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Introduction to Kunming, China

Introduction to Kunming, a famous historical and cultural city in Yunnan

Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province, is located in the central part of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, passing through Sichuan and Chongqing to the north, adjacent to Yuxi City in the southwest, Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture in the southeast, bordering Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture in the west, and Qujing City in the east. It is a city in central Yunnan. It is the core circle of the group, the center of the 5-hour aviation circle in Asia, and one of the cities in the national first-class logistics park layout.

Kunming enjoys the reputation of “Spring City”, China’s open gateway city to Southeast Asia and South Asia, and a national historical and cultural city. It is an important tourism and trade city in China and one of the important central cities in the western region.

Kunming is open and fashionable, which condenses the geographical advantages of Yunnan. From the “Southern Silk Road” more than 2,000 years ago to the open Kunming, it has always been the land hub for economic, trade and political connections between the East Asian continent, the Indo-China Peninsula and the South Asian subcontinent. . “China Kunming Import and Export Fair”, “China International Tourism Fair” and “China Kunming International Tourism Festival” make Kunming one of the major exhibition cities in China.

Kunming history and culture

1. Origin of place names

The word “Kunming” as a place name was difficult to test before the Tang Dynasty. There are many theories about the origin of the word “Kunming”. Most scholars believe that “Kunming” was originally the ethnic name of an ancient nation in Southwest China.

“Kunming” is written as “Kun”, “Kunmi” or “Kunlin” in ancient Chinese literature. In the early days, it was not the name of a city, but the ethnic name of an ancient ethnic group living in southwestern China, which is today’s western Yunnan and southwestern Sichuan.

According to records, the appearance of the word “Kunming” can be traced back to the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Sima Qian, a famous historian at that time, wrote in “Historical Records: Biography of the Southwest Yi”: “From the east of Tongshi (now Baoshan) in the west, and to Yeyu in the north, the names are Zhang and Kunming. There is no place where you can grow up, and the place can be thousands of miles away.” It can be seen that the word “Kunming” was the name of an ethnic minority in ancient Yunnan.

“Kunming” appeared as a place name in the Tang Dynasty. “In the second year of Wude, Kunming County was established in the town, and the land was connected to Kunming in the south, so it was named.” According to this, Kunming County was not today’s Kunming, but Dingcheng Town in Sichuan (now Yanyuan County). The reason why Dingcheng Town was named “Kunming” in the Tang Dynasty was clearly written in the records, because it was close to Kunming.

Kunming here still refers to the Kunming people. Before the Gaihan and Tang Dynasties, most of the Kunming people settled in western Yunnan. It was not until the Nanzhao and Dali kingdoms that Wuman and Baiman arose, and the place where the Kunming people lived was occupied by Wuman and Baiman, and the Kunming people moved eastward to central Yunnan and settled around Dianchi Lake.

In the second year of Song Baoyou (1254), Yuan destroyed Dali and set up “Kunming Thousand Households” in Shanchan. “Kunming” began to appear as a place name and continues to this day. The meaning of the word “Kunming”, Jin Changju explained: “The barbarians have a large species of Rikun, and a small species of Risou.” This sentence can be interpreted as the Kunming ethnic group with a large population.

2. Customs and customs

Kunming is a multi-ethnic city. There are 26 ethnic groups living in the world. There are Han, Yi, Hui, Bai, Miao, Hani, Zhuang, Dai, Lisu and other ethnic groups living in concentrated villages or mixed villages and streets. In the long-term production and life, various ethnic groups not only interact and integrate, but also maintain their own national traditions and continue many unique ways of life, folk customs and culture and art.

The compatriots of all ethnic groups living in Kunming are warm and hospitable, able to sing and dance, and the folk customs are simple, whether it is their etiquette for dealing with people, unique food and drink, colorful costumes, or different styles of residential buildings and interesting weddings, they can all Make people feel the distinctive national characteristics.

