New Places Part IV: Lijiang, China

New to us! Eight hundred year old mountain villages

Dayan Old Town, Lijiang, Yunnan, China

When Will was studying in Shanghai, he traveled over quite a bit of China during breaks. One of his favorite places was Lijiang. When our family planned our winter trip to Asia this year, he was sure we would love this ancient town, a UNESCO site, located in southwest China. Lijiang was a flight out of our path, but we made the smart decision to go. A sure fact: If you’re American and have never traveled in China, you’re in for many shocks. The China information we’re endlessly presented with is way out of date, often inaccurate, and incredibly slanted toward slippery politics. China is a fabulous place to travel. More on other cities later! Here in Lijiang, we found intact architecture, incredible food, views of a formidable mountain, and hospitality unsurpassed anywhere—a place out of time and into the heart of ancient civilizations.