Watersplashing in Yongping
Ask for the Watersplashing Festival, or Poshuijie 泼水节, and everyone will tell you to go to Jinghong, capital of Yunnan's Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Region: the 'biggest and best' Dai celebrations to mark their New Year are taking place there. And big it is. Thousands of Han Chinese and foreign tourist flock to Jinghong every year. Jinghong's Poshuijie certainly is big -- and very commercial. If big crowds and big events are your thing, go to Jinghong.
A Lahu minority Christian service in a hill village near Menglian.
Judith Shapiro: Mao's War Against Nature: Politics and the Environment in Revolutionary China
Even if Chinese civilization has developed more against than with nature, the Mao years were a particular exercise in environmental destruction. In one case-study Shapiro tells the story of the draining of the northern part of Dianchi Lake, one of the first steps turning Kunming's lake into the fetid cess-pool it is today.
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 Akha: Guardians of the Forest
The Akha, in China known as the Aini branch of the Hani people, migrated from China southwards into Laos, Burma and Thailand. In this richly illustrated book J Goodman, aka 'Akha Jim', explains their life and culture.
Dali's biggest religious festival at the end of the fourth lunar month.
Upcoming Festivals
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
| Christmas | 25 Dec |
| Festival of Lights | 26 Dec |
| Atai Birthday | 27 Dec |
| Bulang Harvest Festival | 27 Dec |
| Kuoshi Lisu New Year | 27 Dec |
| Mizhi Festival | 29 Dec |
| Coffee Festival | 01 Jan |
| Full Moon Ritual | 03 Jan |
| Yi New Year | 04 Jan |
| Slight Cold | 05 Jan |
| Birthday of the Sun | 07 Jan |
| Birthday of the Sun | 07 Jan |
Markets this Thursday
| Kunming | 昆明 |
|---|---|
| Jiulong | 九龙乡 |
| Dali | 大理 |
|---|---|
| Nanxin | 南新 |
| Yangcen | 羊岑 |
| Niujie | 牛街 |
| Longjie | 龙街 |
| Maidi | 脉地 |
| Gudi | 古底 |
| Fengyi | 凤仪 |
| Wase | 挖色 |
| Longjie | 龙街 |
| Yongjian | 永连 |
| Daying | 大营 |
| Huangping | 黄平镇 |
| Taiyi | 太邑彝族乡 |
| Dacang | 大仓镇 |
| Qiaohou | 乔后 |
| Zhongjiang | 中江 |
| Jindunjiecun | 金墩街村 |
| 鲁庄 | |
| Puping | 普淜镇 |
| Luming | 鹿鸣乡 |
| 西庄 | |
| Qiaodian | 乔甸镇 |
| 蛇街 | |
| Shidongcun | 石洞村 |
| Midian | 米甸镇 |
| 寅街村 | |
| 妙姑村 | |
| 太和社区 |
| Lijiang | 丽江 |
|---|---|
| Judian | 巨甸镇 |
| Xishuangbanna | 西双版纳 |
|---|---|
| Xiding | 西定哈尼族乡 |
| Baoshan | 保山市 |
|---|---|
| Xiaopingtian | 小平田 |
| Tengchong | 腾冲县 |
| Wama | 瓦马彝族白族乡 |
| Yuxi | 玉溪 |
|---|---|
| Mosha | 漠沙镇 |
| Xingmeng | 兴蒙 |
| Hexi | 河西 |
| Fuliangpeng | 富良棚 |
| Diqing | 迪庆 |
|---|---|
| Weideng | 维登 |
| 岩瓦 |