A day at the holy mountain

📜🏞️History records that many centuries ago Tibetan people searched for a place to live far away from war and misery. 🏘️🏔️ They settled down in what is now called Balagezong after overcoming much difficulty, and Bala became the symbol of an ideal home and paradise. 🧞The legend on the other hand, states that many years ago, hidden within what is now a National Park was a remote village called Bala. The village had no contact with the outside world until one day a small boy, a blacksmith's apprentice, got hurt while welding molten metal. In order to receive medical treatment his father took him to Shangri-la. It was then that the boy saw a glimpse of civilization for the first time - roads, shops, temples. Amazed by what he saw he spent over 3 decades accumulating wealth and investing it into his birthplace despite the anger and despise he received from the locals. His biggest challenge was building a road that would connect the Bala village to the rest of the world. The challenging topography mage the road building impossible but after many years of hard work the work was done. 🗓️Today Bala Village is a part of the Balagezong National Park. And it was the second stop of our tour. 1️⃣The shuttle bus first took us to Shambhala Stupa scenic area. 2️⃣From there we went to the mentioned village of Bala before 3️⃣ spending some time at the scenic area (or Echo Wall). 4️⃣Our last stop was the Grand Canyon and keep in mind, it took half of the day to complete a tour. We have started at 8:30 am and finished at 16:30. For hiking lovers it would take much longer, if you wish to complete the hiking tour AND see all the above listed places. 🪷 To say it's worth the visit would be an understatement. Keep in mind, the Tibetans searched for a perfect place to build their home, and chose this location for that exact reason. #travelchina #yunnantravel #nationalpark #balagezong #mountainview #shangrila #canyon #passionpassport #mountaingetaway #shambala