Jenny woke up unwell and missed most of the days' activities.

This morning we visited the Baisha Old Town (which was once the capital of the Naxi minority group) and Frescoes The Baisha Frescoes date back to the early Ming Dynasty and are made up of 44 pieces. Most of the paintings depict religious stories from Taoism and Buddhism. It was unfortunate that the paintings have suffered through fires and vandalism. No attempt had been made to restore these replicas.

From here we visited the Mu Family Silk Embroidery School where we watched locals make intricate pieces of embroidery. Some of the pieces took over 12 months to create and the prices ranged from $20 to $20,000. Some of the works were absolutely spectacular.

After lunch we walked around the Town and enjoyed the local cafes and handcraft shops. Then we made our way to the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. It was raining so visibility was very poor. The Mountain is known for its mysterious ambience and snow covered peaks and is considered the Holy Mountain amongst the Naxi ethnic group. Jade Dragon Snow Mountain incorporates several peaks, the tallest of which is 5,500m. We travelled by chairlift from the base to Yunshaping (Cloud Fir Meadow) at an altitude of 3,200m. From the chairlift there was a wooden pathway to the meadow and we followed the walking route which took us around an hour to complete. We unfortunately did not get a view of the peaks of the Jade Dragon Snow mountain which was disappointing.

On our way back we stopped at Blue Moon Valley. The valley is crescent shaped and the water looks blue in sunny days. Seen from a distance, the valley resembles a bright blue moon in the shadow of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, hence the name. The streams from the snow mountain come to the valley first before flowing down to the White Water River. The water contains copper ion, making it unfit to drink.

However, blue is not the only colour of the river. If it rains, the white mud and limestone rubble at the riverbed will be swirled up, making the water as white as milk. Therefore, local Naxi people name it White Water River (Baishui River).

The White Water River is fed by melting snow and ice running down from Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. The water is freezing; even in summer. Legend has it that, when two Naxi youngsters fall in love, the boy will be tested by standing barefoot in the cold river in winter to show his committed love for the girl. Folks believe that this tested love will last forever in the presence of the holy snow mountain. So, the river is considered the Love River in local people's mind.

There are four lakes divided by small waterfalls or giant rocks along the river, namely Jade-Like Wine Lake, Mirror Pond, Blue Moon Lake, and Wave-Listening Lake. The lakes form a natural mirror reflecting the grand snow mountain, surrounding cliffs, and lush plants. There are small shoals dotted among the water, breaking the smooth surface of the lakes.

Walking around mirror lake we were fascinated by the milky blue colour of the water. There were many people having their photos taken, bridal parties and just people in traditional costume (which you could hire at a reasonable price).

Tonight we had tea at our hotel, the Adange, in the restuarant, another banquet and then drinks in the lobby with our travel buddies.