Visiting the Xiushan Mountains
The Xiushan Mountains is the spirit of Tonghai, symbolizing cultures of Tonghai. It is difficult to imagine what the life would be like in Tonghai if there were no Mt. Xiushan. If you want to understand more about Tonghai, you’d better visit Mt. Xiushan at first in order to review the changes happened on Mt. Xiushan.
Visit Mt. Xiushan three times one day…
When the sun rises from the Qilu Lake, soft mist disperses little by little. It is the first time for Tonghai people to climb Mt. Xiushan.
I once heard that Tonghai people climb Mt. Xiushan three times one day. Climbing Mt. Xiushan in the morning is to do exercises. Climbing Mt. Xiushan at noon is to enjoy the cool air, while climbing it after supper is to go for a walk. Tonghai people lead a relaxed life. In the morning of November, it is past eight o’clock that sunshine appears on Mt. Xiushan.
Going forward to Mt. Xiushan, we can see many people going down from Mt. Xiushan after they finish their morning exercises.
The ancient buildings were built in the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. There is a Confucian temple at the foot of Mt. Xiushan.
The seat of the library of Tonghai No. 1 Middle School is previously the palace. Why not read like a student? It is a pleasure to sit down in the library and read for a while. Entering into the Xiushan Park, we can see 63 buildings including Yongjin Temple, Qingliang Platform, Yuhuang Pavilion, Puguang Temple, Puji Temple, Landlord Temple, Wanshou Palace and White Dragon Temple. It takes one hour to visit Mt. Xiushan. However, it is not enough to spend one day to understand hundreds of couplets and inscribed boards. Therefore, Tonghai people are used to visiting Mt. Xiushan three times a day. Besides, climbing Mt. Xiushan becomes a necessary curriculum as if only Mt. Xiushan could represent Tonghai profundity.
It is enough to remember only one couplet…
When spring comes, the plum and peach orchards on Mt. Xiushan are wonderful. When autumn comes, wild Chinese Flowering Crabapples are blooming here and there, which form wonderful scenery. At the beginning of winter, the plum orchard is still vigorous. The wild Chinese Flowering Crabapples are falling away. The glamour of Mt. Xiushan consists in its prosperity and withering, personnel buildings, and the profundity made by scholars.
There are 284 couplets and inscribed boards on Mt. Xiushan. More and more tourists visit Mt. Xiushan and they are fascinated with it. Although you may see decades of couplets, you can only keep several couplets in your mind. With full heart, what I can remember is a poem over the Dengying Bridge. It says “Sit down and have a rest. You needn’t hurry up. Please appreciate beautiful scenery with wonderful mountains and waters. I want to visit Mt. Xiushan again”.
As I am concerned, perhaps, it is enough to remember this couplet. It is also enough for a tourist to visit Mt. Xiushan, looking forward to coming later.
Nothing changed…
There is a yard at the foot of Mt. Xiushan where the Ancient Music Group of the Dian Kingdom in Tonghai and the Women Team of the Dongjing Music usually hold activities. The two music groups practice the ancient music inherited from ancestors. Lin Jinzhen, a 77-year old woman, is the head of Dongjing Music Team.
She clearly told me her experiences and the stories of the Women Team of the Dongjing Music. I was deeply impressed. She also could remember the forty names of the tunes taught by her teacher. She always said that although there were only five seniors could participate in performance, they insisted on practice. Their persistence is the fortune for Tonghai culture. It was they that inherited the potential folk culture.
Tonghai culture is boundless. There are ancient buildings at the foot of Mt. Xiushan. Each family has its own long story. The Yuanming Temple in Hexi Town, the garret nearly burned by fire and the Dabei Garret are the protected relics at provincial level. Jukui Garret, which experienced several severe earthquakes, still exists. When I was leaving from Tonghai, the relic station found a couple of stone horses.
The Yangguang Town
Yangguang Town is located in the northeast, several kilometers away from the county seat. The town is famous for the chequer door carved by Gao Yingmei. However, the door is not only the relic preserved from ancient time. There are Zhu Clan Temple and Lin Clan Temple, representing Tonghai clan culture. Zhu Clan Temple was built in the Daoguang Period of the Qing Dynasty.
There are two steles in the Zhu Clan Temple. According to the steles, Zhu Zun’s father was titled as “Wenlinlang” (a respectful address to man) and his mother as “Taifuren” (a respectful address to senior woman). Zhu Zun was an officer of Tonghai County. Lin Clan Temple comprises gate, antechamber, central nave, palace, departments and backyard. It was built in the Qianlong Period of the Qing Dynasty. There was also an inscribed board written by Lin Zexu, but it was destroyed in a disaster.
