Earliest Settlers

The Nu people were the earliest settlers of Nujiang Canyon, according to historical records, arriving here more than 1,000 years ago. They call themselves the “Anu,” and officially became the “Nu” ethnic group after the founding of New China.In Bingzhongluo, along both sides of the Nujiang river, crops grow in profusion while the houses of the families who farm them stand nearby in the shade. As you drive uphill, the form of Bingzhongluo, that of a lotus, became apparent.

Structures were comparatively concentrated around the township government building, while other houses and villages were composed in trapezoids on both sides of the river. Together with the golden fields, they constituted a serene and idyllic vista.This is the homeland of the Nu people. Decades ago, Nujiang Canyon was a dream destination for adventurers and travelers, because of its unique landform and almost primitive human living conditions. Now, it is one of the most charming places in the area.

The village called Chongding built on a sloping hillside facing the river. Wooden houses nestle among luxuriant trees and beside limpid brooks. The beautiful scenery and fresh air of this quiet village do indeed make it “a land of peach blossom. Today it is a designated tourist destination. In the households near the entrance of the village, groups of tourists were either sightseeing or drinking tea.Villagers’ houses are open to visitors and when you go into one, the home of the Liu Ji’an family. Typically it was a multi-ethnic household.The head of the family is an 81-year-old Nu, his wife a Tibetan. Their son and our host Liu Ji’an, 61, is married to a woman of similar ethnic mix. Of their three sons and two daughters, two are married to Lisu and Han nationalities, while a third, their eldest daughter’s husband, is a Nu.Broken down, this four-generation household of 17 people comes from four ethnic groups who speak Nu, Tibetan, Lisu, Dulong and Han.

Though the new house was not yet complete, the concrete ground and wood structure indicated that it was not going to be of traditional design.Tourism and working outside are today no longer rare occurrences in this isolated canyon. And remote as it is, it is no longer an inaccessible place. The doors of the mountains have been opened, and that on the inside and outside is today inextricably connected.

A Peaceful Buddhist Village

As multiple ethnic groups have settled and thrived in the area, they have also come to learn to respect the different beliefs and religions.

Lama village, a multi-ethnic village located in the central area of the tableland, was so named because of its lamasery, the “Puhua Temple.”Compared to Chongding village, not far away, houses in Lama village were more concentrated, but a little simple and crude. Living standards in this village are not very high, and the environment rather isolated.

Although small, Lama village is home to a variety of ethnic groups. Nowadays, however, it is very difficult to distinguish the ethnicity of villagers in Bingzhongluo from their appearance and customs.

Puhua Temple is located on a tableland called Changputong and its white enclosure and gate have been newly renovated. Its abbot, 72-year-old Ganma Yuanzhai, said the temple belongs to the karma bka’ brgyud pa sect, and dates back over 200 years.The abbot is a Nu and joined the temple as a boy aged 12. The abbot said the temple gets very crowded during the Tibetan New Year, according to the Tibetan lunar calendar, and on the Fairy Festival of the Nu people which falls on the 15th of the third lunar month.

The lamasery, explained the old abbot, was not only influential in the area, but was the only lamasery in the whole prefecture. That was why among the 5,700 population of the township, about 2,000 were followers of Tibetan Buddhism.

A Harmony of Shared Cultures and Religions

To this day, the old trade caravans are easily seen in Bingzhongluo, often referred to as the “land of peach blossom” the symbolism of this name conveys much more than the words, and speaks of a place which is beautiful, peaceful and unsullied by the outside world.

On the way to the “Tea-Horse Caravan Route”, one can see the 100-year-old Zhongding Catholic Church built and founded by a French missionary. Shimen Pass is another fantastic section of the gorge along with Wengli (also called Wuli), another stunning landscape lying on a beautiful slope along the river bank. Very near to the Wengli, a carved path is seen on the other bank cliff, the so-called “Tea-Horse Caravan Route”, a path used by traders ferrying their goods between Yunnan and Tibet.  At the end of the trekking road, an old hanging bridge and a new one-year-old bridge swing side-by-side.

To those wanderlusts, some trekking routes are worthy of spending days or even weeks longer between Gongshan and Bingzhongluo. Getting 90km further west to the Drung River from Gongshan reveal beautiful virgin forests as well as the kind-hearted Drung ethnic people living their old way of life.

Covering an area of some 800 square kilometers, Bingzhongluo is a township of the Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County. Here, in harmony, dwell the ethnic groups of the Nu, Dulong, Lisu, Tibetan, Naxi, Bai and Han, while Tibetan Buddhism, Catholicism, other Christian denominations and primitive religions have long co-existed.

