This is a six part travelogue series exploring a section of Yunnan Province in China, from the autonomous prefecture of Xishuangbanna (西双版纳) to the remote village of Manwa Laozhai (曼佤老寨) and finally to the ancient tea forests of Jingmai (景迈).
- Xishuangbanna
- Village of Manwa Laozhai
- Mountains of Manwa Laozhai
- Canyons of Manwa Laozhi
- Ancient tea forests of Jingmai
- The Bulang People
Kammy and I wake up feeling the 8 hours of mountain scrambling the day before. Today is an easy day, just 4 hours of heading down into the canyons and narrows and then slowly climbing our way out to the village of Zhanglangcun (章朗村). We passed by this Buddhist temple here on our way into the Manwa Laozhai (曼佤老寨) village. A-Yun (阿云, his moniker meaning cloud) was going to have a friend pick him up, go back to the village to get the car and then drive us to Jingmai (景迈).
Yunnan: Canyons of Manwa Laozhai (曼佤老寨)
It’s another beautiful morning in the mountains. We stroll through the village and A-Yun shows us the outdoor classroom as well as the library he’s built out for the kids. He’s even come up with a point system where kids can earn stuffed animals or other toys! A-Yun has brought with him some freshly harvested and roasted yams from his garden. This and some soybeans, peanuts & fruits from the farewell party last night is going to be our lunch on the go. Of course, there might be some freshly harvested goodies from the mountain too!
We head down to the river and the canyons where A-Yun brings the kids out on field trips, especially in summer when it gets warm. Even in December, long after the rains, the river is still flowing from the mountain springs the feed it. There are fig trees along the banks that have been marked as sacred with the orange monk-robe clothing. We reach a waterfall (瀑布) and stroll along the banks following river downstream.
Eventually we reach the “narrows”, a miniature version of Zion’s very own. A-Yun has brought us waist-high gaiters so we can wade in the water through the narrows. Some places it’s knee deep, but no more. We get to the other side of the narrows and spend a fair amount of time here. This place is quiet, peaceful (安静) – just the sound of water, trees and birds.
Climbing out from the canyons there’s a mountain spring flowing near the narrows and we break for lunch – yams, peanuts, soybeans and fruits. Can’t think of better nourishment! No more bush whacking for the day! We follow the fire trail up and up towards Zhanglangcun (章朗村), taking our sweet time. We get to the village and A-Yun’s friend is waiting with his motorcycle. We have an hour to pass while A-Yun goes and gets the car.
As if we haven’t done enough climbing already, we walk up the 600 steps to the top of White Elephant Pagoda with spectacular views of the mountains of Manwa Laozhai. Far in the distance, we can see the village we stayed in! I feel a tinge of sadness leaving this place. Kammy tells me, maybe we can come here and camp for a month, living with the Bulang people and perhaps volunteer to teach the kids.
But it’s time to head to our next destination Jingmai (景迈), ancient tea forests. We catch up on sleep during the 3h drive and arrive in Jingmai just in time for spectacular sunset!
A-Yun’s friend here is our host and he’s going to show us around the tea plantations tomorrow. Another magical place in the mountains, though a bit more overrun than Manwa Laozhai. We are excited to see the 800 year old tea tree tomorrow!
This is a six part travelogue series exploring a section of Yunnan Province in China, from the autonomous prefecture of Xishuangbanna (西双版纳) to the remote village of Manwa Laozhai (曼佤老寨) and finally to the ancient tea forests of Jingmai (景迈).
- Xishuangbanna
- Village of Manwa Laozhai
- Mountains of Manwa Laozhai
- Canyons of Manwa Laozhi
- Ancient tea forests of Jingmai
- The Bulang People
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