Among the numerous ethnic festivals, the “Torch Festival” of the Yi ethnic group, the “March Street” and “Raosanling” of the Bai ethnic group, the “Water Splashing Festival” of the Dai ethnic group, the “Treading Flower Mountain” of the Miao ethnic group, and the “Knife Pole Festival” of the Lisu ethnic group It is famous for a long time, and the festival activities are rich and colorful.

Every festival, people of all ethnic groups will put on their own hand-embroidered and dyed national costumes and gather from all directions to hold wrestling, bullfighting, singing and other activities. According to the seasons, many customs are very popular among the people, such as the Xishan Tune Festival on the third day of the third month of the lunar calendar, the Spring Festival in the Golden Temple on the ninth day of the first month, the Luofeng Climbing on the Double Ninth Ninth Festival, and the grand viewing moon on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival.

There are many kinds of local literature and art in Kunming, such as Yunnan opera, lantern opera, folk songs, minority operas, folk narrative poems, and folklore.

1. Torch Festival of the Yi Nationality

During the day, entertainment activities such as bullfighting and wrestling are held; at night, torches are lit, and they march in groups on the edge of the village and the ridges of the mountains.

2. Mizhi Dragon Lantern Festival

The whole village, men, women and children, dressed in costumes, carried lamps and went to the well or the source of the river outside the village to burn incense and kowtow, sing and dance, and perform dragon and lion dances.

3. Cultural activities on the street during the Lantern Festival

Since its launch in 1990, more and more people have participated in the street-walking cultural activity. There are 42,000 people in the whole Bajie town, and nearly 30,000 people participated in the activity in 2003, which is very popular among the people.

3. Famous people

Zheng He: A native of Jinning, Kunming, formerly known as Ma Sanbao, Hui nationality. Seven voyages to the West, through 39 countries, as far as Africa, the coast of the Red Sea. It is a feat in ancient China and even the world’s maritime history.

Yang Yiqing: from Anning, Kunming. Jinshi during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty. Official to Taishi, Minister of Personnel, Huagai University scholar. Li Chenghua, Hongzhi, Zhengde, Jiajing four dynasties, so-called the four dynasties elders. Because the general system has passed through Yansui, Gansu, and Ningxia, it is called Sanbian Zongrong. Because he was born in Yunnan, grew up in Hunan, and grew up in Jiangnan, it is called Sannan Jushi.

Fun Places in Kunming

1. Scenic spots

1. Stone Forest

The Stone Forest Scenic Area is located in Lunan County, 86 kilometers away from Kunming City.

The county has a total area of ​​400 square kilometers of stone forests. It is a scenic spot with karst landforms as its main body and is well-known at home and abroad. It is known as “the first wonder in the world”.

2. Jiuxiang Karst Cave

Jiuxiang Karst Cave is a national-level scenic spot, located in Yiliang County, Kunming City, more than 40 kilometers away from Yiliang. It is said that why Jiuxiang got its name is different from people.

Jiuxiang is a national key scenic spot and an emerging comprehensive scenic spot in Yunnan Province, which is mainly composed of karst cave landscapes, natural scenery outside the karst caves, cultural landscapes and ethnic customs.

3. Expo Garden

Kunming World Horticultural Expo Park is the site of the 1999 Kunming World Horticultural Exposition. The park as a whole is situated on the mountain, in a well-proportioned manner, and has a magnificent momentum. The achievements of science and technology in one garden reflect the theme of the era of “man and nature, harmonious development”.

4. Dianchi Lake

Dianchi Lake is located at the foot of Xishan Mountain in the south of Kunming City. Its northern end is close to Kunming Daguan Park, and its southern end is in Jinning County, 5km away from the urban area. Historically, it has always been a resort for sightseeing and summer escape.

Dianchi Lake is shaped like a crescent moon, with a length of 39km from north to south, a width of 13.5km from east to west, and an average width of about 8km. The lake shoreline is about 200km long; the lake surface area is 300km2, ranking first in Yunnan Province. The maximum depth of the lake is 8m, the average depth is 5m, and the water storage capacity is 1.57 billion. It is the sixth largest inland freshwater lake in China.

