This trip is a Qigong and Wilderness Expedition.
Date: Nov 8-19, 2016.
Overview:
The Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau is one of the most mysterious regions in China, with countless folk stories, regional legends and a colorful history against the backdrop of a dramatic terrain. The mountains are sheer and dense but the raging rivers have carved deep canyons and created magnificent landscapes. In times past, foot travel was extremely difficult in this breathtakingly scenic region. Before highways, railroads, and modern transportation, many diverse ethnic groups that live here seldom interacted with each other, despite their close proximity as the crow flies. As a result, while these groups have evolved parallel to each other, each is unique in culture, language, cuisine and legend.
As the name suggests, the Plateau consists of two provinces: Yunnan and Guizhou. Nowadays while Guizhou remains under-explored due to its unfriendly weather and rough travel, Yunnan is considered the most ideal place in China to live. The dramatic landscape prevents modern civilization from encroaching too far. There is still tourism, yet there are no big cities or pollution in this region of Western China that borders the Tibetan Plateau. The rhythm is slow and the natural landscape and wilderness here are pristine. The climate is generally mild and sunny, the air fresh, and the environment serene and versatile. It has won a nickname, the Lost Horizon, and many who have visited would volunteer to be lost here forever. Yunnan also hosts the most diverse culture in China – out of 56 named ethnic groups in China, more than 20 reside here. If you randomly choose a day to visit Yunnan, some group will likely be celebrating with traditional dance or a festival.
On this journey we will see and experience some of Yunnan’s most gorgeous wild lands – from looming spires to soft emerald meadows, from raging waters to serene lakes, and from sheer cliffs to quiet farm fields. We will exchange with local cultures, participate in their events, observe their daily routines, enjoy conversations and learn from their ways of life.
While we listen and respond to the natural world and people of Yunnan, we will learn, practice the delicious, nourishing and transformative practices of qigong, an ancient Chinese form of breath, meditation and movement that originates from Nature. We shall transcend ordinary awareness and linear time. We come to be opened and to honor, not to impose. Though we leave no physical trace, we will forever be connected on heart and spiritual levels to the lands and people of the Yunnan province.
Further Details, such as daily itinerary, trip registration, locations introduction, please refer to —