2010-06-27


Shaxi, Yunnan, China		Week 10 30th June 2011

		Kilns come in all shapes and sizes. Not sure what was being fired in these. On the roadside between Dali and Shaxi.

		When two red trucks meet at least one of them usually stops. The first one coming towards us had cut the corner a bit then tried to swing wider. He lost part of his plastic bumper on the concrete.

		Also not sure what these two story square "towers" were for. They looked like storage, but of what?

		Up and over again. A small village before we went over the hill to Shaxi.

		The last half kilometer to Shaxi is paving stones.

		With a car park for a camp site.

		Shaxi is well preserved. Much quieter than Dali. The town is actually Si Deng, in the area of Shaxi.

		Much much quieter. The main square is where the tea caravans stopped.

		And possibly watched a performance of opera at the theater. The stage faces onto the square.

		Opposite is the Shinzhong Temple.

		The view from the stage. We did a little dance but no-one was there to watch. A rather eerie feeling.

		And the ceiling of the stage.

		This alley led to the South Gate. We could imagine a caravan of horses carrying tea arriving. The paving was put down in about 1902 after three years of levy on the inhabitants. "Rates" are fairly universal, though perhaps, unlike occasionally in Australia, the levy was no longer collected once the paving was laid.

		The village is being restored. Tiles are thrown up to the roof in batches of about 5.

		On the other side of the river was a pump and an aquaduct. Feeding the rice paddies.

		The bridge leading to the East Gate.

		And, you guessed it, the East Gate.

		This well is inside a house that hasn't been restored or renovated. There's no roof over it. There is over the kitchen behind.

		This young lady is 71 years old. She married into the family that owned the house about 50 years ago. Lots of stories.

Li Jiang, Yunnan, China		Week 10 1st July 2011

Gateway

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Early	Mon, 11 Jul 11 10:18:07 +1000
Articels like this really grease the shafts of knowledge.

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