As is obvious from our previous posts about Yunnan, we at WildChina can’t say enough about this beautifully diverse southwestern province. Not only do we regularly run tours to the area, but we also love reading about the eye-opening experiences of other travelers.

Latest case in point: Stan Sesser of the Wall Street Journal has just written a piece, “Treasures Without Tourists,” in which he describes “one of the most spectacular sights on earth:” the Yuanyang rice terraces. One of three spots in Yunnan being considered for UNESCO’s World Heritage Site designation (along with Maotian Mountain National Geopark and Dali Old Town), these rice paddies were cultivated along a mountain range by the ethnic Hani minority. A photographer’s dream, the terraces are a breathtaking sight, particularly when the sun reflects off the water-filled paddies.

But whether the area can stay a “treasure without tourists” remains to be seen. While World Heritage designation can be a bit of a curse, often leading to rapid over-development and commercialization, for Yuanyang it would also be a blessing: more funds to preserve Hani culture and provide educational opportunities for their youth.

Yunnan continues to be an inspiration for interesting commentary, with National Geographic‘s May 2009 issue featuring a piece on Shangri-la (Zhongdian). Mark Jenkins explores this “complicated” and “confounding” Tibetan town in southwest China and the competing visions for its future. Will tourism and development invariably lead this area to lose all of its mythical and spiritual qualities?

As Jenkins notes, “tourism saved the place” after the Chinese government banned commercial logging in 1998; but that, in turn, has led to the commercialization of Tibetan culture. This trend — seen in many other hidden gems in the developing world — is certainly troubling. But as travelers, that doesn’t automatically mean we should stop visiting such places, which still have a lot to teach us about traditional lifestyles and choices.

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My month of travel came to close with two more stops in northern Yunnan province: Lijiang and Zhongdian. Traveling with two French-speaking families, I had many “lost in translation” moments (bonjour, ça va and merci can only get you so far).

Fortunately, feeling the power of the local people, their surroundings and their spirituality was a shared experience that required few words.

Our first stop was in Lijiang’s lovely Old Town, which was restored after a devastating 1996 earthquake. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Lijiang is considered the “Venice of the East” as it features cobblestone alleyways, arched bridges, weeping willows and canals. Despite the rain, which seemed to be following me everywhere on this trip, we enjoyed our easy stroll through the town’s bustling market and shops.

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Since my last post, I have:

• Visited the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, walking through an actual tropical rain forest on the grounds
• Traveled by car along the Mekong River to visit Ganlanba, a picturesque Dai minority township 1 hour away from Jinghong
• Substituted the car for a motorcycle taxi (called a “tuk-tuk” in Thailand and “auto-rickshaw” in India) to take a joyride through Ganlanba’s banana plantations
• Managed, again, not to fall down.

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It’s a bad sign when the highlight of your day is not falling down during a very muddy hike (note to self: buy hiking boots).

Thankfully, for me, there were many other (cleaner) highlights during my trek through parts of Xishuangbanna in Yunnan province. Located in the far south of the province, near China’s border with Myanmar and Laos, Xishuangbanna is an autonomous prefecture known for its tropical weather, rain forests and ethnic minorities. It’s a lush area that closely resembles southeast Asia in climate and culture.

The day after landing in Jinghong, Xishuangbanna’s small capital city (small = only one baggage belt at the airport), I embarked on an eventful day-and-a-half trip with WildChina’s local partner, Michael/Oliver (one English name wasn’t enough!) and two of his younger staff members, Ian and Vincent.

We started with a visit to a local market in Menghai county, which offered some interesting people-watching, particularly of ethnic Dai women wearing traditional sarongs, jackets and head scarves. The Dai, the largest minority group in Xishuangbanna, speak their own language with its own script, and their people are found throughout southeast Asia. They follow Theravada Buddhism, rather than Mahayana, the school of Buddhism practiced in much of the rest of China—which explains why their temples and pagodas remind me so much of Thailand.

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The 2008 Olympic Games officially open today…and I’m nowhere near Beijing!

I am in the same country, though, and in a beautiful, serene part that is a great reminder of all the natural wonders China has to offer.

As with my other stops, I have met interesting people here in Guangxi province, south of Guizhou, including an artist famous for his “shan shui” (mountains and water) paintings.  But this time, it is the stunning landscape that has made the deepest impression.

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Did you know that kung pao chicken originated in Guizhou province, not in Sichuan?

Yes, food is on my mind, as I’ve been eating way too much. And, no, the title of my post isn’t referring to preserving food. It’s about preserving ancient cultural traditions, ones that have been passed down from one generation to the next for years on end.

In Guizhou (southwestern China), I joined a family of four from North Carolina, on a trip entitled “Hidden Tribes of China.” We were led by our highly energetic guide, Xiao, a lifelong Guizhou native whose deep passion for his province was truly infectious. The trip was eye-opening for all of us—a chance to see how China’s ethnic groups have maintained their vibrancy in the midst of the modernization sweeping across the country.

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The last three days in Xi’an have flown by! This historic city, which is southwest of Beijing in Shaanxi province, once served as imperial China’s capital as well as the eastern starting point for the Silk Road trading routes. There’s clearly a lot of history here, which I’ve tried to digest with as much gusto as I’ve been digesting the unique local cuisine.

What have I seen? Xi’an’s most famous sight, the Terracotta Warriors, did not disappoint. Discovered in 1974 by peasants digging a well, these life-size pottery figures of soldiers were created to guard the tomb of the emperor who unified China. I had the opportunity to meet with one of the museum’s experts, who had previously received dignitaries including former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji and former Russian President Vladimir Putin. She was very gracious, despite the fact that I’ve never helped run an economy, much less a country.

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What happens if you take a woman of Indian descent, who speaks American-accented English and Taiwanese-accented Mandarin, and ask her to travel, WildChina style, for one month?

You get a lot of confused looks—that’s for sure!

Who am I? My name is Anita, and I was born and raised in Taiwan. I am currently based in Washington, DC, where I will work with WildChina’s founder, Mei, to oversee the company’s marketing and sales efforts in the U.S.

Much of my previous work experience in the U.S. has focused around China in some way, whether it was interning for a former U.S. ambassador to China, writing articles for a business news web site about China or bringing U.S. university officials to China and other parts of Asia to recruit students. Most recently, I completed a Master’s degree in Asian Studies, focused on….you guessed it: China.

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