I have always wanted to go Shangri-La as I mentioned in my first post. I have always imagined Shangri-La to be similar to Tibet, all mysterious, holy and sacred. So I was quite excited really.
Arriving into Shangri-La, you can start to notice the scenery becoming more “Tibetan”
But first, pitstop to restock on oxygen supply.
As Shangri-La is on average around 3000 meters above sea level, the oxygen level in comparison much lower than the cities we have been. Hence, we were asked to purchase 2 bottles of oxygen each, price I think it’s about the same at RMB 75 per bottle. At the same time, the Shangri-La local guide told us that as tourists, we will definitely notice some level of discomfort due to the high attitude sickness for example, loss of appetite, headache, insomnia, breathlessness etc. Key things to note: relax, chill, don’t overthink, take things slowly, walk slowly, no alcohol, no smoking and trust me, we were told not to shower for the first night.
Hah. I know. Coming from a humid and tropical country, asking you not to shower is like WHAT!!!! NO WAY!! But really, if you come to think about it, because the temperature is sooo cooling, you don’t sweat buckets like in Singapore so it’s okay not to shower for one night. But anyway, they know it’s impossible to prevent everyone from showering soo they said either you take a quick shower 10-15 mins and keep the shower door open to prevent build up of heat in the shower room.
After our oxygen pit stop, it’s lunch time!!! I didn’t really have any loss of appetite – in fact I am hungry… feed me…
After lunch, we visited Ganden Sumtselling Monastery, the largest Tibetan Buddhist temple in Yunnan, also known as the “Little Potala Palace”. This is the attraction that I looked forward to the most in the entire itinerary. And you will see why from the pictures.
Afterwards, we went to visit a local Tibetan family home and got a crash course on the Tibetan house architecture, and the locals lifestyle as well as the food & drinks.
Fun fact: I had butter tea when I visited Bhutan. I didn’t like it then. But this butter tea is good. So maybe it has something to do with who’s brewing the tea?? Hah. Most of the snacks you see on the table are actually made from barley – which is their main food source as due to the climate, it’s hard for other crops to grow. It’s pretty nice to have a local experience to have a better understanding of their lifestyle and culture.
Next and last on the itinerary, Dukezong (pronounced as Du-Ke-Zong) ancient city, Guishan Park where they have the largest prayer wheel in the world.
After spinning the prayer wheel, we took a walk around the ancient city. Always reminded me of the years of Chinese history.
Went for dinner after Dukezong Ancient City. And it’s steamboat!! Hot soup in cold weather is the best, I tell you.
Back to the hotel after dinner. Accommodation in Shangri-La is of course, none other than Shangri-La Hotel. We will be staying here for 2 nights and you really can’t go wrong with Shangri-La.