5. Yunnan Ethnic Village

Yunnan Ethnic Village is located in the national tourist resort area on the shore of Dianchi Lake in the southwest suburb of Kunming City. one of the points.

Covering an area of ​​89 hectares, it is 8km away from the urban area, backed by Dianchi Lake, and across the water from famous scenic spots such as Xishan Forest Park, Daguan Park, and Zhenghe Park. , culture, style window.

6. Daguan Building

Daguan Building is located in the west of Kunming city, about 6km away from the city center. Founded in the Kangxi period, it is named because it faces the Dianchi Lake, overlooks the West Mountains and enjoys the scenery of the lakes and mountains. After entering the park, you can visit the pavilions and pavilions such as Yongyue Pavilion, Ningbi Hall, Range Rover Pavilion and Guanjia Hall.

The most ornamental value in the garden is the Daguan Building, which is built near the water. The 180-character long couplet made by Sun Yanweng, a famous scholar in the Qing Dynasty, hangs on both sides of the doorpost on the waterfront side of the Daguan Building, known as “the first long couplet in ancient and modern times”.

7. Big Dieshui Waterfall

Da Dieshui Waterfall is located 20 kilometers southwest of Lunan County. Da Dieshui Waterfall, also known as Feilong Waterfall, is known as the first waterfall in the Pearl River. The water source of the waterfall is Bajiang, a tributary of Nanpanjiang River, with a drop of 88 meters and a maximum flow of 150 cubic meters per second. There is a road connected to the Die Hydropower Station, which can be reached by walking two or three kilometers by car.

The mountains stand in the scenic area, the vegetation is rich, and the eyes are green. The Qingshui River Canyon is steep and precipitous, deep and quaint, and exudes the rich atmosphere of the depths of nature everywhere.

8. Xishan

Xishan is a national-level forest park, a national AAAA-level scenic spot, and one of the core scenic spots of the national Dianchi Lake Tourist Resort. It stretches for more than 40 kilometers with peaks and peaks ranging from 1900 to 2350m above sea level.

Legend has it that in ancient times, there was a phoenix that stopped, and those who saw it did not know it. It was called Biji, so it was also called Biji Mountain. Because of its shape like a reclining Buddha, it is also called Reclining Buddha Mountain.

9. Green Lake

Green Lake is located at the west foot of Wuhua Mountain in Kunming City, covering an area of ​​352 acres. In the northeast of the lake, there are “Nine Springs, which converge into a pool”, so it is also called “Nine Dragon Pool”.

Weeping willows are planted on the banks of the embankment, with willow branches brushing across the face. There are many kinds of lotus flowers in the lake, and lotus blossoms are fragrant. There is an old couplet of “10 acres of lotus fish world, half of the city willows and pavilions”, which is known as “jasper in the city”. There are pavilions, platforms, corridors, curved bridges and other buildings. The buildings are exquisite and exquisite, and the pavilions and pavilions have plaques to sing the landscape in the garden.

10. Golden Horse and Jade Rooster

The Golden Horse and Jade Rooster is located at the intersection of Sanshi Street and Jinbi Road in the center of Kunming. The carved beams and painted buildings are exquisite. The east side is adjacent to Jinma Mountain and is called Jinmafang, and the west side is called Bijifang by Biji Mountain.

The north matches the “Loyalty Square” in Dianchi Lake for the commemorative competition, and is collectively called “Pinzi Sanfang”, which has become a scenic spot in Kunming’s downtown area; the south is contrasted with the East and West Temples and Pagodas built in Nanzhao, showing the ancient civilization of Kunming. Dongfang is adjacent to Jinma Mountain and is named Golden Horse and Jade Rooster. It was built in the Xuande period of the Ming Dynasty and has a history of nearly 400 years.

11. Dongchuan Red Land

The Dongchuan Red Land is considered by experts to be the most imposing red land in the world except Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and its scene is even more magnificent than the Brazilian red land.

