Below Town For starters, you'll need to establish the road running downhill from town. There's only one, and it's dirt. If you head down the road towards the lower town (with the Church, and Mother Ding's), at one point you'll see a Tibetan stupa, painted in white and decorated with prayer flags. It's accompanied by some nice old buildings, with lists of donors for temple repair stuck to their exterior. One building also has a collection of photographs from a festival held at the temple. Around 500 metres before the stupa, there's a bend in the road at which point a path leaves the road with a concrete water channel. Follow this to descend to a bridge across the Salween. If you come this far without a guide, remember not to take too long getting home, as the temperature plummets in the evening and you could find yourself cold and in the dark. After crossing the river, you can either head straight or right up to a village, or turn left. Walking this way you will come across an impressive natural 'beach'. If you're lucky, you'll see some fishing nets set up across the river (look for piles of rocks near the water - these hold the lines of the nets). Further along is a traditional wood and stone waterwheel, which at the time of our visit was still in active use for producing cornflour. If you have more time, you can go back to the bridge, climb up through the village and continue in to the mountains, but be sure to be back by dark!

Tibetan Monastery A 1000 year old Tibetan monastery is just out of town. Continue north down the dirt road to the north, following as it bends around the valley. After the 'gate' is the first spur. Take the path downhill here, following it across the bridge and up the other side. You'll know if you miss it, as you can see the path clearly from the road. When you reach the top of the other side, follow the path through the village to the monastery. The monks are friendly, but while they speak Chinese, Lisu, Dulong, Nu and Tibetan, they cannot speak English!