Yunnan-bound

Very excited to be off to north-west Yunnan, on the border with Burma and Tibet, a place I've wanted to visit for a long time. Three hour flight to Kunming where we meet up with our friends Markus, Caroline and daughters. Then, because our onward flight to Dali is cancelled, we endure a five-hour drive in a bijou bus - which will be our transport for the next week, complete with driver and three different guides. It's the most organized holiday we've ever planned, has taken three months and has not been without hitches (the first agent went bust just when we were about to pay for it). Anyway, we finally arrive at the Linden Centre, a large, exquisitely renovated courtyard guest house in the village of Xizhou, just outside Dali Old Town. It's run by an American couple and is so right-on (eco-friendly, locally integrated etc) it almost hurts.