Into the Land of the Black Lisu
The Nujiang Canyon, on Yunnan's western frontier, was until the 1930s a blank area on the map that not even Chinese troops dared to enter. In 1905 two British explorers made the first foray into this land of the Black Lisu.
A Lahu minority Christian service in a hill village near Menglian.
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.
A clan temple on the slopes of a burial hill near Xizhou.
An unspoilt Tibetan area along the Zhibaluo River.
Liao Yiwu: God is Red: The Secret Story of How Christianity Survived and Flourished in Communist China
Liao Yiwu, one of China's most prominent dissidents, was driven out of China, but not before he used a period of internal exile to research Christian groups, mainly in Yunnan. In this book he tells the stories of the Christians of Dali and of Wuding county.
Dali has its own Torch Festival related customs.
Hometown of many Bai merchants, Xizhou boast some impressive architecture.
Upcoming Festivals
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
| Yi New Year | 04 Jan |
| Slight Cold | 05 Jan |
| Birthday of the Sun | 07 Jan |
| Birthday of the Sun | 07 Jan |
| Gedong | 14 Jan |
| Benzhu Worship | 18 Jan |
| Pulling the Wooden Drum | 19 Jan |
| New Moon Ritual | 19 Jan |
| Great Cold | 20 Jan |
| Kuoshi Lisu New Year | 23 Jan |
| Wuxi Festival | 24 Jan |
| "Replenish Provisions" Ritual | 24 Jan |
Markets this Monday
| Kunming | 昆明 |
|---|---|
| Jijie | 鸡街乡 |
| Dali | 大理 |
|---|---|
| Biaocun | 表村 |
| Fengyi | 凤仪 |
| Jizushan | 鸡足山 |
| Wase | 挖色 |
| Yongjian | 永连 |
| Misha | 弥沙 |
| Tuanjie | 团结 |
| Baishi | 白石 |
| Dacang | 大仓镇 |
| Huangping | 黄平镇 |
| Shaping | 沙平村 |
| Zhongjiang | 中江 |
| Hongyan | 红岩镇 |
| 蛇街 | |
| Shidongcun | 石洞村 |
| Hedian | 禾甸镇 |
| Taiping | 太平乡 |
| 妙姑村 | |
| Jindunjiecun | 金墩街村 |
| Miaowei | 苗尾傈僳族乡 |
| Luming | 鹿鸣乡 |
| Lijiang | 丽江 |
|---|---|
| Judian | 巨甸镇 |
| Honghe | 红河 |
|---|---|
| Shengcun | 生村 |
| Sancun | 三村 |
| Laozhai | 老寨苗族乡 |
| Shalatuo | 沙拉托 |
| Chemalong | 车玛龙 |
| Wuwan | 乌弯 |
| Daheigong | 大黑公 |
| Puxiong | 普雄 |
| Zhemi | 者米拉祜族乡 |
| Tongchang | 铜厂 |
| Baihe | 白河乡 |
| Panzihua | 攀枝花 |
| Yuxi | 玉溪 |
|---|---|
| Xingmeng | 兴蒙 |
| Hexi | 河西 |
| Fuliangpeng | 富良棚 |
| Puer | 普洱 |
|---|---|
| Jiangcheng | 江城哈尼族彝族自治县 |
| Mangxin | 芒信镇 |
| Qiannuo | 千糯 |