(shanghaidaily.com)
Updated: 2008-04-14 11:28

All kinds of snacks fill the city where the plums are especially famous. You can get homemade plum wine in almost every bar on the Foreigners Street while fried chicken skin, baked milk and roasted beef stomach are all very yummy.

One pizza house was especially impressive, established 20 years ago by a traveling Italian who taught the local owner how to cook pizza. The owner has also blended in local flavors to produce some interesting creations. The pizza house has two branches on the same street, both with comfortable sofas and delicious pizza.

To better understand the authentic essence of Dali, we went looking for some Bai-style architecture called Gui Yuan Ju, named after the 100-year-old sweet scented osmanthus in the yard.

We found a house - now a guesthouse - built during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) featuring three rooms on each side and a screen wall facing the main gate. It strictly followed the ethnic architectural style - four sides with three rooms and one screen wall, four groups of rooms and five yards.

This particular house had survived an earthquake in the 1970s and a double bedroom per night cost just 50 yuan.

For our four days in Dali, we slept in that tranquil room, waking each morning to the crowing of roosters.

The family who owned the house told us the yard would be filled with the scent of osmanthus in August. It has operated as a guesthouse since the early 1990s when it was opened as one of the first guesthouses in the Ancient City.

Our second day was spent sightseeing around Erhai Lake. Following bumpy roads, we passed through the small town of Xizhou, known for a kind of softly baked cakes called Xizhou baba.

A very special custom in Xizhou - and also some other parts of Dali - is that, contrary to many parts of the world, women are the dominant member of the family.

Women are not only in charge of all the work at home including cooking, house-keeping and raising children, but also responsible for farm work.

Men pretty much follow the orders of their women all the time. But when not required it is not unusual to find them playing poker cards and mahjong with friends, virtually every day.

Yuji Island in Erhai Lake is a nature wonderland - fresh air, colorful flowers, cooling breezes and great views across the lake to neighboring hills.

Almost half of the island - the half with the best view no doubt - is occupied by a boutique hotel said to be owned by a famous designer and dancer. Apparently a night there can cost about 3,500 yuan for one night.

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