The Red Soil of Dongchuan
The Wumeng Mountains' bright red soil, the buckwheat's yellow and Yunnan's dramatic skies make the region around Dongchuan a paradise for photographers.
The temple in Mangdao 芒岛, built in 1899, is one of few surviving examples of Dai Buddhist temples having survived the Cultural Revolution by being converted into grain storage.
C. Patterson Giersch: Asian Borderlands: The Transformation of Qing China's Yunnan Frontier
Yunnan was not always China: indeed not so long ago large parts of Yunnan were only nominally part of the empire. To make Yunnan, outside the main Han cities, a Chinese province required significant effort. Here Giersch's study on Yunnan's hinterland makes an interesting if academic read.
A number of Chinese historic texts covering life and politics in Yunnan have survived over the centuries. I have translated a few of them.
Yunlong's famous bridges.
With its well-preserved architecture and tranquil atmosphere, Weishan's capital is Yunnan's most beautiful county town.
Jim Goodman: Living in Shangrila: Tibetans and Mosuo in Northwest Yunnan
Abstract: When Diqing Prefecture, opened its doors to foreign visitors in 1992, tourist agencies and government officials promoted Zhongdian County as the Shangrila of James Hilton’s novel Lost Horizon. In 2001 the city officially changed its name to Shangrila. On a high plateau of over 3200 meters, surrounded by snow covered mountain peaks, inhabited mainly by relatively prosperous, friendly and contented Tibetans, with beautiful monasteries, lakes, forests and summer flowers, the county’s scenery and lifestyle certainly bore a strong resemblance to that in the novel. Living in Shangrila describes the life and environment of the Tibetan people throughout Diqing Prefecture. It also examines their neighbors the Mosuo, a branch of the Naxi nationality, who adopted Tibetan Buddhism as their religion, but are still mainly a matrilineal society, unique to Yunnan, living around Lugu Lake, the most picturesque body of water in the province. The book includes over 200 photographs.
The Dali history museum inside the headquarters of Du Wenxiu.
The Danxia, or red sandstore, cliffs around Liming are a hikers' and climbers' paradise that is just now being discovered.
Upcoming Festivals
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
| Litang Horse Racing | 01 Aug |
| Play on the Lake | 01 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 03 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 04 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship (Jianchuan Area) | 04 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 05 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 05 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 05 Aug |
| Benzhu Worship | 05 Aug |
| Torch Festival | 06 Aug |
| Red Rice Festival | 06 Aug |
| Mishi Festival | 06 Aug |
Markets this Monday
| Kunming | 昆明 |
|---|---|
| Jijie | 鸡街乡 |
| Dali | 大理 |
|---|---|
| Xintun | 辛屯 |
| Biaocun | 表村 |
| Songgui | 松桂 |
| Jizushan | 鸡足山 |
| Tuanjie | 团结 |
| Misha | 弥沙 |
| Baishi | 白石 |
| Shaping | 沙平村 |
| Huangping | 黄平镇 |
| Xinjie | 新街镇 |
| Mizhi | 密祉镇 |
| Caifeng | 财丰 |
| Miaojie | 庙街镇 |
| Liuchang | 刘厂镇 |
| Miaowei | 苗尾傈僳族乡 |
| Taiping | 太平乡 |
| Houshancun | 后山村 |
| 三胜 | |
| 果城村 |
| Honghe | 红河 |
|---|---|
| Laozhai | 老寨苗族乡 |
| Shalatuo | 沙拉托 |
| Chemalong | 车玛龙 |
| Daheigong | 大黑公 |
| Wuwan | 乌弯 |
| Puxiong | 普雄 |
| Shaochong | 哨冲镇 |
| Niujie | 牛街镇 |
| Zhemi | 者米拉祜族乡 |
| Tongchang | 铜厂 |
| Baihe | 白河乡 |
| Panzihua | 攀枝花 |