My journeys in Yunnan from Shangrila to Xishuangbanna (2008-2015)
In December 2024, National Geographic magazine published an article about an ancient tea tree located in Xishuangbanna, in the southern part of Yunnan Province, near the border with Laos. The leaves from these ancient trees are fermented and made into tea cakes, which can be stored for many years. Pu’er tea is often referred to as “liquid gold” because it commands high prices in China. In 2007, Ray and I took a trip to Tibet and then traveled south to Shangri-La in Yunnan. This city was first named in the 1933 book ‘Lost Horizon’ by English author James Hilton. From there, we continued south to Lijiang, where we fell in love with the charming town and bought a vacation apartment in 2008. Over the next seven years, we explored various parts of Yunnan Province with family and friends, all the way down to Xishuangbanna, where we tasted the famous Pu’er tea. The article brought back fond memories for us, and I wanted to share our experience in this blog.
Shangri-La is governed autonomously and has a large Tibetan population. We passed through the Meili Snow Mountains, which rise to 22,000 feet—the highest peak in Yunnan. During our visit, we explored Songzanlin Monastery, one of the largest Tibetan temples. Our good friend Shiqiu flew in from Beijing and invited her local friend to be our driver and guide. Along the way, we stopped by village houses, shared tea with a Yak farmer’s family, and conversed with young students. This region is surrounded by mountains adorned with Rhododendrons and wildflowers. It is also famous for kitchenware made from tin. We watched workers skillfully create beautiful vessels. One village had experienced a landslide just before our visit, and the damage to the houses and yards was still evident. The most impressive sight was the first bend of the Yangtze River, where the river curves around a massive stone in almost a perfect circle. Mr. Song, who was not only a great driver and guide but also an accomplished gardener, invited us to his home to share the stunning flowers he cultivates in his greenhouse. For more pictures from Shangri-La, please check the following Google link.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/kYZqu798dZ4gPAQv5
Lijiang (which means beautiful river in Chinese) was where our vacation home from 2008 to 2015.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/UJ1s9fHi7TR8yApy7
XishungBana