Xishaungbanna
Beautiful smiles abound.
The final leg of our Yunnan trip took us to the peaceful, sunny, and laid back city of Xishuangbanna (pronounced “she-schwan-ban-na”), home to the Dai minority, vast nature reserves, botanical gardens and many tea plantations. Our wonderful local guide was a young Dai woman from a small village near the Laos border.
Dai people are one of the few minorities in China with their own written language. However, only males are allowed to learn the ancient script while studying as monks at the Buddhist temples. On a visit to a local temple, we happened to stumbled upon a class in session. Twenty or so young boys dressed in traditional orange robes recited words written on a blackboard, their harmonious chant mesmerizing the passing visitors.
More closely aligned in language, religion, and script of Thai people, the Dai celebrate the fertile New Year every April with water splashing festivals throughout southern Yunnan, Burma, and Laos. Young and old take to the streets with buckets of water, drenching their neighbors and friends. It is a sign of great prosperity for the coming year to walk away dripping from head to toe. We were a bit early for this year’s festivities, but the imagery reminded me of summers spent running through sprinklers and dodging water balloons and Super Soakers. Such is the common joys of water fights.
Located in the fertile banana, rubber tree, and tea valleys around Xishuangbanna, Dai homes are typically constructed of wood on stilts. An open-air downstairs is used for raising livestock, storage, as well as a cool place to retreat in the summer. The stilts also provide relief from the occasional river flooding. Upstairs several generations of family live communally, sharing the cooking, living, and sleeping areas. I was impressed to see many homes with solar hot water heaters mounted to their distinctive thatched roofs. The units are affordable for rural families at 1000RMB ($150), which makes me question why the same technology is not more affordable in the States.
Basking in the warm temperatures, blue skies, and clean air, we had the great fortune to visit several remote villages and local markets. A 20-minute tractor ride brought us to a quiet hilltop community surrounded by acres of tea plants blanketing the gentle hills like grape vines in Napa Valley. The apparent benefits of a sugar-free diet, the children had the most beautiful smiles and perfect teeth. Friendly and welcoming, they were eager to show us around their village, showing off their many homemade toys.
Returning to Kunming, we had a free day to visit the Stone Forrest an hour outside of the capital city. A maze of prehistoric stone structures, the park was busy with weekend explorers. After eight days on the road, it was time to return home to Beijing. My only wish being that we could bring the warm weather back with us. The following Saturday Spring Festival ended with a bang as people fired off the remaining of their fireworks. A slow night for fire crews,
By night fall Beijing was covered in an inch of snow.
