If you are staying in Kunming, you HAVE to check out the Stone Forest (or Shilin çłć in Chinese), classified as UNESCO World Heritage. Itâs in Yunnan province, in the South of China. Spoiler alert: There are also real trees. My only regret is that we didnât have enough time there. I recommend going really early, because itâs pretty far from the city and itâs massive. The karst stones have naturally built up over millions of years, when the whole area was still underwater. Itâs definitely one of those times where itâs appropriate to say that the greatest artist is our Earth. However, according to the legend, a beautiful girl named Ashima was born there and after being forbidden to marry the man she loved, turned into a stone that you can still see today. This place also displays the Yi ethnic culture, rooted in this region. On June 24th there is the Torch Festival with traditional Yi dances and celebrations around a bonfire.
If you know me a bit, youâll know there are only a few things that I enjoy on a rainy or cloudy day. Although the weather wasnât summer material, it still looked JAW-DROPPING. I mean, see for yourself:
If you know me a bit, youâll know there are only a few things that I enjoy on a rainy or cloudy day. Although the weather wasnât summer material, it still looked JAW-DROPPING. I mean, see for yourself:
There are cute shuttles that connect the different parts of the limestone landscape. Itâs useful because although there is a map, I found it hard to know where I was (hello fellow clueless travelers!). I mean, there are bigger roads, and you can opt to get lost in the narrow ones. Your choice, but if we hadnât we wouldnât have met this:
If youâre down for some adventure, some paths will be narrow and you never know how worth it it will be until you take it. The different parts of the park have reall cool names too, like âA Phoenix Combing its Feathersâ, âA Camel on an Elephantâ or âTwo Calves Playing in the Waterâ. Itâs an Alice-in-Wonderland feeling. If you donât feel comfortable in confined places, you may want to stay on the main roads. Itâs beautiful too. And if you want an English-speaking guide, they are available for an extra cost.
- Chang Lake (=Long) and Yue lake (Moon)
- Dadieshui waterfall, in which Jackie Chan jumped in its movie âThe Mythâ
- shrines
- picnic spots
- the Qifeng cave
Getting there
Youâll have to pay 130RMB ($15 USD) to enter the park. We went to Kunming East Coach Station to take a bus to get there, it takes about an hour.
So, are you ready to get lost in this (most probably) enchanted stone forest?
So, are you ready to get lost in this (most probably) enchanted stone forest?
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