Shangri-La

“The first place where the sun shines is Jiantang in the east, and the most extraordinary place on earth is Shangri-La on the banks of the Milky River.” James Hilton wrote so in his book. The white snow-capped mountains, the vast expanse of grassland, the bright red datura metel and the mysterious lamasery all constitute the most beautiful scenery here. The Tibetan transliteration of Shangri-La is “Shamballa”, which means “the bright moon in the heart”, which also refers to an ideal lifestyle. In English, it is Shangri-La, which means paradise. It is indeed a paradise, a paradise on earth. The city of Shangri La is situated in the centre of the sacred region of the three rivers: the Yangtze, the Mekong and the Salween. It used to be named as Zhongdian or Gyalthang in Tibetan until 2001.