. Although I hear Lijiang is even more well kept.

There are two main ethnic groups here Yi and Bai and you can spot that this has heavily influenced the population. There are young and old ladies in colourful headresses all over town. I missed a group of about 10 of them walking along in full costume, displayed as I was on the wrong end of the street. The colours are so eye catching. I love the way their way of dress has been maintained but mixed with modern items like jeans.
I went to Dali to chill, and it was possible to do that and just wander around the town and be mesmerised just by walking around. I went on one tour, as it happend it was by myself as not so many tourists here at this time of year. I even noticed a job vacancy for foreigners to help staff the local bars/restaurants.

I went to this amazing local market near Dali. It was full of locals, mostly Yi, selling foodstuffs, kitchenware and most other useful things. I only saw about 2 other tourists and they were Chinese. The colours of the locals and the foodstuffs were incredibly photogenic. The really beautiful thing was most of them didn't try to sell me anything, so I could wander around unimpeded. In some respects I was as much a distraction for them as they were for me. That is what I love most about China. I carried on to the next item on the tour. This was a lovely village with the prerequisite winding streets and charismatic inhabitants. I had a lovely guide who showed me around the temples, and local home industries of weaving and batik.
My four days were up and I had to leave Dali.