In the shape of an er, meaning ear in Chinese, the erhai Lake in the east of Dali covers 250 square kilometers at an elevation of 1980 meters with water a storage capacity of 300,000 cubic meters. Its vast pool of water, shining under the sun like a sheet of vivid green, and the snow mantles of the Cangshan Mountain reflected quiveringly in it, combine to form a breath-taking sight known poetically as " Silver Cangshan and Jade like Erhai ".