Clubs & Bars & KTVs

Yinhe Entertainment(银河娱乐)

Address: Zhetie Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县者铁路)

Tel: 15198315515

Ruige Entertainment(瑞格娱乐)

Address: Lvhai Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县绿海路)

Small Wine Bar(小酒馆)

Address: Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县)

Baolongdidu Discount KTV(宝龙帝都KTV量贩)

Address: Near the Enshui Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县恩水路附近)

Changhong KTV(昌宏KTV)

Address: Near the Enshui Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县恩水路附近)

Coffee & Tea & Ice Cream

Xianpei Coffee(鲜焙咖啡)

Address: Address: Near the Enshui Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县恩水路附近)

Bangdu Tea House(邦都茶庄)

Address: Renmin Road, Enle Town, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县恩乐镇人民路)

Wuyi Tea House(五一茶庄)

Address: Lvhai Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县绿海路)

Jvyouyuan Tea House(聚友缘茶坊)

Address: Lvhai Road, Zhenyuan Yi, Hani and Lahu Autonomous County (镇沅彝族哈尼族拉祜族自治县绿海路)

The Festivals of Lahu People

The main festivals of the Lahu people include the Lahukuo Festival, the Torch Festival, the New Rice Festival, and the Duane Festival, etc. The Lahukuo Festival is the New Year Festival of the Lahu people. It is divided into large year (Women’s Festival) and small year (Men’s Festival) and is the most ceremonious and important festival of the Lahu people. The Women’s Festival spans four days, from the first to the fourth day of the lunar New Year and the Men’s Festival lasts three days, beginning in the ninth day of the lunar New Year.

The Culture of Hani People 

Hani houses are usually two or three stories high, built with bamboo, mud, stone and wood. The traditional clothing of the Hani is made with dark blue fabric. The men dress in short jackets and in long wide pants. They also wear white or black turbans. The women dress depending on which clan they belong to. There is no gender difference in the clothing of children under the age of seven. Hani are known for their vocal polyphonic singing. Eight-part polyphony was recorded in the 1990s. They play traditional musical instruments, end-blown flute labi (俄比). and three-stringed plucked lute lahe. Part of thousand years old culture are terraced fields.

The Culture of Lahu People

Lahu communities are very gender equitable, and the men are often described as caring and considerate. Although there are differences in their responsibilities of the sexes, both men and women contribute to the household work and share their meals and food together. Lahu men also have a reputation for being excellent hunters, and hunting, rather than farming is how most Lahu traditionally earned their living. Nowadays, Lahu people often work as hired laborers for other tribal groups. This is perhaps the reason why many from other tribes, especially the Akha, can also speak and understand the Lahu language. Within the Lahu tribe itself there are many sub-divisions. Of all the tribes, the Lahu have had the least success in maintaining a uniform tribal culture as it has migrated south from China into Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. The migration route and history of each sub-group is reflected in their language and their dress, as well as strongly influencing their religious beliefs, cultural celebrations and other festivals.

Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县; pinyin: Mènglián dǎizú lāhùzú wǎzú Zìzhìxiàn) is an autonomous county under the jurisdiction of Pu’er Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. Menglian County boders Lancang County in the east, Ximeng Va Autonomous County north, and Burma west and south. Its border line is 133.399 km. As of 2012, Menglian county administers 3 countrysides, 3 towns, an area of 1893.42 square kilometers; registered population of 127,870 people. Multiple ethnic groups promote the diverse and long-standing history here.

The History of Dai People

The ancestors of the current Dai minority in China first appeared as a political group during the Qin and Han dynasties, between about 221 BC and 220 AD. The first Dai prefecture was set up by Emperor Wu Di in 109 BC, during the Western Han Dynasty. Located in Southwest China, this special area corresponded to the current Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces. It provided an excellent climate for agriculture, encouraging the Dai to develop new techniques, such as the use of oxen for tilling.

The History of Lahu People

Legend says that the forbears of the Lahu people, who were hunters, began migrating southward to lush grassland which they discovered while pursuing a red deer. Some scholars hold that during the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, the “Kunmings,” the nomadic tribe pasturing in the Erhai area in western Yunnan, might be the forbears of certain ethnic groups, including the Lahus. Then, the “Kunming” people still lived in a primitive society “without common rulers.” They belonged to different clans engaged in hunting. The Lahu people once were known for their skill at hunting tigers. They roved over the lush slopes of the towering Ailao and Wuliang mountains.

