The Outskirts of Dali/Shaxi Village

(Mel)

Hello again!

Yesterday was largely another travel day (this time by car) from the center of Dali to Shaxi Village (the outskirts of the Dali area). We woke up at a beautiful hotel in Dali, one that’s completely covered in artwork with scattered courtyards and koi ponds, where we ate a quick “western breakfast” picked up our laundry and got in the van to start our journey to Shaxi.

Our first stop on the what-would-be-four-hour drive was at a “tie-dye Bai family” house. As you could probably guess the family produces various tie-dye items to sell. We got to see a bit of the process of preparing the cloth to be died. First some guiding pattern is set by placing a thin sheet of plastic with holes over the cloth. When dye is passed over the sheet it only goes through onto the cloth where the holes have been poked creating a map of dots for the artist. The cloth is then sewn or tied tightly where indicated by the pattern with the idea being that the unexposed parts will remain white. In this way this family was able to create gorgeous compositions- floral patterns, images of people and animals, and abstract designs. Needless to say the work they created put to shame the tie-dye shirt that I happened to have been wearing. When bargaining for some tie-dyed items one member of our group provided an opportunity for us to learn an other lesson in chinese culture. Apparently, when bargaining one should never suggest the price “250” he can say “240” or “260” but anyone who says “250” is calling himself an idiot.

In addition to selling tie-dye, this family also sold traditional Bai outfits.The Bai people are the predominant minority group in this part of China. We have had a wonderful guide while in Dali, Yang, who has shared with us several of the customs of the Bai people. She told us about the outfits unmarried Bai women wear, which include a special headdress with long tassels on one side. Yang warned us not to touch the tassels because doing so is interpreted as a marriage proposal. If a girl does receive a proposal she responds yes by keeping the tassels in front or no by pushing them behind her shoulders. If she rejects a proposal the young man who requested the engagement must work for her without pay for up to three years. During which the woman can decide that she does want to marry him after all at any point. While this sounds like a raw deal for the men, if she does accept the proposal husbands can stay at home and do whatever they want all day while it is a Bai woman’s job to work the fields then return home in the evening to care for her husband. It was really wonderful to have a guide who was not only very knowledgeable but also so willing to share her personal feelings about the customs of her culture.

The other sight-seeing stop on our journey to Shaxi village was at a grotto with some thousand year old religious carvings. The site was at the top of a mountain. A very tall mountain with a very windy fairly narrow road. On the plus side the it was paved and it would be impossible to say it was not at least an adventure. Also, the religious artwork at the site of the temple (though the temple itself was closed) and the gorgeous view from this top did make the journey well worth it. Some of the statues had even retained their original color which is just mind-blowing.

The rest of the ride to Shaxi was again through the mountains. ( At one point I started to notice the traditional yellow triangular caution signs with what looked like a lightning bolt on it so i assumed that they were signaling power lines or something relating to electricity. After a little while i realized that they weren’t lightning bolts at all but rather were showing the path of the road up ahead.) Regardless, the drive did give us a great sampling of what life is like in the Dali area for a range of people. We passed through areas with larger fenced in and gated houses. We drove by miles of terraced land for farming. We travelled through a market. We saw people making all kinds of materials and goods.

After a few hours we arrived here at Shaxi village. The best way i can think of to describe Shaxi is just to tell you to picture what you think of as a classic village in China. If you just conjured up narrow stone streets lined with houses made of ornate wood and a clay-like cement material topped with traditional multi-leveled rounded-tile roofs that flip slightly up at the edges then you’re imagining what I have been living for the past 36 hours (and if that wasn’t what you were imagining sorry for any confusion). This charming little village is a stop on the tea-horse trade route and has been protected as a historical site for nearly a decade now. This means that only traditional style buildings can be built in Shaxi, and though it seems as though it would come off as a inauthentic-feeling tourist attraction the character of the village and the way the people live here is consistent with the look of the place. Random farm animals, not cars, meander down the streets while the kids (all on vacation for the Spring Festival/Lunar New Year) play in any open areas they can find. This morning we walked through the very colorful and exciting market that is held here every friday. People from surrounding communities also come by to sell or buy a combination of very cheap manufactured goods and food and medicinal items. The market did not contain the hand-made goods I was expecting but in the Village there are a few shops in which to buy the phenomenal and unbelievably intricate wood carvings Shaxi is known for.

This afternoon we had a chunk of time to relax and explore the village or to do work (or blog). Andrew and Allen went to the main square to toss a frisbee and by the time Emily and I arrived they had attracted a crowd of curious kids between the ages of about six and thirteen. One little boy (who was about three or four years old) had run over, picked up the disc and proceeded to throw it as hard as he could (it would go a few feet) before cracking up and chasing after it. After a few minutes all of the other kids who had been watching joined in the game and were eager to learn how to properly throw a frisbee. We spent over an hour playing frisbee with the kids and it was amazing to see how we could have this exchange despite the language barrier. All in all the scene was just adorable and an experience I know I will remember for a long time. At the end of the day Allen let the kids keep one of the discs- so when Ultimate Frisbee becomes popular in China we all know where that started!