{"id":137,"date":"2015-04-13T17:53:18","date_gmt":"2015-04-13T17:53:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?p=137"},"modified":"2020-01-18T11:06:21","modified_gmt":"2020-01-18T11:06:21","slug":"a-festival-and-market-trip-in-yunnan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?p=137","title":{"rendered":"A festival and market trip in Yunnan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lahu in Mengka celebrating their New Year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kachin from Myanmar crossing the border to Ruili for a festival of the Jingpo: different name, same ethnic group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Aini at Lancang market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Limi Yi with their spectacular dress, living isolated in Wumulong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Encounters with Wa, Dai, Bulang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"188\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/wumulong-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-121\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The plan was to visit ethnic minority festivals and markets in the \nsouthwest of Yunnan province. Markets take place any time of year. \nFestivals don\u2019t, but shortly after Chinese New Year is a good hunting \nseason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It wasn\u2019t easy to work out the exact days and locations of festivals.\n We searched the world wide web of course. That contradicted itself, as \nalways. I banked on local <em>l\u00fcyouju<\/em> (government travel bureaus) \nproviding reliable information. But \u00ecf they picked up the phone they \nsent us to the wrong place (according to the bureau in Eshan we had to \ngo to their village of Dalongtan, but nothing happened there) or they \nweren\u2019t aware of a festival that in fact did take place (in Ximeng they \nhadn\u2019t heard about the Lahu festivities in their county).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Festivals and markets aren\u2019t scheduled to suit travellers of course. \nWe had to hurry from Dalongtan to Eshan to Mojiang to Pu\u2019er to Lancang \nin one day, changing buses at each place. And getting from Wumulong to \nRuili within one day was a logistical challenge as well. Sometimes too \nwe had too much time. We were stuck in Lincang for 24 hours with nothing\n much to do. (Need a map?J)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bus stations were teeming with men and women leaving their families  for another year after the New Year holiday, returning to the factories  and construction sites in China\u2019s east. Those family members didn\u2019t see  them off. Chinese don\u2019t wave goodbye. Maybe it\u2019s too painful. Being  witness to it is one of those travel experiences that matter as much as  the destination of a trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"180\" height=\"135\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"66\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-3.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?attachment_id=66\" class=\"wp-image-66\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"180\" height=\"135\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"65\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-2.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?attachment_id=65\" class=\"wp-image-65\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"180\" height=\"135\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"67\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-4.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?attachment_id=67\" class=\"wp-image-67\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We first visit the village variety of the Lahu New Year. Music and \ndance, eating and drinking, music and dance, eating and drinking, on and\n on. The next day the main celebration is more ceremonial. There is \nsomeone who looks like a minister and something that seems like a \nsermon, there is prayer and kneeling down to earth and sacrifice of \npieces of wood or bark. It is pure and a shock of colour. But I am swept\n away only when people climb en masse and with great sense of purpose \nthrough a forest to a second terrain at the top of the mountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Religiously it remains misty. Wikipedia about the Lahu: originally  polytheistic, later Buddhism and Christianity were introduced. People in  Mengka talk about \u201cworshipping Buddha\u201d. \u00a0But there is no sign of him.  Above the only altar the only image is a photo of\u2026. Mao.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/lahu-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-64\" width=\"400\" height=\"225\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"> The Jingpo festival in Ruili is adopted by the government. Even the local <em>l\u00fcyouju<\/em>  knew about it. It is a large scale affair, and not as authentic. A  group of women in Jingpo dress represent their village, but ethnically  more than half are Han Chinese or Dai. I am watching a staged event. But  people enjoy themselves, join the long line of dancing people that  winds about the festival grounds. A brass band blows and beats fervently  for hours at a stretch. How did this western music ever get here?  Through the former Britisch colony of Birma? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/jingpo-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-57\" width=\"414\" height=\"311\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Beyond the stage reality is more captivating. Many Kachin have come \nfrom Myanmar. With a \u2018Red Booklet\u2019, a border pass, they are allowed into\n China for a week, not the whole country but a border zone. A young guy \ntells me he goes back to Myanmar every seven days and immediately \nreturns again with a new one week stamp. He effectively lives in China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A man wants to show me photos in his phone. Kachin rebel fighters (or\n independence fighters, depending on one\u2019s perspective) firing at the \nMyanmar government army. \u2018Last week\u2019, he says. I can\u2019t verify of course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In one of the festival\u2019s market stands someone sells T-shirts of the Kachin Independence Army.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"113\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/hong-shu-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"53\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/hong-shu-2.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?attachment_id=53\" class=\"wp-image-53\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"154\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/KIA-T-shirt-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"63\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/KIA-T-shirt-2.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?attachment_id=63\" class=\"wp-image-63\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"133\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/KIA-T-shirt-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"62\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/KIA-T-shirt-1.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?attachment_id=62\" class=\"wp-image-62\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Calls to <em>l\u00fcyouju<\/em>: 15<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of which answered: 3<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Calls to bus stations: 8<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Calls from bus stations: 2<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Military checkpoints: 5<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That included thorough luggage check: 1<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kilometers (Kunming at beginning and end): 2.700<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ethnic minorities: 9<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My co-travellers (all from Spain): 4<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other foreigners ran into: 0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">David, Enric, Eva, Vicente: thanks for making the trip possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lahu in Mengka celebrating their New Year. Kachin from Myanmar crossing the border to Ruili for a festival of the Jingpo: different name, same ethnic group. Aini at Lancang market. Limi Yi with their spectacular dress, living isolated in Wumulong. Encounters with Wa, Dai, Bulang. The plan was to visit ethnic minority festivals and markets &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/?p=137\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;A festival and market trip in Yunnan&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chin-eng"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=137"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":138,"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137\/revisions\/138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pieterblog.rdeman.nl\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}