The pure countryside and green fields are not coincident with the stern temples. Boundless performances are displayed on the Ancient Platform of Wanjie and Zhang’s Platform. The rich land yields a lot of families. The Ancient Faming Temple is a witness to people’s happiness and sadness. No one could say how profound Tonghai cultures are since cultures are everywhere in Tonghai.
Mongolian’s Life
Xingmeng Mongolians are the only Mongolians in Yunnan Province. When I went to Xingmeng, villagers went out to repair the ditches. The villages were silent. However, people were actively engaged in labor by the ditches. The women with special Mongolian shirts attracted many people. The warring scenes of Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan were far from today’s happy life.
Xingmeng Mongolians moved to Yunnan more than 700 years ago. In order to survive, they made a living by fishing and agriculture. Therefore, the place where Mongolians settled down was called Fishery Village. Nadam Conference was a tourist project, embodying the customs of Mongolians. The conference is held in December annually. Although Tonghai Mongolians could not ride on the grassland, they are skillful. The Lu Ban Festival is the most characteristic festival annually held on the Lunar April 2.
Notice: Xingmeng Mongolian food is delicious, especially Taiji Eel, little roasted duck and pickles. Taiji Eel has a strong flavor, so that it is very delicious. Being ecological eels, they are small in size.
Address of the roasted duck in Xingmeng: Agricultural Trade Market in Xingmeng Town. Tel.: 86-877-3091077, 13887764938.
Visiting the Nagu Town
There are two ways to go to Tonghai from Kunming. One is via Hongta District and the other, via Jiangchuan County. The Nagu Town is located by the Qilu Lake. It is also the residence of the descendants of Mohammed. From the Nagu Town, we could clearly see villas, villages, green trees and factories. This is a place with strong Islamic customs. Saidianchi Zhansiding, the governor of Yunnan in the Yuan Dynasty, was an ancestor of Nagu Hui Nationality. His descendants moved for several times, and then settled down in Najiaying village by the north of the Qilu Lake. The Nagu Town is located in the northwest of Tonghai County, 6 kilometers from the county seat, comprising ancient Najiaying Village and Sanjia Village. There are many skillful craftsmen. Their ancestors made a living by craftsmanship. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the Nagu people could make beautiful horse-wares for the army. In the Qing Dynasty, they made a living by making power shotguns and household knives. From the end of the Qing Dynasty to the founding of People’s Republic of China, about 15% of Nagu people dealt business by riding horses. The businessmen went to Burma, Thailand to develop international trade. Culture and education were fairly developed in the Nagu Town.
A lot of great talents were born in the Nagu Town. Nazhong, a world famous professor, was titled as the Chinese Heritage of Arabic Civilization. Na Xun, a famous translator, translated The Arabian Nights. Mosque is the most splendid building in the town. It is also the biggest one in Yunnan province. It is pleasant to have eyesight to Nagu and understand it well.
Notice: The transportation in the Nagu Town is very convenient. You’d better go to the grand mosque. Behind the grand mosque, there is a mosque for women. The buildings of the town are clean and beautiful. It is a good way to understand its history and culture. Remember to observe the Islamic customs.
Go Shopping in Tonghai
Entering Tonghai, we are eager to learn from Tonghai people for they work hard and enjoy their laboring achievements. Dishes and specialties of Tonghai are rich. We cannot find other place like Tonghai in terms of dishes and specialties in Yunnan. There are no tourist supermarkets in Tonghai. It doesn’t matter. The experience of going shopping is exciting.
Sweet Glutinous Rice Wine
Sweet Glutinous Rice Wine in Tonghai gives you a deep impression. Qutuoguan is a cultural place interest in Tonghai history. Nowadays, it is famous for sweet wine. In 1254, Kublai Khan conquered the Dali Kingdom. Then he established residence in Qutuoguan and governed this region. There is a well in Qutuoguan. The well water is pure and clean, so that it is wonderful to make sweet glutinous rice wine with the well water. According to statistics, there are 17 business holders in Qutuoguan. They consume 300 tons of glutinous rice to make sweet glutinous rice wine with an output of RMB one million annually. They have registered their brands for sweet glutinous rice wine. Besides, they established a Sweet Glutinous Rice Wine Association.