Bingzhongluo was originally named Bingzhong, which in Tibetan means “Tibetan village beside the bamboo grove.” In the past Tibetans ruled the area, but it is the Nu people who have lived there the longest and make up the largest population. The Lisu, Tibetan and Dulong people all migrated to the area after the Nu.

Because of the special geological structures and landforms, the Nujiang River is obstructed a number of times in the area, resulting in it making two successive great turns.

Although it is on the periphery of Yunnan Province, Bingzhongluo is the best-known place in Nujiang Canyon. Historically, it was an important caravan route between Yunnan and Tibet. And even today, a continuous flow of caravans trek between Gongshan and Zayu in Tibet, albeit a trickle of those which passed in bygone days.

The Dulong (also known as Drung) ethnic group is one of the smallest ethnic groups in China. With a total population of about 7000, the Dulongs mainly live in the Dulong River Valley in the Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County in northwest Yunnan. There are also a small number of them, about 10 percent of the total, distributed in the areas along the Nujiang River in the north of Gongshan County.

The History of Dulong People

Few historical records were found regarding the origin of this ethnic group till today. But relative references show that they were once under the rule of court-appointed Naxi headmen through the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) to the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911). They had no uniform name and were called “Qiao” in the Yuan Dynasty and “Qiu” or “Qu” people after the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911). With the founding of the PRC in 1949, following consultation with the ethnic group it was decided to agree upon the official name of Dulong ethnic group.

Kaquewa Festival

Kaquewa Festival is the only New Year Festival of the Dulong ethnic group. It is held during the eleventh and twelfth lunar months. The exact date varies with the location and the duration of the celebration often lasts as long as the food does.The most exciting activity during the festival is killing and sacrificing an ox. At the beginning of the ceremony, a sacrificial ox will be fastened onto the sacrificial pole by the presider. Then women will put a newly-woven carpet onto the back of the ox, hang a string of beads on its horns and say to the God of Hunting: “We present this ox to you and hope you will bestow us many, many animals”. Everybody dances around it. A young man whose parents are both alive will be elected to kill the ox with a spear. The ox will be roasted after being killed and distributed to all who present at the festivities. The celebration usually lasts overnight.

Attacking An Ox Dance of the Dulong Ethnic Group

Attacking An Ox Dance is a ritual dance of the Dulong Ethnic Group inYunnan Provinceand has existed up till today as a traditional ceremony. “attacking an ox to sacrifice the heavens” which usually lasts from three days to seven or nine days and during which this dance must be done everyday.The movements of this dance are mainly done by the dancer’s legs which are naturally followed by his torso in all directions, thus forming the unique style of its own.

Kaquewa Festival

Kaquewa Festival of Dulong Ethnic Group, spreading in all the villages and stockaded villages in the Dulongjiang River Watershed of Gongshan Derung-Nu Autonomous County of the Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan Province, is the New Year of Dulong people in this area. The Kaquewa Festival is not on a fixed day, and it is an auspicious day selected by the elders in villages in the last month of a year. Usually this festival is held in the end of the twelfth month of the lunar year or the beginning of the first month of the next lunar year, and it lasts at least 3 days, and even lasts 9 days at most.

Costumes of Dulong People

Women of the Dulong ethnic group normally wear black and white striped gunny or cotton clothes and the men wear a pair of short trousers. The Dulong people, male and female, wear their hair down to their eyebrows in front and down to their shoulders behind. Both women and men like to have their upper chest wrapped with a long piece of gunny from the left armpit to the right shoulder, leaving the left shoulder uncovered.Men prefer wearing a crossbow and a hunting knife on the waist, which make them appear to be bold and brave. Women love to wear garments with coloured chain necklaces.

Facial Tattoo

The Dulong women used to tattoo their faces in the past. When a girl reached the age of 12 or 13, she had her face tattooed. Dulong women living in different areas had tattoos of different designs and on different parts of the face. Most of the women in the lower reaches of the Dulong River had tattoos of vertical lines only on the left and right of the philtrum, which look like a man’s beard. Today, the facial tattoo can only be found with Dulong women.

The History of Three Parallel Rivers

Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas (29º00′ – 25º30’N, 98º15 – 100º20’E) is a World Heritage Site in the Yunnan Province of the Peoples Republic of China. The dates and history of the establishment are as the following:

1983: Gaoligong Mountain and Baima Mountain National Parks designated;

1984: Bita and Napa Lakes and Haba and Yulong Mountain reserves designated;

1985: National Interim Rules on the Management of Scenic and Cultural Resorts decreed; and made the responsibility of the Ministry of Rural and Urban Construction & Environmental Protection;

1986: Laojun Mountain reserve designated;

2000: Overall plan for the protection and management of the property submitted to the central government.

