Of course, the biggest change is the sheer scale of development, which includes blocks of apartments and an extensive road network. When I was there in 1997, both Dali and Lijiang old towns were where people lived and worked. Now, they're full of tourist shops, and many hotels have been built in the surrounding region. In the past, local ethnic groups in bright costumes would come into town to shop, shyly turning away from cameras. Now, people rent those same costumes for selfies.
The changes have been huge, but also positive. Food in those days was fairly limited, but now there's a wide range. I relished the street food, particularly exotic items like crickets, beetles and caterpillars, but also the food in the restaurants, which was uniformly excellent.
I was also happy that we were not served Western cuisine but enjoyed the best local delicacies, and everyone was expected to use chopsticks.
Our visit was nicely leisurely, allowing me to explore on my own, as well as with the other journalists. Often press trips are so rushed that one barely sees anything, but I felt we really got to experience each place.
