China Moments from people who noticed the detail.

Rain is the best filter Lijiang has. It darkens the stone, quiets the souvenir-shop colors and makes every drain, roof edge and change of slope visible. Suddenly the old town stops behaving like a postcard and starts revealing itself as a water-management system people must walk through. The wet lanes also force a slower pace, which is exactly what this over-photographed place needs. Skip the hunt for an empty fantasy street. Watch where the water goes and how people move around it. What changed in Lijiang when the weather stopped cooperating?