In the 8th century, after the rise of the Nanzhao regime in Yunnan, the Lahu people were compelled to move south. By no later than the beginning of the 18th century they already had settled in their present-day places. Influenced by the feudal production methods of neighboring Han and Dai peoples, they turned to agriculture. With economic development, they gradually passed into a feudal system, and their life style and customs were more or less influenced by the Hans and Dais.

The History of Wa People

According to Sir George Scott in the Wa origin myths the first Wa originated from two female ancestors Ya Htawm and Ya Htai who spent their early phase as tadpoles (rairoh) in a lake known as Nawng Hkaeo. Very little is known about the early history of the Wa. What is known is mostly made up of local legends telling that in the distant past the historical Wa States and all the territories of eastern Shan State, as well as large swathes of the adjacent areas of present-day China had belonged to the Wa. In the area of the former Kengtung State the Wa were displaced around 1229 and were later defeated by King Mangrai. At the time of British rule in Burma the Tai Yai people were the majority of the population in Kengtung state with other groups such as Akha and Lahu, forming sizeable communities. The Wa now form a minority of only about 10% in Kengtung District despite having been the original inhabitants.

Clubs & Bars & KTVs

Gediao Music Bar(格调音乐酒吧)

Address: Lianhua Road, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县莲花路)

Linxian KTV(林先KTV)

Address: Highway 309, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County(孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县309省道)

Xuanye KTV(炫夜KTV)

Address: Jinta Road, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县金塔路)

Daiyu KTV(傣玉KTV)

Address: Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县)

Menglian Tasting Theme Music Bar(孟连品味主题音乐酒吧)

Address: Baixiang Street, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县白象街)

Coffee & Tea & Ice Cream

Xinshiji Cake House(新世纪饼屋)

Address: Haiguan Road, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县海关路)

Bingyishuang Cold Store(冰怡爽冷饮店)

Address: Jinta Road, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县金塔路)

Zhiyin Tea House(知音茶室)

Address: Haiguan Road, Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县海关路)

The Water Splashing Festival

The Water Splashing Festival falls during the New Year of the Dai Calendar. It is sometimes called Shanghan or Jingbimai (both variants meaning “New Year”), but it is more commonly called Hounan (“Water Splashing Festival”) in the Dai language. The Water Splashing Festival is not only the first Buddhist festival of a new year, but also the most important festival observed by the Dai. 

The Dragon Homage Festival

The Dai pay yearly homage to the dragon, who is seen as a deity with the power to bless or punish mankind, especially as regards the yearly harvest. This Dragon Homage Festival is held at a date determined by the Dai calendar, which means that it often falls in January of the Western calendar, and thus also occurs close to the traditional Chinese Spring Festival. During the Dragon Homage Festival, a monk from the village temple organizes the collection of food and clothing to be offered to the Dragon God.

Every Dai, without regard to income or social standing, is encouraged to make such an offering to the Dragon God, though one of course offers gifts commensurate with one’s wealth. For example, rich families might offer items in gold or silver, including coins. All offerings are dropped off at the temple, where they are preserved in an appropriate “Dragon Palace” until the highlight ceremony of the Dragon Homage Festival, at which time the “Dragon Palace” is placed on a bamboo raft and allowed to drift away down the Menglong River, while the people pray and chant Buddhist scripture.

Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County (孟连傣族拉祜族佤族自治县; pinyin: Mènglián dǎizú lāhùzú wǎzú Zìzhìxiàn) is an autonomous county under the jurisdiction of Pu’er Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. Menglian County boders Lancang County in the east, Ximeng Va Autonomous County north, and Burma west and south. Its border line is 133.399 km. As of 2012, Menglian county administers 3 countrysides, 3 towns, an area of 1893.42 square kilometers; registered population of 127,870 people. 

Dai Cultural Identity

The Dai enjoy a rich and colorful culture, the Bai Yue culture, whose designation today is shortened to Bai Ye to distinguish it from the original anthropological culture of the ancient Bai folk. The ancient Bai Yue culture was in the forefront of social development in many respects when the Dai first began to organize themselves into communities in China. The Dai also have their own calendar, they have books in Dai script for calculating solar and lunar eclipses, and their historical documents span a rich variety of literary works, from poetry and fables to ancient stories and legends.

