Xizhou and The Linden Centre
For our last day in Dali, we drove out to the Linden Center in Xizhou for a day filled with great activities. We first took a walk through the village surrounding the Linden Center and had the honor of visiting the village elder at his home, who has taken it upon himself to record the history of Xizhou since before the communist revolution in China. He showed us photos and told stories that documented events from World War II to the Cultural Revolution and beyond. After visiting with him we stopped by a local family’s house for lunch. Along with the plentiful dishes that included fried Dali cheese, spicy fish, eggplant stuffed with beef and preserved eggs, the cabinets of the house were lined with antiques spanning hundreds of years of Chinese history, as our hosts were themselves antique dealers. After lunch we went took a horsecart ride to the massive Erhai lake to witness cormorant fishing, watching the birds dive for and catch fish. The vast lake with the mountains in the distance provided an incredible view as we paddled near the shore on a hot but beautiful day. Returning to shore, we were treated to some traditional Bai minority dancing, and some students decided to get in on the fun! We returned to the Linden Center and played ping-pong, pool, and basketball until dinnertime, where we were again treated to home-style Yunnan cuisine. After dinner we had the pleasure of enjoying traditional Dong Jing music, a style that has been preserved for many hundreds of years and stayed untouched by outside influences. When the concert ended, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for an early flight tomorrow, when we will head to Shanghai!
