A rainy Lijiang day

(This picture, on the balcony outside my room. It didn't quite capture the gloominess of the day.  The clouds rolling off the mountains was beautiful)

I've found the nights in Lijiang to be overall very comfortable.  Mainly because it's cool.  It's nice snuggling under the covers for a change.  During my 2nd night it was a pleasant surprise to hear the rain outside my window.  The next day was cloudy and cool.  I decided to make it a day of reading at different cafes around Lijiang.  I got up at 9am and by 10pm I had finished the book I started in the morning.   I started off at a cafe where I had a Naxi (an ethnic group in southwest China) breakfast.

(Potato pancake, bacon, Naxi cheese, scrambled eggs, toast, and coffee)

I explored the endless streets looking for a new cafe with hot tea and a nice view.

(Rose and plumb tea)

I saw this waterfall.

Found a funny sign by the waterfall with a reminder that I had forgotten by the end of the day (see below where I ended my day).

 (Eating out should keep civilized behavior and keep healthy eating in mind)

I sat at the hostel reading, had a nice chat with an American, and ended the day with a banana and chocolate crape.   I like the slow life in Lijiang.  I hear Dali (where I'm headed to next) is even slower.

The book I read was a suggestion from Amazon based on books I've looked at and read in the past.  I always say my tutor is my Chinese therapist.  This book is like my therapist / tutor but so much more.  The week before I left for Yunnan was one of the hardest so far in China.  I was sick, homesick, and just overall blah about my Chinese life.  The book is called 'Dreaming in Chinese'.  The author, Deborah Fallows, lived in China for 3 years with her husband.   She writes about the Chinese language through her experiences with learning the language and living in China.  She has a PhD in Linguistics so when she writes about the endless challenges trying to learn Chinese I feel much better about where I'm at with my Chinese.  As I read the book I could relate to virtually everything she wrote.  I'll quote her in another post because she's able to say how I'm feeling so much more eloquently then I am.  She does a nice job explaining the meaning and history of Mandarin.  I learned quite a few new things about putting words together, what words actually mean, and how to use them.  Sometimes the Chinese have a hard time translating Chinese words into English because often there's far from an exact translation.  I definitely feel better about myself and my struggles with China.