The Bei Ye Culture

Bei Ye Culture is a general term for the social and cultural history of the Dai people. Bai Ye cultural artifacts and traditions include original scripture etched onto the leaves of the pattra tree (a tropical plant native to the Dai homelands), Dai scripture copied onto cotton paper, and “song” (“chanting” may be the better term) books, as well as a plethora of lesser cultural traditions that are handed down generation after generation, and thus every Dai individual is a walking preserve of Dai culture. The Bei Ye Culture became known especially for the scriptures that were etched onto the leaves of the pattra tree.

Bei Ye scriptures, as indicated, are preserved on two different media: the leaf of the patta tree and paper made of cotton. The former is called “Tanlan” in the language of the Dai, while the latter is called “Bogalesha”. The Bei Ye culture has developed over time from its origins as a collection of primitive ethnic and religious practices that have been combined with the influences of neighboring cultures, primarily the Han Chinese culture, but also Indian Buddhist culture (the Dai practice a form of Buddhism that differs from the Chinese-influenced Indian Buddhism of the mainstream Han Chinese).

Though they live in separate countries, and in some cases miles apart, the Dai of China, the Lao of Laos, the Shan of Myanmar, and the Thai of Thailand all have evolved from the same ethnic origins – they all share the same Bai Ye culture particular to Southeast Asia.

The Dai Calendar

The Dai have their own calendar, which is still in use today. The Dai calendar is unusual, compared to the Han Chinese lunar calendar, in that the former incorporates elements of both the solar and the lunar calendars. Borrowing from the Han Chinese Taoist tradition, the Dai use the method of Heavenly Stems and the Terrestrial Branches to record days and years in their “hybrid” calendar (this is a reference to the Taoist sexagenary cycle, or a cyclical system of 60 combinations of the two basic cycles: the 10 Heavenly Stems and the 12 Earthly Branches). The Dai have chosen to not only employ much of the Han Chinese calendar terminology, they have also preserved the Han Chinese pronunication of this terminology.

A year is divided into twelve months in the Dai calendar, while some months are called “single” months and others are called “double” months. There are thirty days in a “single” Dai month, and twenty nine days in a “double” Dai month. A year is also composed of three seasons: the Cold Season, which runs from January to April; the Hot Season, which runs from May to August; and the Rainy Season, which runs from September to December. To further account for the irregularities of the earth’s orbit, so as to make the Dai calendar fit the actual time trajectory of the earth’s orbit, there are seven leap years to every span of nineteen years. According to ancient Dai documents, there are four epochs, termed “Saha”, in Dai history. The fourth epoch is the current one, or the “Zhujiang Saha”, which began in the year CE 647, circa, in Western calendar terms, and was announced by a Dai religious leader by the name of Payazhula.

The History of Hani Ethnic Group

In Hani legend a Sky god named Abo-Momi sent a buffalo to the earth to teach man that grass and trees must be planted to enable crops to grow everywhere else. If man would do this they would be able to eat every second day. Unfortunately the buffalo had a poor memory and told them the crops must be planted. He also told them to let the grass and trees grow everywhere else. If they would do that, the buffalo said, they would be able to eat twice every day. Man obeyed the buffalo’s message but found their lives did not improve at all. When the buffalo returned to the sky, Abo-Momi was displeased and sent the buffalo back to the earth to help the Hani cultivate the soil. The water buffalo is still revered today among the Hani. When a Hani man dies his buffalo is slaughtered and buried with him, so that the beast can guide him to the next world.

Hani People’s Customs

Black is the favorite color of Hani People. For these farmers and residents on high land, heavy and durable clothes that keep warm and endure dirty environment have obvious advantages. Additionally this is also demonstration of the hermit living style and attitude of the locals, their uncultured dress material and less developed dyeing techniques. The embroidery and silver ornaments on the clothes stand for the terraced fields which go layers upon layers. The crabs, clams and fish suggest Hani People’s adoration for water. Hani men basically wear tight shirt, loose pants and black scarf while the female dress with complex decoration. What is worthy of mentioning is that the ancient Hani did not have shoes and socks. They wore a sort of special wooden shoes, whose soles were not slippery and therefore good for walking on the muddy rice paddy.

