Dancing under the Moonlight: the Costume Festival of Zhizuo
As villages go, Zhizuo could hardly be more remote. Some 70km from the county town, first along a winding mountain road, then on a deeply rutted track without public transport: even in the dry season it takes several hours and a bit of stamina to reach. Yet, at least on the first full moon of the year, the effort is worth it, as Zhizuo holds one of Yunnan's most colourful festivals, the Dress Competition Festival or Caizhuangjie 赛装节.
In Huize, the old capital of copper in Yunnan, many splendid guildhalls survive.
Jim Goodman: Children of the Jade Dragon: the Naxi of Lijiang and their mountain neighbours the Yi
In the first half of the 1990s Lijiang had barely made its appearance on the Chinese tourism stage, even less so the then remote mountains of Ningland and Lugu Lake. Jim Goodman's account of the Naxi and the Yi draws back to a time where not everything was staged for mass tourism: an account of a lost world.
A number of Chinese historic texts covering life and politics in Yunnan have survived over the centuries. I have translated a few of them.
A Lahu Church
Yunnan's only Shui-Township with stunning karst scenery.
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.
Ritual dance at the court of the local Menglian ruler
Once an important salt-mining town, now the second largest town along the Heihui River north of Yangbi.
Upcoming Festivals
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
| Pear Flower Festival | 17 Mar |
| Women's Sun Festival | 19 Mar |
| Madeng Trade Fair | 19 Mar |
| Benzhu Worship (Fengyu) | 19 Mar |
| Dragon Worship | 20 Mar |
| Wrestling Festival | 20 Mar |
| Benzhu Festival | 20 Mar |
| Benzhu Festival | 20 Mar |
| Tuzhu Festival | 20 Mar |
| Dragon Worship | 20 Mar |
| Seniors' Honours | 20 Mar |
| Benzhu Festival | 20 Mar |
Markets this Saturday
| Dali | 大理 |
|---|---|
| Junhua | 均化 |
| Zhoucheng | 州城 |
| Duomei | 朵美 |
| Shanyang | 衫阳 |
| Yongping | 永平县 |
| Paiying | 排营 |
| Lijiao | 力角 |
| Shuixie | 水泄 |
| Shijing | 师井 |
| Diannan | 甸南 |
| Liuhe | 六合 |
| Heqing | 鹤庆县 |
| Dacang | 大仓镇 |
| Caojian | 漕间 |
| Jiangwei | 江尾镇 |
| Gonglang | 公郎镇 |
| Changyi | 长邑村 |
| Deju | 德苴乡 |
| 云南驿村 | |
| Junhuacun | 均华村 |
| 桥街 | |
| 前所 |
| Honghe | 红河 |
|---|---|
| Niujiaozhai | 牛角寨 |
| Xinansuo | 新安所镇 |
| Leyu | 乐育 |
| Daheishan | 大黑山乡 |
| Majie | 马街 |
| Lvchun | 绿春县 |
| Wuwan | 乌弯 |
| Xinxian | 新现乡 |
| Daheigong | 大黑公 |
| Nanke | 南科 |
| Jinping | 金平苗族瑶族傣族自治县 |
| Mengqiao | 勐桥乡 |
| Zhaotong | 昭通 |
|---|---|
| Shuanghe | 双河 |