Dallied Further
What he offered was something we could do on our own, so I declined. I gave him a chance, I thought. Then the surprise – the miracle – occurred. Instead of perseverance, I met affirmation. There was no pestering, no cheaper prices, no customization, and no further add-ons that I wouldn't want.
The best thing about Old Dali? On our second day, after a day of tramping around the old Bai towns (and attempting very hard to figure out a way to the lakeside), we discovered a gem – a haven for dumpling lovers on the corner of a typical tourist street. 8 dumplings – succulent pork nuggets (with awesome chive bits) clothed in ivory doughy goodness – came out to be 60 cents. 60 cents! How cheap that was! And good!
Other good things about Dali? It was my introduction to the laid back attitude of Yunnan. Near the dumpling shop, a short Chinese man walked beside me and began his sales pitch for a tour surrounding the area. Normally, this type of behavior would necessitate a "No thanks", followed by my constipated-pissed off face (very scary, I assure you); but I had left Vietnam, I was feeling good, and so I gave him a chance.
What he offered was something we could do on our own, so I declined. I gave him a chance, I thought. Then the surprise – the miracle – occurred. Instead of perseverance, I met affirmation. There was no pestering, no cheaper prices, no customization, and no further add-ons that I wouldn't want.
Instead, in his own limited English vocabulary, he was genuinely interested in what I was going to do.
"No tour today? Afternoon? You leaving tomorrow? Oh ok. No problem."
Sure, you could say, that's part of the extended sales process. When I walked away to find a bus onwards to Lijiang, I found that the fellow kept at a distance as he tagged along. I looked back. "No problem, no problem," he quipped. "You no go tour today, no tomorrow. You leave today."
"No problem, no problem..." It wasn't persistence. It was shyness.
He was waiting for me when I walked out of the ticket office. "No good," he said. "Over there better price." Sure enough, I found a cheaper ticket in the office he pointed to. His mission accomplished, he tipped his hat, smiled, and waved goodbye.
"No problem, no problem – see you later!"
Oh yes, and of course, the lake was gorgeous – stunning really. A emerald dropped in the middle of an slumbering valley. Pagodas and temples and shrines perched on top of hillsides and nuzzled movie landscapes. The mountains stretched forward towards the horizons, like downturned fingers. Yunnan fulfilled it's name. The clouds billowed upwards and rolled in curls towards the north, towards Lijiang.