Dongchuan Red Land refers to a place called “Flower Stone” (at the milestone of 109 kilometers) in Xintian Township, which is located more than 40 kilometers southwest of Dongchuan District, Kunming City. The area here is nearly 100 kilometers away. It is the most concentrated, typical and characteristic red soil on the laterite plateau of Yunnan.

12. Yuantong Temple

Yunnan Yuantong Temple is located on Yuantong Street in the urban area of ​​Kunming. It is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Kunming, with a history of more than 1,200 years. It is also the largest monastery in Kunming. It was built in the Nanzhao era of the Tang Dynasty and was originally named Potala Temple.

Yuantong Temple was built in the fifth year of Dade in the Yuan Dynasty (1301 AD), and the emperor of the Yuan Dynasty “given Xi Shujia”. The expansion project lasted 18 years and was not completed until the sixth year of Yuan Yanyou (AD 1319). In the Ming Dynasty, Yuantong Temple was expanded, and a new Jieyin Hall was built on the top of the mountain. It was also rebuilt many times during the Qing Dynasty.

13. True Celebration View

Zhenqing Temple, originally named “Zhenwu Temple”, was built in the Yuan Dynasty and is a well-known Taoist temple in Taoist circles at home and abroad. Zhenqing Temple is also a relatively complete ancient Taoist architectural complex with the largest area in the urban area of ​​Kunming and the most preserved buildings of the Ming and Qing dynasties in history.

14. Guandu Ancient Town

Guandu Town, with a long history, is located in the southeastern suburbs of Kunming. It is one of the famous historical and cultural ancient towns in Kunming. The gate of Guandu Ancient Town (big archway) is located 8 kilometers away from the southeast suburb of Kunming, on the north bank of Dianchi Lake and the lower reaches of Baoxiang River, covering an area of ​​17 square kilometers.

Guandu Ancient Town has numerous cultural relics and rich cultural landscapes. Within an area of ​​less than 1.5 square kilometers, there are five mountains, six temples, seven pavilions, and eight temples in the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties.

2. Local specialties

1. Tea

Kunming, Yunnan Province is the most famous Xiaojintuo, which is good for health, beauty, eyesight, refreshing, and Shouyixuan Xiaojintuo. It is a representative enterprise in Kunming, colorful Yunnan, and Shouyixuan.

2. Camellia

Yunnan camellias have large and colorful flowers, some of which are in full bloom with thousands of flowers, with a red glow. Camellias were discovered more than 1,300 years ago. Cultivation began in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, gradually increased in the Song Dynasty, and increased day by day after the Yuan Dynasty. Known as “Yunnan camellia is the best in the world”.

3. Kunming ivory carving

It has a long history and exquisite craftsmanship. There are three-dimensional ivory carvings and flat ivory carvings. What is more worth mentioning is the engraving group portraits, which are vivid in an image, fine in carving and exquisite in design. It is a rare craft collection treasure. Small ivory carvings cost about a few dozen yuan, and larger ones cost about a hundred yuan.

4. Tea carving

Using Yunnan big-leaf sun-dried green tea as raw material, through carving pure steel molds, and using molds to press Pu’er tea into tea carvings with various styling styles.

5. Batik

Batik is a folk hand-dyed and printed handicraft popular in ethnic minority areas in Yunnan Province. Kunming batik fabrics integrate the culture of Yunnan ethnic minorities. The patterns are unique and novel, simple and elegant. The price of a piece of batik cloth is about 15 yuan.

6. Lunan cross flower

Lunan cross-stitching is a traditional handicraft of the Sani people (a branch of the Yi nationality) in Shilin Yi Autonomous County with a long history. The main products are backpacks, tablecloths, curtains, clothing and so on. There are various methods of cross-cutting, including single-sided picking and double-sided picking: there are plain color cross-cutting, and new color silk thread cross-stitching. Some products are picked, embroidered and supplemented. The finished products are either exquisite or extensive, fully expressing the ingenuity and artistic creativity of the Sani people.

