Naxizhu is the term defining the minority majority in the region of Lijiang. It is not in the old town of Lijiang that I could meet her. The rest of the city and its environs by providing multiple opportunities cons of discovery.
Baisha village is famous for its Buddhist frescoes dating back more than 6 centuries. It is indeed impressive and has survived many vicissitudes (the last and not least were the onslaught of the Red Guards). On leaving the center of the village for tourists (number of stores to support), I had a better picture of the “village life naxie.
Here, the elderly man and woman are dressed in navy blue, the color of their pants and their hats. Women wear high often wicker baskets filled with freshly picked herbs in the fields. Mandarin is not always mentioned when the case is with a heavy accent and it generally leaves room for language naxie. This ethnic group has indeed a strong linguistic tradition since there is a centuries-old written language, still preserved in books.
I also had the opportunity to discuss at length with a woman naxie. He was the driver of the taxi that brought me to the first bend of the Yangtze River, near the village of Shigu (which didn’t no particular interest except that of being a peaceful village inhabited by Naxi!). My driver was very talkative and has also served as regional guide. She inquired about the language. The Naxi is spoken in all homes of this minority. 30 years ago, public education was done in that language. Today it is no longer the case, the village children learn Mandarin at school, but they still speak Naxi with their parents and grandparents.
My guide also showed me the city of Lijiang where these people live. Although the Naxi are one third of the population of the city, they live mostly in the periphery, sometimes away from Lijiang. The architecture is that of
Old Town Tourism, the latter is indeed true to traditional housing. But in these neighborhoods, life is more rural and urban areas: courses are held for breeding or crop drying, sometimes storing agricultural machinery.
My two rides then allowed me to discover the rural life, far from the village museum what Lijiang! I also enjoyed the scenery of the region. Lijiang is perched at the center of a plateau at 2400 meters altitude, surrounded by even higher mountains. Fields of corn, sunflowers, orchards and terraced fields accompanied me for all the mileage!
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