Sichuan. Infinity Under the Highland Sky. Day 6

We continue south with Shangri-La as our intermediate destination. We pass through canyons and are embedded in hundred meter high rocky gorges. Until we come across a stupa, a viewing platform or a dry gorge. We reach Shangri-La, which we inspect from above during a stop at the coffee truck above the town. 

However, we avoid the tourist crowds and the clichés in Shangri-La and Lijiang and instead drive through to Shaxi. 

Shaxi is home to the only remaining old marketplace on the historic Cha-Ma-GuDao, the Horse Tea Road where tea and other goods were traded between India and ancient China.  Today, Shaxi is home to a lot of dropouts who prefer to live a life away from the conventions of modern China in the west of the country. It's up to you to decide whether you prefer one of the hip coffee shops or traditional tea houses. 

If anyone has an idea of which city in the world is more beautiful than Shaxi while enjoying a local mushroom hot pot in the evening, you'll get an extra bonus. We sleep in a 5-star homestay in a classic design in the middle of the city, with an inner courtyard and verandas running around the inside.

Travel time: approx. 6 hours

Overnight stay in a 4-star homestay