The History of Yi Ethnic Group

Some scholars believe that the Yi are descended from the ancient Qiang people of today’s western China, who are also said to be the ancestors of the Tibetan, Naxi and Qiang peoples. They migrated from southeastern Tibet through Sichuan and into the Yunnan Province, where their largest populations can be found today. They practice a form of animism, led by a shaman priest known as the Bimaw. They still retain a few ancient religious texts written in their unique pictographic script. Their religion also contains many elements of Daoism and Buddhism. Many of the Yi in Liangshan and northwestern Yunnan practiced a complicated form of slavery. People were split into the nuohuo or Black Yi (nobles), qunuo or White Yi (commoners), and slaves. White Yi were free and could own property and slaves but were in a way tied to a lord. Other ethnic groups were held as slaves.

Yi People’s Customs

The Yi people’s traditional costumes vary in different regions, . In Mt. Liangshan area in Sichuan Province and west Guizhou, men usually wear black jackets with tight sleeves and right-side askew fronts, and pleated trousers with wide bottom. While in some other areas, men wear tight-bottomed trousers, and grow a small path of hair above the forehead to be tied with a turban.Women wear embroidered jackets and pleated long skirts hemmed with multiple layers. They use turbans to wrap their hair. Middle-aged women wear black turbans, while young women prefer embroidered square kerchiefs. Their accessories include earrings, bracelets, rings, collar press, and so on. When going outdoors, men and women wear a dark woolen cape with long tassels reaching to the knees.

Clubs & Bars & KTVs

Chongchongfei Bar(虫虫飞酒吧)

Address: Minzu Street, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County (江城哈尼族彝族自治县民族街)

Zuilianwen Bar(醉恋温酒馆)

Address: Binghe Road, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County (江城哈尼族彝族自治县滨河路)

Banbu Music Theme Bar(班布音乐主题酒吧)

Address: Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县)

Xinhong KTV(鑫宏KTV)

Address: Minzu Street, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县民族街)

Yuanjvle KTV(缘聚乐KTV)

Address: Highway 162, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县162县道)

Tel: 13887976810

Coffee & Tea & Ice Cream

Aierlan Tea & Drinks(爱尔兰茶饮)

Address: Huimin Road, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县惠民路)

Lanmao Coffee(蓝猫咖啡)

Address: Sanguo Business Area, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县三国商贸区

Pinwei Coffee Bar(品味咖啡吧)

Address: Minzu Street, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县民族街)

Kangti Tea House(康提茶庄)

Address: Lianyi Road, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县其他联谊路)

Yinxiangsi Cold Drink(饮相思冷饮店)

Address: Menglie Street, Menglie Town, Jiangcheng Hani and Yi Autonomous County, Pu’er Prefecture (普洱市江城哈尼族彝族自治县勐烈镇勐烈大街)

Yi People Festivals

The Torch Festival is a traditional festival for the Yi ethnic group. It falls on the 24th of the sixth month of the Chinese calendar, and the celebration lasts for 3 days. The origin of the festival is related to ancestors’ worshipping of the fire, which is believed to have the power to repel insects, ward off evils, and protect the growth of crops. In some villages, it is a tradition for the elderly to pass down their farming experience to the younger generation during the festival.

During the festival, big torches are erected in the village, while small torches are placed in front of each household. When the night falls, an altar is set up and the holy flame is lit up. The Bimo (village flamen) will chant prayers, light up torches from the flame, and pass them to the villagers. Villagers, holding the flame, walk around the village, houses and the fields, and place the torches in the field corners to drive away evils. Inside the village, young men and women sing and dance around bir burning torches throughout the night.

The Culture of Hani Ethnic Group

Hani houses are usually two or three stories high, built with bamboo, mud, stone and wood. The traditional clothing of the Hani is made with dark blue fabric. The men dress in short jackets and in long wide pants. They also wear white or black turbans. The women dress depending on which clan they belong to. There is no gender difference in the clothing of children under the age of seven. Hani are known for their vocal polyphonic singing. Eight-part polyphony was recorded in the 1990s. They play traditional musical instruments, end-blown flute labi (俄比), and three-stringed plucked lute  lahe. Part of thousand years old culture are terraced fields.

Hani People’s Customs

Black is the favorite color of Hani People. For these farmers and residents on high land, heavy and durable clothes that keep warm and endure dirty environment have obvious advantages. Additionally this is also demonstration of the hermit living style and attitude of the locals, their uncultured dress material and less developed dyeing techniques. The embroidery and silver ornaments on the clothes stand for the terraced fields which go layers upon layers. The crabs, clams and fish suggest Hani People’s adoration for water. Hani men basically wear tight shirt, loose pants and black scarf while the female dress with complex decoration. What is worthy of mentioning is that the ancient Hani did not have shoes and socks. They wore a sort of special wooden shoes, whose soles were not slippery and therefore good for walking on the muddy rice paddy.

