Woman in her house in Xishuangbanna, 1993

This woman was captured on her "balcony" in Xishuangbanna in 1993. We visited various villages in Xishuangbanna and were invited into people's homes on a couple of occasions. The people were extremely welcoming and friendly to strangers and made us feel welcome. We had very interesting chats with them in my limited Chinese and gave the children some fruit. I couldn't help thinking that if these people came to the West to visit us they would not be treated in the same way.

Dong woman drying cloth in village near Congjiang, Guzhou, China 1993

This is the cloth the Dong people make their clothes from. This photo was taken in 1993 in a village near Congjiang in Guizhou Province southern China in 1993.

Dong boy playing with a stick and hoop in a village near Congjiang, Guizhou in 1993

Take a close look at this Dong boy in a village near Congjiang in 1993. He was having great fun with such a simple toy. Compare this to the toys we use in the West and thing which is better for the planet.

Detail on Dong drum tower in village near Congjiang, Guizhou 1993

This photo shows a detail on a Dong drum tower in a village near Congjiang in Guizhou Province in southern China. The photo was taken in Autumn 1993. We could certainly learn a lot from the Dong people's non-materialistic style of living, at least at that time. I wonder if they've all got computers, cars and mobile phones now or do they still live the same way they did before.

Yao prospectors, Jinping, Yunnan 1993

Red hat Yao 红头瑶族 minority people prospecting for gold in the river in Jinping 金平, Honghe, Yunnan 1993. The red hat Yao have their own spoken language but no written language.

Dong drumtower in village near Congjiang, Guizhou, China 1993

Here is a beautiful Dong minority drum tower in a village near Congjiang in Guizhou Province, China. The drumtowers are used for village meetings and activities like a kind of civic centre which says a lot about the Dong people. We met some children in one and they played with my camera. One of the boys was also playing with a stick and hoop toy which he was having great fun with. We could learn a lot from these people!

Monkey carvings on Dong drum tower near Congjiang, Guizhou, China 1993

This photo shows the carving of the three wise monkeys on a drum tower in a Dong village near Congjiang in Guizhou Province, China.

Wind and rain bridge near Congjiang, Guizhou 1993

Here is a photo of a wind and rain bridge designed and built by members of the Dong minority near Congjiang in Guizhou Province, China in 1993.

Dai woman in Yuanjiang, Yunnan 1993

Dai woman in Yuanjiang, Yunnan 1993.

Buddhist monks in Xishuangbanna

Buddhist monks on bicycles in Xishuangbanna.

Dong people doing their washing in the river

Here are some Dong minority people doing their washing in the river in their village near Congjiang in Guizhou Province, China, in 1993.

Dong People

Look at the scales they are using to weigh things with but I'm not sure what they were selling, probably fruit or vegetables by the Jin.

Woman at market in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan 1993

Wow, look at this headgear. How long did it take her to get ready to go out?

This woman was snapped at the weekly market in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan in 1993.

Bulang Girl, Xishuangbanna 1993

This is a beautiful Bulang girl at a market in Xishuangbanna in 1993

Another Dong man

There were few men in traditional costume but here is another Dong man dressed in clothes made from the traditional fabric, dyed with blue indigo dye made from leaves.

Dong man in Congjiang, Guizhou 1993

This happy Dong minority man was selling his wares at the market in Congjiang, Guizhou, 1993.

Dong village near Congjiang, Guizhou 1993

This is a Dong village near Congjiang, Guizhou, China in 1993. Not a concrete building in sight!

Here is a nearby waterwheel.

Girl at Huangcaoba market, Yunnan, 1993

Here is a shy girl at Huangcaoba market in Yunnan, China in 1993. Her mother features in another of my photos on this blog. There were mainly green mandarins and green bananas for sale at the market.

Zhijin, Guizhou - Miao women

After visiting the Zhijin cave which was spectacular we saw these people walking along the street. They said they were from the Niao nationality. We got a lift in a car back to the nearest town where we caught a bus back to Anshun.

