LiJiang sits at nearly 8,000 feet and is located in Yunnan Province. The entire old town was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998 and is well worth a few days’ visit. The area boasts an 800 year history: sometime between the Song (960 – 1279 AD) and Yuan (1271 – 1368) dynasties, it acted as a commercial and trade center. Later, during the Ming (1368 – 1644) and Qing (1644 – 1911) dynasties, it was a key stop on the tea route linking Yunnan with Sechuan and Tibet.
While LiJiang rests in a valley surrounded by beautiful mountains, the main attraction is the old town with its well-preserved stone streets and ancient wooden, Naxi-style architecture. The Naxi people, descended from Tibetan nomads, are one of the 56 official minorities recognized in China and number less than 300,000 today. They remain prominent in the area and are interesting for lots of reasons including their matrilineal tradition and unique, thousand year old pictographic language. Fried bumble bees and other bugs are local specialties.
You may see other great travel photos on DeliciousBaby’s Photo Friday.