The Culture of Yi Ethnic Group

The Yi play a number of traditional musical instruments, including large plucked and bowed string instruments, as well as wind instruments called bawu (巴乌) and mabu (马布). The Yi also play the hulu sheng, though unlike other minority groups in Yunnan, the Yi do not play the hulu sheng for courtship or love songs (aiqing). The kouxian, a small four-pronged instrument similar to the Jew’s harp, is another commonly found instrument among the Liangshan Yi. Kouxian songs are most often improvised and are supposed to reflect the mood of the player or the surrounding environment. Kouxian songs can also occasionally function in the aiqing form. Yi dance is perhaps the most commonly recognized form of musical performance, as it is often performed during publicly sponsored holidays and/or festival events. Yi people’s son’s given name is patronymic, based on the last one or two syllable of father’s name.

Yi People’s Customs

The Yi people’s traditional costumes vary in different regions, . In Mt. Liangshan area in Sichuan Province and west Guizhou, men usually wear black jackets with tight sleeves and right-side askew fronts, and pleated trousers with wide bottom. While in some other areas, men wear tight-bottomed trousers, and grow a small path of hair above the forehead to be tied with a turban.Women wear embroidered jackets and pleated long skirts hemmed with multiple layers. They use turbans to wrap their hair. Middle-aged women wear black turbans, while young women prefer embroidered square kerchiefs. Their accessories include earrings, bracelets, rings, collar press, and so on. When going outdoors, men and women wear a dark woolen cape with long tassels reaching to the knees.

The History of Simao(Pu’er) 

Pu’er (Chinese: 普洱) is a prefecture-level city in southern Yunnan province, People’s Republic of China. The name Pu’er dates back to 1729, but was changed to Simao (Chinese: 思茅) in 1950 after the Communist Revolution. In 2007, the original name of Pu’er was restored. This change had an effect on the size of the official Pu’er tea production area, a major regional product. The urban administrative center of Pu’er is Simao District, which is also the former name of the prefecture-level city itself. A major downturn in the price of tea in 2007 caused severe economic distress in the area. The price of Pu’er has since recovered and Pu’er tea still contributes much to the income of the area.

The History of Tea Horse Road

The Tea Horse Road or chamadao (simplified Chinese: 茶马道; traditional Chinese: 茶馬道), now generally referred to as the Ancient Tea Horse Road or chama gudao (simplified Chinese: 茶马古道; traditional Chinese: 茶馬古道) was a network of caravan paths winding through the mountains of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou in Southwest China.It is also sometimes referred to as the Southern Silk Road. The route extended to Bengal in the Indian subcontinent.

From around a thousand years ago, the Ancient Tea Route was a trade link from Yunnan, one of the first tea-producing regions: to Bengal via Burma; to Tibet; and to central China via Sichuan Province.In addition to tea, the mule caravans carried salt. Both people and horses carried heavy loads, the tea porters sometimes carrying over 60–90 kg, which was often more than their own body weight in tea.

It is believed that it was through this trading network that tea (typically tea bricks) first spread across China and Asia from its origins in Pu’er County, near Simao Prefecture in Yunnan.

The route earned the name Tea-Horse Road because of the common trade of Tibetan ponies for Chinese tea, a practice dating back at least to the Song dynasty, when the sturdy horses were important for China to fight warring nomads in the north.

Clubs & Bars & KTVs

Kui Percussion Music Club(葵打击乐俱乐部 )

Address: Buxing Street, Simao District(思茅区五一步行街)

Tel: 13577970321

Waitan No.1 Bar(外滩一号酒吧)

Address：Bayi Shopping Mall, ZhenxingAvenue(振兴大道八益商贸城)

Tel: 18214051331

Huadi Dynasty Bar(华帝王朝酒吧)

Address: Fujing Minzu Street, Simao District(思茅区民族街福景小区)

Average Spend： 45yuan

Zijin KTV Thumb Branch(紫金ktv大拇指店 )

Address: No.25 of Pu’er Road, Simao District, Pu’er Prefecture(普洱市思茅区普洱路25号)

