[Photo by Erik Nilsson/China Daily]

DAY 3: Green Lake

Green Lake is a placid place where folks stroll along boardwalks or dance accompanied by traditional instruments.

They perform against backdrops of boats skimming over waves.

Bridges create a grid of pathways over the lake.

? Military academy

The Yunnan Military Academy was founded in 1909 to train the Qing Dynasty's (1644-1911) New Army to quell social unrest－its soldiers, instead, joined the growing rebellion that overthrew imperial rule two years later.

It trained such Communist leaders as Zhu De and Ye Jianying.

Today, it displays photos and such weapons as swords, cannon and tridents used by local ethnic minorities that were incorporated into the martial-arts curriculum.