Yunnan - China's most beautiful province


Protecting Erhai: The Seven Big Activities

When in April 2017 guesthouses and restaurants around western Yunnan's Erhai Lake were suddenly summarily ordered closed until further notice, big character slogans also began proclaiming: "Protecting Erhai: The Seven Big Activities" 保护洱海七大行动. The slogan suggests that the closure of tourist facilities is just one part of a wider campaign to clean up the Erhai environment.



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.


Fei Hsiao-Tung and Chang Chih-I: Earthbound China: A Study of Rural Economy in Yunnan

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Fei is the father of modern sociology in China: western-trained, he came to Yunnan at the end of the 1930s when China's eastern universities relocated west. In "Earthbound China" he applied modern empirical techniques that he had pioneered around Shanghai to the Chinese hinterland. The economical development, and subsequent societal changes, of three un-named, but typical villages in Yunnan is analyzed in great detail in this fascinating study.


A number of Chinese historic texts covering life and politics in Yunnan have survived over the centuries. I have translated a few of them.

Jim Goodman: The Terrace Builders: The Hani and their Neighbors in Yunnan's Ailao Mountains

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Abstract: The rice terraces of the Ailao Mountains in southern Yunnan province, China, are some of the oldest terraced farms in Asia. First mentioned in Tang Dynasty records, these farms, 80% of which are irrigated, with water running through them all year round, have been in continuous use for over a thousand years. In 2013 UNESCO declared the heartland of this area a World Heritage Site. The Terrace Builders is a detailed account of how these farms are made and used, the cities and mountains of Honghe Prefecture and the far north of Vietnam, as well as the various ethnic minorities who live there. The book pays special attention to the Hani people, the largest ethnic group in the area, and includes summaries of the culture and clothing of their neighbors the Yi, Miao, Yao, Zhuang and Dai. The book includes 300 photos of the land and its people.


With its well-preserved architecture and tranquil atmosphere, Weishan's capital is Yunnan's most beautiful county town.

Markets this Thursday

Kunming 昆明
Jiulong 九龙乡

Dali 大理
Nanxin 南新
Niujie 牛街
Yangcen 羊岑
Maidi 脉地
Longjie 龙街
Xintun 辛屯
Songgui 松桂
Gudi 古底
Longjie 龙街
Zuòyì 作邑
Qiaohou 乔后
Daying 大营
Taiyi 太邑彝族乡
Huangping 黄平镇
Midian 米甸镇
Miaojie 庙街镇
西庄
Houshancun 后山村
三胜
Qiaodian 乔甸镇
Puping 普淜镇
鲁庄
太和社区
寅街村
Caifeng 财丰

Lijiang 丽江
Shigu 石鼓镇
Yongsheng 永胜县
Banqiao 板桥

Xishuangbanna 西双版纳
Xiding 西定哈尼族乡

Dehong 德宏
Husa 户撒乡
Nangsong 曩宋阿昌族乡

Honghe 红河
Dianwei 甸尾乡
Sancun 三村
Heping 和平乡
Sankeshu 三棵树
Dixibei 地西北
Shaochong 哨冲镇
Xinjie 新街
Baixian 白显
Niujie 牛街镇

Wenshan 文山
Badaoshao 八道哨乡
Heizhiguo 黑支果乡
Boai 剥隘镇
Dongma 董马乡
Xinzhai 新寨乡

Chuxiong 楚雄
Jiyi 己衣乡
Tanhua 昙花乡
Sanchahe 三岔河乡
Dongpo 东坡傣族乡
Guanglu 光路镇

Baoshan 保山市
Manglong 芒龙

Lincang 临沧
Cangyuan 沧源佤族自治县
Yalian 亚练乡
Shuangjiang 双江拉祜族佤族布朗族傣族自治县
Quannei 圈内
Zhenkang 镇康县
Junsai 军赛乡

Qujing 曲靖市
Daba 大坝
Dahai 大海乡
Huohong 火红乡
Jiache 驾车乡
Nagu 娜姑镇
迤车
Zhehai 者海镇

Zhaotong 昭通
Shikan 石坎
Jiucheng 旧城
Weixin 威信
Changan 长安

Yuxi 玉溪
Yangjie 羊街乡
Mosha 漠沙镇
Dianzhong 甸中

Nujiang 怒江
Jiakedi 架科底乡
Pihe 匹河怒族乡
Dimaluo

Puer 普洱
Fuyan 富岩

Diqing 迪庆
Jiagetu 价格土
岩瓦