Address for sweet white wine: Qutuoguan in Tonghai County
Tel.: 13987790090
Bean Powder Candy
Bean powder candy is a traditional food. It is said that it was created by the Mongolian riding army. The brave riding army fought against their enemies for a long time, so that they could not bring enough food. Then they put highland barleys, bean flour and red candy together in a bag. The flour wrapped the red candy for several layers on their warring way. Thus it was the former shape of bean candy. Up to now, bean candy, experienced a history of 700 years, is very delicious. It has the following characteristics: fragrant, sweet, crisp, without remain when eating. In the old days, it was made by manmade on a small scale. It was sold in bulk. Sometimes, it was brought to friends in Kunming, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hongkong and other places. The previous food in the army becomes a kind of food which can be bought on the streets.
Notice: Bean Powder Candy, Scissors Candy, Nan Candy are the local specialties with low prices. All of them are green food.
Pine Flower Cake
Zhang Qin in the Tang Dynasty wrote a book named The Story of the Make-up Mansion. According to the story, there was a Beauty Well in the Jin Dynasty. If someone drinks the well water, his or her daughter would be a beauty. The reason is that the pine flowers are blooming around the year. The pollens drop into the well, so that the well becomes a magic cosmetic drug. People drink the well water, so beauties were born. However, it also brought disasters. Then the villagers had to fill and level it up.
Pine pollens are not only a cosmetic food, but also a fairy dish recorded in the ancient books. People can get little pine pollens when the pines are blooming. Pine Flower Cake is a season cake made of pine pollen. It embodies Tonghai people’s life style.
Pickles
Sauce is a famous specialty of Tonghai. It once won the golden prize of local specialty on an international exhibition. At present, sauce, mustard, kohirabl and radish are the local specialties.
Fanhua Black Mullet
Fanhua Black Fish is a famous dish of Tonghai. It is made of the black mullet produced in Qilu Lake. The condiments are leek, sliced garlic, black agarics, and mint. Put in some pickled pepper before stopping fry. The dish is fresh and sweet.
Notice: Nanjie restaurant, Dehexun restaurant, Haiyun restaurant and other places can provide the dish.
Having a Meal before Super
Tonghai people like snacks. Having a meal before supper is just like the evening tea of the British.
Dunked cake, cool glutinous cake, cool rice noodles are the evening tea of Tonghai people. Dunked cake can be made after rice cake is dunked in the sugar candy water. It is sweet. Cool glutinous cake can be made after glutinous cake is dunked in the red candy water.
Address: On the opposite side of the Women and Infants Hospital on the West Avenue of the Xiushan Town.
Ancient Boyuntang: Eye Drops and Condiments
Ancient Boyuntang was established by Shen Yubai, a herbalist doctor of the Yongzheng Period in the Qing Dynasty in Tonghai. It was said that Shen Yubai once helped an old beggar with serious illness. After he recovered, the old beggar made a round vessel with the clay from the flower bed in Shen Family and left a prescription to Shen Yubai. Having got the prescription to cure eye diseases, Shen created Boyunding (a kind of eye-drops). For his outstanding achievement, a governor of Tonghai gave the name “Boyuntang” for Shen’s drug store. Later, it was changed into “Ancient Boyuntang”.
Boyunding can relieve pain and get rid of poison. Patients put the drops in their eyes, they will feel comfortable. Thus people are fond of Boyunding. Nowadays, it has got the national authentication.
Ancient Boyuntang produces not only drug, but also condiments. Choose aniseed, fennel, amount fruit, pimento, tangerine peel and other condiments to make a comprehensive condiment named “Wuxiangfen” (Five-flavor Powder).
Address: West Avenue of Xiushan Town in Tonghai
Tel.: 86-877-3804369
Najiaying Knives
The Nagu Knives enjoy a long history with the following characteristics: sharp, small in size, good looking, practicable. Thus they are welcome at the market. More than 30 enterprises are engaged in producing knives with an annual output of 90000 and with a value of RMB 1.9 million. At present, the knives are divided into three series, namely fruit knife, tableware knife and art knife.
Notice: The Nagu knives can be found at the knife exhibition center or the knife store.
Chinese Copper Pot
Tonghai people are proud of craftsmanship, such as silver wares, copper wares, textile and leather.
There are more than ten warehouses to produce Chinese copper pots in Caijiashan Village. Cai Li from Fushan Copper Wares Factory can not only produce Chinese copper pots, but also can produce multi-functional Chinese pots used on electric furnace or on liquefied gas. His products sell well both at home and abroad.
Address: Caijiashan Village of Yangguang Town in Tonghai County.
Tel.: 86-877-3669416