Tel: :0879-2317111; 13987977172

Coffee & Tea & Ice Cream

Tangshui House Coffee(糖水小屋咖啡馆)

Address: Eastern Renmin Road, Simao District(思茅区人民东路)

Tel: 18987921270

Manya Coffee(漫崖咖啡)

Address: Near the Zhenxing Avenue, Simao District(思茅区振兴大道附近)

Naixiong Drink(奶熊饮吧)

Address: Chacheng Avenue, Simao District(思茅区茶城大道)

Water Splashing Festival

The Water Festival is the New Year’s celebrations that take place in Southeast Asian countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand as well as Yunnan, China. It is called the ‘Water Festival’ by Westerners because people splash / pour water at one another as part of the cleansing ritual to welcome the new year. Traditionally people gently sprinkled water on one another as a sign of respect, but as the new year falls during the hottest month in South East Asia, many people end up dousing strangers and passersby in vehicles in boisterous celebration. The act of pouring water is also a show of blessings and good wishes. It is believed that on this Water Festival, everything old must be thrown away, or it will bring the owner bad luck.

In Yunnan (China), the Water Splashing Festival is celebrated by the Dai ethnic group which is one of the 55 ethnic minorities in China. The whole celebration usually starts on the 13th of April and takes 3–7 days. On the first day of the festival Dai people race dragon boats and light fireworks (made of bamboo) for good luck in the coming years. The second day, Dai people get together to dance, and pour water on others because they believe that pouring water on others can help remove bad luck and bring out happiness. Finally, on the last day of the festival, young generations will get together to exchange gifts and date their mates. The Water Splashing Festival is one of the most influential ethnic festivals in Yunnan area. It attracts thousands of tourists every year from all over China. The huge tourist industry contributes greatly to the development of the area.

The Tea Horse Road Culture

Simao district is the starting point of the tea horse road – the southern silk- road in the history, which is one of the three customs towns in Yunnan Province. The Tea Horse Road or chamadao (simplified Chinese: 茶马道; traditional Chinese: 茶馬道), now generally referred to as the Ancient Tea Horse Road or chama gudao (simplified Chinese: 茶马古道; traditional Chinese: 茶馬古道) was a network of caravan paths winding through the mountains of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou in Southwest China.[1] It is also sometimes referred to as the Southern Silk Road. The route extended to Bengal in the Indian subcontinent. One of the longest and most dramatic trade routes of the ancient world, the Tea Horse Road carried a crucial exchange for 13 centuries between China and Tibet. China needed war horses to protect its northern frontier and Tibet could supply them. When the Tibetans discovered tea in the 7th century, it became a staple of their diet, but its origins are in southwest China, and they had to trade for it.

As one of the longest and most dramatic trade routes of the ancient world, the Tea Horse Road carried a crucial exchange for 13 centuries between China and Tibet. China needed war horses to protect its northern frontier and Tibet could supply them. When the Tibetans discovered tea in the 7th century, it became a staple of their diet, but its origins are in southwest China, and they had to trade for it.The result was a network of trails covering more than 3,000 kilometers through forests, gorges and high passes onto the Himalayan plateaus, traversed by horse, mule and yak caravans, and human porters. It linked cultures, economies and political ambitions, and lasted until the middle of the 20th century.

Re-tracing the many branches of the Road, photographer and writer Michael Freeman spent two years compiling this remarkable visual record, from the tea-mountains of southern Yunnan and Sichuan to Tibet and beyond. Collaborating on this fascinating account, ethno-ecologist Selena Ahmed’s description of tea and bio-cultural diversity in the region draws on her original doctoral research.

China’s cultural heritage authorities are thus finally taking the preservation of the cultures associated with the route seriously. Yet the recognition that the old tea road warrants lags far behind its conceptual development within the broader realm of public discourse. Indeed, it may even be argued that the ‘cultural heritage lag’, and its recent corrective in the form of ‘World Heritage frenzy’,[10] is partly a response to the economic and tourist potential that the tea road offers. The production, transportation and consumption of tea—Pu’er tea in this case—is itself a tangible item which has generated over time a series of associated social and cultural practices that unites the disparate peoples of Yunnan. Thus, the tea road and tea fit comfortably into the marketing vision of Yunnan as a ‘cultural whole’ and feature in all the counties, towns and cities that are touched on by them as a key element of provincial ‘branding’.