A Biking Adventure: Shuhe, Baisha, and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain

In addition to the old town of Lijiang itself, the world heritage site extends to a few satellite settlements. One is another old town, Shuhe 束河. Shuhe was a lot like Lijiang but a little less crowded and a little more spread out and calm.

A typical Chinese gateway within the old town of Shuhe.

A designated lane of street-food vendors.

Both Lijiang and Shuhe old towns had these arbor-like structures with decorative wood pieces (for sale) tied all over.

A pond just inside the Shuhe old town entrance.

After wandering for a bit through Shuhe, we rented bikes and explored the area. This allowed us to get a little closer to the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (玉龙雪山). It has been claimed that the glacier atop this mountain is the southernmost glacier in the northern hemisphere, but I haven't been able to verify this fact. Tiger Leaping Gorge is on the other side of this mountain range.

Once when we stopped to take pictures we got a good look at this bird bathing in the dust. (If anyone has any idea what kind of bird it might be, please let me know!)

Then we headed over to Baisha (白沙) village which is home to the Baisha Murals. These murals are yet another reflection of cultural fusion in the area, primarily representing Tibetan Buddhism, but also the local Naxi culture. The palace compound where the murals are installed is also very pretty.

Labelled: "God of WenChang" who was "responsible for composition and academic work."

This struck me as a parituclarly picturesque arrangement, like something out of a movie.

There were several old trees that were nicely labelled, including this 189-year-old Crepe Myrtle (Laegerstoemia indica).
There was also a 469-year-old Ginkgo biloba.

A multi-armed Buddha at the center of one of the larger murals.
(Pictures of the murals themselves are not allowed, so this is a picture of a picture.) 

You can just make out the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in the background.
The white spire at the top of the building seemed to imitate the mountain.

Afterwards we found a little place in Baisha that sold fresh juices and other refreshments. The owner recommended two local specialties: a sour plum juice and a rice slushie. They both sounded sort of strange but tasted really good!