Edi Travels with Kids

While on the Kunming–Lijiang train, I quickly look back at our stay in the "Spring City."

After landing from our Shanghai flight, we headed straight to the Golden Temple area, dotted with small shrines, before taking a taxi to the Green Lake area. This is the prettiest part of town and a must-go place if you're in the city. A meandering network of trails runs between the ponds, covered in bright flowers, with a bamboo forest and a temple built on the water. The girls had a blast getting their faces painted.

We then walked to the old city, with stalls offering all sorts of food in the narrow alleys.
The next day, we went to the highlight of the area, the UNESCO-listed Stone Forest. I was originally completely put off going there by the scary description in the Lonely Planet, which made it seem like there was no escape from being drowned in a mass of people, regardless of season or day of the week. I pictured something insane like Huangshan Mountain last year (see https://youtu.be/sToSVgNcXTI?is=WZOwt....

We finally went anyway... and wasn't Lonely Planet ever so wrong.

We first went to the Naigu area, wilder and somewhat less dramatic compared to the main Shilin area. The whole park was completely to ourselves. We didn't cross a single soul, and upon arriving I even asked the taxi driver to wait a few minutes, as even the parking lot was completely empty.

In the afternoon, we then went to the main Shilin area. And again, almost no one! At the beginning there were a few scattered people, and we did a tour of the park in an electric car, but at 5 pm all stalls in the park close, and from then until closing time at 7 pm we were completely alone—so much so that I almost got concerned when we got lost in the labyrinth of the Stone Forest.
A must-go place, and I would have liked to spend a bit more time there; here you can find our walk in the park: https://youtu.be/9GNqGnO44eE?is=BXET6... .

Next up, the Lijiang region: this morning I managed to miss the train we had booked. In the Ctrip app where I book tickets, I still had my daughter's old passport number from last year... and we couldn't get through security. So we had to rebook and take the next train.

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2 months ago | [YT] | 3

Edi Travels with Kids

As my two girls and I prepare to leave in a few hours for our two-week backpacking trip in China’s Yunnan and Sichuan regions, I looked back at our first meandering trip to China exactly one year ago, when they were 3 and 6 years old. The first stop was a couple of days in the amazing region of Yangshuo, Guangxi province, which must be the top destination for any first-time tourist in China. We rented a scooter and visited the region, with its surreally shaped hills, old villages, and river life. I put together a new point-of-view video of those excursions and looked at the daily videos I had made then, which were the very first that I created when I started this new hobby.

 

…Ultra excited for the new adventure.

 

1st Day in Yangshuo: https://youtu.be/3Hgffduqeug

2nd Day in Yangshuo: https://youtu.be/N9wk0oYADcU

New point of view video: https://youtu.be/8sFWbscJEz8

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2 months ago | [YT] | 1

Edi Travels with Kids

And some pics from the weekend escape to Lago Maggiore.

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3 months ago | [YT] | 1

Edi Travels with Kids

Last autumn, we spent 9 days traveling across Switzerland and northern Italy with my two daughters (4 and 7 years old at the time), and I just wanted to share that experience. Here the trip video https://youtu.be/y5qKWutb16I?si=Uis8v...

We live in Munich, and in early November during the school holidays I usually struggle with travel ideas:
the Alps can already be wintery,
southern Europe can see already miserable weather,

Winter time already kicked in with its short days and 5pm sunsets

Locations like the Canary Islands have limited and expensive flights,
and flying far away for just a week never really makes sense for us.

This time we decided to wait until the last minute to check the direction forecasting good weather for the following week — which turned out to be the area between Piemonte & Liguria in Italy, and Graubunden & Tessin in Switzerland. One of our most visually beautiful trips.

We moved mostly by bicycle and on foot, starting in Chur (Graubünden) and then moving south into Italy’s Piemonte and Liguria, before ending in Ticino (Tessin).

The route looked like this:

Evening drive Munich (Germany) - Bad Ragaz (Switzerland). Hotel Krone (150 EUR).

Day 1: bicycle ride in the wineyards between Bad Ragaz and Chur and perfect bright yellow autumn colours. Evening drive to Asti (Agriturismo I Suri’, 136 EUR including fantastic dinner)

Day 2: Visit Asti, as the only slightly rainy day. Afternoon ride to Neive in the Langhe region and walk around there. Guesthouse Vinoland (104 EUR). Absolutely peak autumn colors.

Day 3 and 4: 2 days backpacking through the Langhe wine region, spending the night in the Dimora Manichei in Monforte d’Alba (130 EUR).  Landscapes and colors absolutely unbelievable: must do!

On evening of Day 4, drive to Liguria - Savona station, parked the car there, and went by train transporting the bicycles to Ventimiglia. (Hotel Posta, 104 EUR).

Days 5 and 6: cycle from Ventimiglia to Savona all along the Ligurian coast, with an overnight in Imperia (Casa Dante, 94 EUR). Full mediterrenian feeling with the sea on one sinde and pastel colored houses on the other.

On the evening of day 6, picked up the car in Savona and drove to Lago d’Orta (Piemonte) where we spent the night in the Hotel Ramoverde in Borgomanero (95 EUR)   

Day 7: walked around the Lago d’Orta and its magnificent Montesacro. In the evening drove to Druogno, at the border between Italy and Switzerland Val Vigezzo, where we spent the night in the Albergo Stella Alpina (190 EUR including dinner).

Day 8: ride by bicycle from Druogno to Locarno all along the Centovalli and overnight in Ascona (Parkhotel Emmaus, 163 EUR). Fantastic ride, but at the beginning of the valley at higher altitude the trees were already without leaves

Day 9: panoramic hike on the path along and above the Lago Maggiore between Losone and Ronco Sopra Ancona. Drove back to Munich in the evening.

What made this trip so special:
• Peak autumn colours everywhere
• Except for half day in Asti with a drizzle, and the day around in Chur partly cloudy, pure sunshine and 22 C all the way
• Nobody around, not sure why, even in places like Barolo, on the Ligurian coast or Lago d’Orta
• Huge variety in landscapes: vineyards, sea, mountains, lakes
• Very relaxed travel rhythm, perfect with kids

We didn’t over-plan accommodation and stayed flexible, booking along the way depending on weather and energy levels — which worked perfectly.

All in all: highly recommended if you like slow travel, hiking, cycling, and want to experience northern Italy and southern Switzerland without the crowds.

If anyone wants more details let me know. Here https://youtu.be/y5qKWutb16I?si=Uis8v... video of the trip and GPX routes in the description.

 

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4 months ago | [YT] | 3