Slideshows Yunnan
Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture 大理白族自治州

In the abandoned Ming dynasty village of Like 利客 in Weishan 巍山 the ancestral altars of the 郑氏 Zheng clan remain.

Chinese Buddhists parade through the street on occasion of the Prince Festival 太子会.

Congregation of Chinese Buddhist on occasion of the Prince Festival in Jianchuan.

Around the time of the Taizehui in the second lunar month is also Shaxi's annual livestock fair, where on the far side of the river all sorts of domestic animals are traded.

Offerings to Caishen, the Chinese God of Wealth, are common during the Chinese New Year, particularly on the fifth day, Caishen's birthday. 跳财神 is a certain form of folk play honouring Caishen which dates back to the Tang dynasty. The Bai have adopted and preserved many Han Chinese traditions and the pictures here show the play performed in Zhoucheng 周城 as part of the Benzhu Festival.

On the upper floor of an old Bai farmhouse in Shangcang Village, Binchuan County 宾川县上沧村, next to the ancestral altar quotations from Chairman Mao have survived since the Cultural Revolution.

On the fourth day of the Chinese New Year the Bai of Qingshan Village near Shuanglang 双廊镇青山村 celebrate their Benzhu Festival 本主节 with a wild Daoist ritual climbing the Sword Mountain 刀山.

The Benzhu Temple of Zashipeng Village near Shangcang in Binchuan County 宾川县鸡足山镇上沧村杂石棚村 has some beautiful wooden Benzhu statues dating back to the late Qing dynasty.

On Ghost Festival Day 中元节 the Bai in Longkan 龙龛 near Dali put lanterns on the lake to remember the ancestors.

In Longkan 龙龛 village near Dali, during the "Ghost Month", a spectacular fire dragon dance, with the dragon made of burning incense sticks.

The Torch Festival in Eryuan's Fengyu region is a small neighbourhood affair.

Bai weddings in Eryuan's Fengyu still follow a strict traditional ritual rich with meaning.