The History of Pumi Ethnic Group

The Pumi have a long history and their path of migration is historically traceable. Originally, they lived as nomads inhabiting the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. Later, they moved to the warmer areas along valleys within theHengduan Mountain Range in the 4th century B.C. Their ancestors probably are the ancient Qiang people, a nomadic tribe on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Subsequently, they moved to Northern Sichuan in the 7th century, and subsequently to northwest Yunnan in the 14th century. Many of them settled down to become farmers, and local landlords dominated the Pumi economy in Lanping and Lijiang counties. Except for a small number of common areas, the landlords held large areas of lands and collected rental fees from the peasants. This accounted for at least 50 per cent of the harvest. Pumi landlords and Nakhi chiefs also traded domestic slaves.

With the coming of the Cultural Revolution, the landlords’ powers were severely weakened. The coming of modern facilities and technologies, such as hospitals and factories, have also greatly changed the lifestyle of the Pumi.

The History of Bai Ethnic Group

In the Neolithic age 4000 years ago, the ancestors of Bai Ethnic Group lived in Lake Erhai in Mt. Cangshan and Lake Dianchi. The early civilizations of the rice farming were created in the terrace along the river. From Western Han Dynasty (202BC-8) to the early Tang Dynasty (618-907), under the influence of Han culture and other exotic culture, the ancestors of Bai Ethnic Group constantly suffered the dispersion and polymerization and established the Nanzhao, Dali and other regimes. In 1253, the Dali regime was beaten by Mongolia. In 1381, Ming army cancelled the hereditary privileges in Dali. During the Yuan (1271-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasty, the politics, economy, culture and other parts gradually formed integrally with Central Plains.

About Warring States Period, the first national embryonic form Baiziguo appeared. Until the early Tang Dynasty, the trade of ancestors of Bai Ethnic Group took shape. The Chinese Civilization and India Civilization spread to the Lake Erhai area. Therefore, the culture of Bai formed preliminarily. The rise of Nanzhao as a political force combined various tribes and ethnic fusions together. Everyone in the united regime contacted freely, which gradually eliminated the tribal difference about culture and language. The Buddhism from India helped the Bai form the ideological preparation and foundation. Then the culturally and linguistically homogeneous ethnic community finally formed which is the Bai Ethnic Group. In Song Dynasty (960-1279), Bai stepped into a mature period. When the Mongols conquered Dali, the decline of Bai began. In Ming (1368-1644), the cultural castration policy toward Bai made a lot of Bai assimilated to Han. At the end of Qing and Republic Period, Bai almost lost the independent national identity. In 1956, the Bai ethnic identity was recognized.

Clubs & Bars & KTVs

Longji Billiards Club(隆基台球俱乐部)

Address: Cangjiang Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县沧江路)

The Diamond Age Entertainment Bar(钻石年代演艺酒吧)

Address: No.44 of Cangjiang Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县沧江路44号)

Tel: 0886-3210888

Jinhehao Bar(金合号酒吧)

Address: No.110 of Renmin Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县人民路110号)

8090KTV

Address: No.45 of Tuanjie Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县团结路45)

Tel: 13150727005

Shengshichaoge Business Recreation Club(盛世潮歌商务娱乐会所)

Address:  No.46 of Cangjiang Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县沧江路46）

Tel: 0886-3210006

Coffee & Tea & Ice Cream

Jinhongyuan Tea House(金宏园茶楼)

Address: No.97 of Renmin Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县人民路97)

Tel: 0886-3215853

Tufeng Tea House(土风茶坊)

Address: No.138 of Renmin Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县人民路138)

Yamingge(雅茗阁)

Address: No.46 of Nujiang Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县怒江路46)

Juyouwu(聚友屋)

Address: Bijiang Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县沘江路)

Jieshang Bifengtang(街尚避风塘)

Address: Nujiang Road, Lanping Bai and Pumi Autonomous County, Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture(怒江傈僳族自治州兰坪白族普米族自治县怒江路)

The Raosanling Festival

                              —A Carnival of the Bais

his is a self-entertaining folk festival during the slack season from April 24th to April 26th on the lunar calendar. During this festival tens of thousands of the Bais from the villages near the Erhai Lake, walking in long lines, will pray for a good harvest and longevity. With each village as a unit, the Bais will play their own musical instruments, dance happily and sing folk songs. Thus, it is called a carnival of the Bais.