Dong girl, Fulu, Guangxi 1993

This is a close-up of a Dong girl taken at Fulu market in Guangxi in 1993. We ate in a restaurant there one day but when we went back to eat in the same restaurant again the next day they didn't want to serve us. Maybe we hadn't left a big enough tip! There were also some men playing a well-known drinking game involving numbers in the restaurant .

Congjiang in Guizhou

This is Congjiang in Guizhou Province where the Dong minority people came to the market. The river was used for transport as there was no road beside the river.

In the background you can see some of the old traditional wooden houses that the Dong people live in. I think there was a ferry across the river to get to that part of the village but I'm sure by now there will be a bridge.

Longsheng terraces, Guangxi

Menghai - Bulang girl Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, 1993

This is a beautiful Bulang girl that I snapped on market day in Menghai in Xishuangbanna in Yunnan, China in 1993. Can you see her beautiful hand-made earrings?

Dong wood carving on drum tower near Sanjiang, 1993

Look at this fantastic carving on a drum tower in a Dong minority village near Sanjiang where the Dong people live. The drum towers were where the people met for village meetings.

Yuanyang - Yi women, Yunnan 1993

These Yi women in Yuanyang, Yunnan were lugging their heavy loads of sticks up the street in their traditional costumes.

There were several different nationalities in this village and surrounding villages had flat roofs, on top of which various plants were left to dry.

Miao minority women in Jinping, Yunnan 1993

Here are some Miao minority women in Jinping, Yunnan near the border at the end of the road. On the way to Jinping our bus had a puncture and we all had to get out of the bus. In Jinping there were Hani, Miao and Yao minorities (at least 2 different styles of clothing) and a fantastic market day when all the people came on tractors and whatever vehicles they could cram onto or on foot from the surrounding villages.

Bulang family in Xishuangbanna

This is a photo of a Bulang family taken in a village in Xishuangbanna in Yunnan in 1993. It's a posed shot but I like it - It's one of my favourite photos from the time in China. We talked to various families in the village in their wooden houses raised off the ground and one woman told us she was planning to build a new house. She wanted a concrete one so the rain wouldn't come in. We took fruit (mango) to give to the children. The next day we saw the woman at the local market but she was a bit embarrassed about waving to us.

Dong child at Fulu, Guangxi 1993

This is a close-up of a Dong child taken in Fulu, Guangxi in 1993. There was a market with people coming from round about to buy and sell things.

There was no bridge across the river and Fulu was at the end of the road. A road alongside the river was under construction but to reach our destination Sanjiang we had to take a slow boat up the river.

We nearly got away without paying as the ticket inspector girl on the boat thought we had already paid. We sat at the front of the boat and watched as the captain guided us slowly upstream against a fairly strong current. Progress was slow. We passed another boat with another "laowai" on it who waved to us. We also bought some fried sticky rice snacks at a stop on the way. When we got near to Sanjiang we saw a boat which had sunk.

Dong woman in Sanjiang

This is a close-up photo of a Dong woman taken in the market in Sanjiang, Guangxi, China in 1993. There were hundreds of women and a few men dressed in traditional costumes who had come from the surrounding villages to the market to buy and sell produce. Some were barefoot and some carried produce in baskets suspended from a pole across their shoulders. In the villages there were no cars and only people on foot.

You can see the beautiful jewellery that the women wore - a silver hairpin and elegant earrings.

In Sanjiang we met a Japanese photographer who was doing a study of the Dong people but he was a bit aggressive with his photo taking and stuck his camera in their faces. Not nice!

Lahu women in Ximeng, Yunnan

At the end of the road we stayed in Ximeng and saw a few women of the Lahu nationality in the local market. There was no toilet in the hotel and the door was locked so I had to use a chamber pot!

Miao woman sitting by roadside in Yunnan, 1993

I snapped this Miao woman (I think) in Yunnan surreptitiously while she was sitting by the roadside selling her wares. When she saw me she spat at me but then burst out laughing. I can`t remember where the photo was taken but I will investigate and see if I can pinpoint it. I normally asked permission to take people's photograph but sometimes candid shots are best.