Apr 10, Friday, Kunming/Major and Minor Stone Forests to Puzhehei

Today we went to the Major and Minor Stone Forests (differentiated from the Black Stone Forest by the lighter gray color of the stone).  The main entrance to the area was through some gardens and along a lovely lake.

The Chinese tourists were out in droves, getting dressed up in minority people’s attire to get their pictures taken... 

taking selfies, climbing on the rocks to get more pictures and in general having a great time.  

They tend to travel in tour groups, apparently much cheaper, that don’t seem to wander too far from the main tour areas.  

Frank took us on some back area trails that we had pretty much to ourselves.  The walkways were windy and narrow.

There was a small lake nestled among some of the formations.

Some of the formations didn't take much imagination to come up with a story as to what it represents.  Does this one look like WC Fields to anyone else?

When we got to the high point of the walk we could see all around the area.

On the way back we walked through an area that had lovely green lawns among the formations.

More photos of the Major and Minor Stone Forests.

We finished with an open bus ride back to the parking area.  The temperature was pretty cold and the ride was very windy…and Paul came down with a cold that night…from either the windy cold bus ride or from Mary (we so love to share).  We are going through our supply of cold meds very fast.

Then it was on to the next stop…a very long (4+ hours) drive through some gorgeous mountainous areas (except you couldn’t see a lot because of the haze and clouds), over at least 18 miles (30 kilometers) of unpaved roads, and through some fairly poor looking areas.  

We passed through some very picturesque villages...

and lots of farmland....

We saw lots of cows wandering down the roads and pulling carts.

About 3+ hours into the drive, we started to wonder if it was worth the drive for just one full day at our new location.  Once we arrived at Puzhehei we decided that maybe it was worth it after all.  Hopefully the skies will be relatively clear tomorrow for some good sightseeing.

One major surprise...a French chateau sitting in the middle of a valley full of rice fields. Apparently wine is becoming big in the area.

The area of Puzhehei is called “Small Guilin” with many small, sharp mountains similar to the Guilin area.  We both think it will be lovely if the sky clears enough.  The hotel is right on a very placid lake with wonderful reflections of the mountains on the other side.  

Dinner was in a nearby town and we were able to select our meal from the refrigerator full of produce and meat. We decided on broccoli and purple potatoes to go with our rice.  Mary commented that mashed potatoes with gravy would be welcome right about now.  She wasn't far off.  The potatoes were serviced mashed, but lumpy, with spring onions and a fair amount of oil.  It looked a lot like lumpy wallpaper paste with green bits but tasted phenomenal.  We ended up eating at the restaurant two more times while here and had the potato dish every time.  Loved it.