2/8/08 Through Lijiang I get into Jianchuan County 2 days ago, it was a Bai region as you could see costume dressed Bai women everywhere. my plan was Tongdian in Lanping, Nujiang Prefecture. But first I stop at Yangcen for the market, a nice little village with typical Bai houses, and on top of the whitewash finishing, they added the mud-yellowish colour on the wall, together with the green paddy surrounding, its gave a different visual contrast. The market lingered from lower part up to the upper part as the village was situated on the slope of a small hilll. Beside [View Full Entry]

---

---

27/7/08 The countryside of Huaping was pretty beautiful as in the trip up to Ninglang(@2300m), greenhill dotted with whitewash houses and tiled roof. It was rather cold when we drove through the 3000m mountain pass yesterday. We pass through couple of townships in Ninglang area, it reminded me a bit of the Daliangshan in Sichuan. Or was it the clouded weather that gave the grey tone in the air? Since it was torch festival yesterday, truck loaded of people was being carried back to their home or wherever they would celebrated the night, the street was full of people. You seen [View Full Entry]

---

---

20/7/08 "no no no... "that was what I heard for the last few days during market hunt, "we are all minority here, but no, no more costume anymore", from Binchuan up northward, Qina, Chenghai, Yougsheng, all were negative, but then westward, the scene was very pretty, we drove along the mountain side, open valley on the right, green with paddy dotted with tiled roof villages. I stopped at Renli(@1400m) for another bus connection yesterday, the guy in the restaurant told me I might able to find some tomorrow in a small market, "very small, normally no more than 80 people"he said, [View Full Entry]

---

---

17/7/08 move on to Binchuan(@1600m) through Dali yesterday. Binchuan county live mostly Bai, Yi and Lisu, hopefully I could see their costume in the area. Like Weishan, the main scene in Binchuan is the Jizushan and its temple, only this one is more developed and more famous, they even got a cable car to go up hill. Jizushan is a huge area you could walk and hike, together with many temples and good scenery, but first you need to pay 60 yuans to get in. I never like the idea to pay to see nature, so...cheap or not cheap, think [View Full Entry]

---

---

14/7/08 5 hrs to Dali(@2000m) then I switch bus to Weishan(@1800m), which was only 1.5 hrs away. an old market town in the old day for the tea and horse troop. Weishan actually was the biggest market town for trading in those day in this area. 2 big groups of horse troop trademen, mostly Moslem people, went down to Banna and southeast Asia for tea and other tropical products, another group went northward to Sichuan and Tibet, brought back merchandise and changing hand in Weishan then shipped to different direction. Nowadays Weishan still got an old city gate(north) and a pagoda [View Full Entry]

---

---

10/7/08 came to Luoping(@1500m) yesterday. Luoping got a lively street scene in every corner, shoe shinner, street singer, begger, mobile-vender with basket on stilt, food stands, fortune teller, mule-carts... Everything in action, inside the market square you could hear loud speaker blasting, you would walked into the surround sound of price! Accommodation got more choice here, Luoping is another once a year business town, only the 2 months around Chinese new year you will find tourist. And all the rest of the year, you could really find good bargain for room. Anyways...once outside the b [View Full Entry]

---

---

7/7/08 Mile(@1500m) is one of the prefecture in Honghe I never visit before. Why? Don't know, perhaps because it is too close to KM. Was surprised to see so many hotels and guesthouses in town. For 50 yuans you have a lots of good choice, me...for myself...I go for lower! Why they got so many hotels there? Then I realized the new rising star in minority festival...the Fire festival of the Yi, the painted faces, the wild movement, the fire...yes...it attracted many tourist by new year time. But I think it could be the Mile buddha, the biggest in Yunnan, 19.99m [View Full Entry]

---

---

"no bus at 11,only at 2 o'clock" the guy in the bus station told me, but Chai, my teacher friend in Maande said there should be one, and adviced me look for it at the bridge area. And we did find it there and was told departed by half twelve. wanted to do this trip because I'd never travel by this route through Dexibei. The bus was loaded before 12, and everyone urged the driver---"go". So... We left right on, crossed the bridge we turned left along the Red river, rolled slowly on a bumpy track, people began to got off [View Full Entry]

---

---

10/4/08 Reached Yunnan in Funing, it was completely different after 5 years. A new bus station in the new part of the town, walking street with many shops and more reasonable cleans guesthouses. And there is city buses run to nearby villages, which made thing easiler, like I went to Banlun market today, year before normal bus didn't like to take passenger for this short distant, as you took up a seat, but now with this regular city bus, it made the trip easiler and also sure about the return journey. Market in Banlun wasn't big, in this area lived one [View Full Entry]

---

---

30/3/08 Through Shangsi I came to Longzhou, and the scenery was rather pretty once after Chongzou, it declared you are into Karst land! The view once after the mountain pass down to Shangjin area could beat many sight along the Li River. Longzhou got a 1st grade border in Shuikou where foreigner could cross into Vietnam. The market was small with only Zhuang people, only some old women wear simple costume, dark blue long sleeve shirt and dark long pant. And here you could feel some Vietnamese favour like...mint, conical hat, steamed rice-roll, street mobilize money change. Back in Longzho [View Full Entry]

---

---