China: Yunnan Province: An Intriguing Glimpse Into Life for Both the Dai and the Hani

On the southern tip of china between Myanmar and Laos lies Xishuangbanna, home to the Dai, who have lived along the Mekong River (Lancang in Chinese) for 2,000 years. The Dai speak their own language and adhere to Theravada Buddhism, the Southeast Asian form of Buddhism. Despite such ancient roots, Xishuangbanna’s regional seat, Jinghong, thrives as a modern resort for many Chinese people due to its southern locale, and bustles with taxis, hotels, and entertainment spots.

Outside Jinghong, however, the jungle teems with a diverse array of insects and flowers. Much of the land has been converted into rice paddies and rubber plantations, but structures like the Manfeilong pagoda, built in 1204, attest to China’s spiritual history. Buddhists believe that the Buddha himself stopped at this particular pagoda, and a plaque outside commemorates the event with a stone imprint of his footstep. Almost eight hundred years later, worshipers decorate this holy place with flowers and bells.

Visiting a typical Yunnan Province village provides an intriguing glimpse into life for both the Dai and the Hani, an ethnic group whose homes tend to be more Spartan than their Dai neighbors’. Whereas the Dai build their homes on pillars (previously stilts) to withstand floods, the Hani build theirs low to the ground. Eating traditional cuisine such as bamboo shoots, fish head kebabs, and fern stems gives visitors a taste of life in one of these villages, and a trip to the market in Menghun attracts the curious to buy native foods and handicrafts. While the crowds are thronging Beijing and Hong Kong, travelers move at a more deliberate pace here to savor a vanishing way of life.