Monday, May 23, 2011

Tea along the ancient tea- horse road...

The Ancient Tea horse Route was a network of mule caravan paths winding through the mountains of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. Also known as the Southern Silk Road, it  was a trade link from Yunnan, one of the first tea-producing regions: to India via Burma; to Tibet; and to Central China via Sichuan ( source: wikipedia).
It is believed that it was through this trading network that tea (typically tea bricks) first spread across China and Asia from its origins in Pu'er county.

Lijiang,  was one of the many stops where ancient tea traders stopped by to trade.



They traveled across mountains...


and rivers....


into the old town market square..


where you will find locals singing and dancing as a community..


the Naxi ethnic minority group, which used to be a matriach society, meets at the square
each afternoon for singing, dancing and well, a game of cards.... 


and when evening comes, they return to their homes by the river which runs through the old town..


walking up little cobbled streets...


to join their families.


We also had the opportunity to watch the spectacular show "Impressions of Lijiang"


held within an open air stage at an elevation of 3100m above sea level..

and after which winding down with a cup of tea by the river....

life was good and restful.....

Have you rested?

...go put the kettle on and join Kimmie and the Tea Tuesday Bloggers for tea this Tuesday!

steph


7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Fantastic tour. Thanks so much for sharing your slice of the world so we can open our eyes and see. xox Corrine

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

What an incredible journey you shared with us this Tea Tuesday. I'm super impressed with the gorgeous photos and your elegant description.

While making my book on Asia, I learned about the Ancient Tea Horse Route and the Yunnan Province in China. All that information has been made so much more interesting now that I've seen this post. Thanks for sharing and showing it.

~*~Patty S said...

Oh My Dear Steph ~
What a fantastic trip you've taken us on...I enjoyed each and every word and photo!

The mountains make me swoon!

Your photographs are stunning!

Happy restful T to you dear one
oxo

Tammy@T's Daily Treasures said...

What an absolutely wonderful tour. Gorgeous images! I love experiencing new cultures, cuisines and traditions. Thanks for sharing ! Best wishes, Tammy

Caterina Giglio said...

what a gorgeous tour and I learned so much, and yes I am resting up a bit, dear one, thanks for asking!! I hope you are as well... xo

Unknown said...

An amazing amazing place! I have seen pu'er bricks at the tea shop I visit in Seattle. Some are really quite old. How fascinating to see the historical place itself! S much culture and history! You are very lucky to be able to see it firsthand!

Happy Tuesday!
Cheers, Kimmie

Judy said...

I enjoyed our walk along ancient tea-horse road. I'm resting now. :) Happy tea Tuesday. oxo