Exciting Times... with my pu pu

Hello again from lijiang. We made it here in one piece. Dali will be a magical place that I will remember always, for a number of reasons. First off the hotel was top notch and cheap. The town was very chill and relaxed. The markets were cheap and had lots of cool stuff. I asked Liu to marry me on the mountain. The weather was wonderful and cool most days.

Of yeah, I might want to go into some more detail about that second from the last sentence from the paragraph above. I asked Liu to be my blushing bride. I have been thinking about it since December, but I wanted to make absolutely sure that she would be my partner for life. I am head over heels in love with my little puren. Two weeks ago I was going to ask her during the eclipse in Wuhan, but the time wasn't right. We took a gondola to the top of cranshan mountain behind Dali. The trail was about 10-12 kilometers through the mountains. I knew for two days that I was going to ask on the mountain, so I have been a bit nervous lately. Not that I was worried that she would say no, just that it is kind of a big deal and all. About 2 km into the hike I started collecting wild flowers. When we got about a 1/2 kilometer from the 3 km marker I slipped the ring onto the bottom of the flowers to hold them together. When we got to a scenic point, I quickly set my camcorder on the rock ledge across from us and hit record. I didn't have time to set it up properly, so it records our bodies from the neck down, but the audio is pretty good. Liu was still excited about the beautiful location and kept taking pictures of me and the city below. I was nervous and just trying to get her to sit down for a few seconds so I could ask her the question. I handed her the flowers and asked her "What is the most beautiful part of these flowers?". She looked them over and said, "the Yellow flowers, because you had to climb up a hill to get them." I told her "look more closely is that the most beautiful part?". She looked them over again and said, " a Dihamohnd" (that is as close to the spelling as how she pronounces it). When she saw it, I got down on one knee and asked her formally to be my wife. It took her a looonnggg time to say "yes", but she did eventually. I think she was really suprised and shellshocked. She hugged me and kissed me a dozen times or so and we sat at the location for about an hour basking in our happiness. the pictures here and above were taken just moments after I asked her. She is showing off her flowers and the ring if you look closely. As of right now we are going to get married in china, because Liu's family is here and can't afford to go to America for a wedding. We might actually get our marriage certificate in the US when we come to visit for xmas. I think that it will make her immigration easier. If anyone knows a good immigration lawyer let me know.

After the proposal the long hike in the mountains was just a lot of fun. We came across countless waterfalls. We saw so many that we quit taking pictures in front of all of them. There were these cool places where the rocks overhang the trail and water drips off them like rain. Very cool and refreshing. When we were thirsty we would just drink the water straight from the waterfalls or streams. You can see lots of pictures below.

that night we found a hostel that was located on top of the mountain. It was a bit tough to sleep at such high altitudes, but the view and the place were awesome. They usually hold yoga retreats there, so the people were very chill. They served a communal supper that we enjoyed with a couple from US/France and another couple from Belgium. We had beers and sat around talking at the picnic table well into the night.

The trip from Dali to Lijiang took 4-5 hours, so when we got here we just racked out.

Yesterday it was raining ALL day. So we just hung out at the hostel and watched movies and relaxed after a exciting week.

Today the rain has stopped for now (skys look like they could open up at any time). So we are going to walk around the ancient city.

Hope you enjoy the pictures, and thank you for the comments.

A nice waterfall by the side of the trail

The clouds hanging over the mountains.

Liu drinking directly from the waterfall

The rocks where the water falls like rain. Very refreshing

Liu trying to catch the drops in her mouth

Skenic spot

Liu and I minutes after the proposal (I took off my hat and glasses during the proposal to look more "proper")

Another waterfall

I look a bit deviant in this picture

The next prize in our showcase showdown is a WATERFALL

Liu on a bridge over a stream. People cooking some good eats on the other side.

Showing the guns under the rockrain

Liu is always trying to steal kisses from me.

Self-photo in front of a waterfall

Contiplation of my decision to marry Liu. Conclusion "It's a great idea"

Picture of Chinese "mutt" taking a picture

I look tired. thought "just take the damn picture"

Liu stuck her head in between these two rocks and insisted that I take a picture. She sometimes reminds me of that little kid in the movie parenthood. The kid who puts the bucket on his head and runs into walls.

Not a bad pic of a happy guy

Once again the kid from parenthood. She has a nutterbutter in her mouth while I was taking this picture. I asked her a few times to take it out to get a real pic, but she insisted that I take it with the candy bar in her mouth. So here it is.

Liu in front of the path. I urged her to give me a peace sign. she reluctantly did it. We actually walked through the split in the rocks behind her later on the trail. I named it "Doughnut Pass"

View of the city below from the trail

Standing on the bridge with my Steven Tyler do rag.

Up top at the hostel. A bit tired

The hostel courtyard at the top of the mountain. People have to carry up all the supplies and building material to this place. The hike up the mountain with just a small backpack almost killed me. The Chinese people are pretty tough little buggers.

Liu kicking it at the Highlander (there can be only one) hostel at the top of the mountain.

Took this picture for Kit and Stacy. Actually for all the rock geeks out there.

So that is it. In conclusion I want to say that we are really happy and excited to be spending our lives together. Liu is the Yin to my Yang. She is kind, good, caring, and just an overall excellent human being. Me being the Yang, I am the exact opposite. I hope you enjoy these happy pictures as much we had taking them.