The Warmth of the Sun

I was relieved to discover, upon disembarking from a 24-hour train ride in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province (#12), that I had not forgotten to pack my camera for what was slated to be the most breathtaking of jaunts. Unfortunately, the dozens of photos of smog-laden Changsha that I had snapped in past weeks had worn out the battery, leaving me no means to capture the natural splendor of one of China's most coveted travel destinations. My companions and I traveled by bus from Kunming to Lijiang, a trendy tourist locale and (perhaps somewhat dubiously chosen) UNESCO World Heritage Site, from which point we hiked for a few steep and muddy hours until we reached our final destination, an "eco-lodge" located in the small, isolated village of Wenhai (profiled a few years ago in the New York Times: http://travel.nytimes.com/2004/11/21/travel/21chinaeco.html?pagewanted=all&position=).

The lodge had in the past trumpeted its complex and innovative techniques aimed at conserving natural resources and generally creating a numinous aura of eco-friendliness, but given that the entire village in which it is situated is populated by a few hundred impoverished farmhands for whom the placement of multiple light bulbs in the same edifice would smack of extravagance, it is perhaps not surprising that the lodge has basically devolved into just another unheated building surrounded by miles of arcadian landscapes on all sides. Nonetheless, spending a few days walking among members of Yunnan's Naxi minority was an unforgettable experience. The journey was arduous, and the conditions colder than expected, but the hospitality was comfortingly warm. We were quite pleased by our host for the three days, Mr. He, who enlivened our spirits with his vivacious guidance through the region's most uncertain terrain. He was uniformly agreeable, and even his voice was soothing. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must go and begin drafting his nomination for the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize.