Enjoying Fall on the Other Side of the World

We have just arrived to Shangri-la (Zhongdian) after a two day hike in the Tiger Leaping Gorge. The hike was quite spectacular with massive rock mountains and steep cliffs. We had blue skies both days with the occasional passing puffy cloud to contrast the deep blues, greys, greens and reds. The weather was as perfect as you could ask for. Warm in the day, and chilly at night.



We stopped half way at the Tea Horse Hostel for sunset and the night. We were greeted at night with spectacular views of the night sky including a pretty active meteor shower. We were told to wake up at 2 AM to catch them at their best but we only stayed up for 40 minutes before heading out of the cold and back into our warm beds.



The next day we completed the hike to the thunderous roar and echoing of rock avalanches across the gorge. The sound of the rocks was a pure adrenaline rush!  We tried looking around but the echoes came from all directions, making it impossible to tell the actual locations. We got a closer look at some of the smaller avalanches on our drive back through the gorge.



Now we are safe in Shangri-la (Zhongdian) at 3200 meters! It gets below freezing here and the smell of wood fires fill the air. We are staying at the Harmony Inn which is a very old Tibetan lodge with a very cozy wood fire stove, fresh hot tea, a big furry dog and wifi. Perfect.


We're off to get dinner and take it easy to adjust to the altitude and the cold, but our heated blankets should help with the latter.



Jackie and Kevin