7. Wood carving crafts

It is a variety of handicrafts carved from relatively precious wood, which are simple and unique and are favored by tourists. The more concentrated wood carving handicraft sales points are the flower and bird market, and the many handicraft shops on Cuihu Lake Road.

8. Black copper and silver

This is Yunnan’s unique arts and crafts skills. The product is made of black copper, engraved with various patterns on the tire, and cold embedded with gold or silver, which presents a black-yellow or black-and-white decorative effect, and the color state is extremely elegant. For example, the combination of black copper and silver with spot copper and tin handicrafts will make the decorative effect more bright and bright.

9. Tin crafts

The tin handicrafts are made of high-purity refined tin produced in Gejiu. After many processes such as melting, tableting, unloading, modeling, and car polishing, they are carefully carved and engraved with various patterns.

The finished product is white like silver, bright like a mirror, and also has the characteristics of acid and alkali resistance, non-toxic and tasteless, anti-corrosion and not easy to oxidize. There are many kinds of tin handicrafts, all sizes are prepared. In addition to daily necessities, there are many exquisite and beautiful works of art, appreciation products, gifts and prizes.

10. Yunnan spot copper

Kunming has a long history of bronze manufacturing. As early as the Warring States Period and the Western Han Dynasty, Kunming created a bronze culture with distinctive national characteristics, strange regional colors and unique artistic styles.

The spot copper craft is a wonderful flower that grows up on the basis of absorbing bronze and bronze drum making techniques. The production process of spot copper is complicated. It uses a unique process to mix copper and other metals, showing a variety of magnificent ridged patterns, golden and yellow interlaced, luxurious and elegant, hence the name spot copper.

11. Yunnan edible mushroom

Yunnan is located in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, with many mountains and lush forests, mild climate and abundant rainfall. Summer and autumn are sunny and rainy, which provides extremely favorable natural conditions for the growth and reproduction of edible fungi.

There are many kinds of edible mushrooms in Yunnan with different flavors, and they are precious “mountain treasures” in Yunnan cuisine. Among them, the most economical ones are chicken fir, pine mushroom, and bamboo fungus, as well as porcini, morel, green head, dry mushroom, and Hericium erinaceus.

12. Yunnan fruit

All kinds of seasonal fruits, with a wide variety, are available all year round in the streets of Kunming. Famous fruits include Jinggu ivory, Xinping, Yuanyang, Yuanjiang, pineapple, Honghe, Yuxi, Simao, sesame banana, Tianbao banana, Banjiao, jackfruit, Baozhu pear, uncle bayberry, green apple, yellow peach, Kunming, peach and plum , Huize, pomegranate, acid angle and so on.

13. Yunyan

“Yunyan“, “Red Camellia”, “Camellia”, “Dazhongjiu”, “Spring City” and other products produced by Yunnan Hongyun Honghe Group have won the trust of consumers.

14. Yunzi

That is, Yunnan Go pieces, which have a history of more than 500 years. In the early years, the chess pieces produced in Yongchang House (now Baoshan City) were of high quality, also known as Yongzi. They were presented as tributes to the royal family in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Yunzi is simple and thick, feels comfortable in the hand, and has a soft color, which is suitable for chess players to watch for a long time. with thinking. The white child is as white as jade, the black child is black on the chessboard, and it looks emerald green when you see it with your fingers, so it is known as a “national treasure”.

15. Snacks

Cross-bridge rice noodles, green head mushroom, Yunnan stinky tofu, bean curd rice noodles, cold rice noodles, canned stinky tofu, canned chicken, pickled vegetables, braised bean curd (fermented bean curd), Baozhu pear, braised duck, small white fish, sea squeezing, Yiliang Roast Duck, Matsutake, Flame Mashed Potatoes, Chicken, Modern Baba, Hairy Belly, Cold Chicken Rice Noodles;

Braised bait silk, pulped tofu, ghost chicken, beef in hot pot, asparagus in oyster sauce, black pepper steak, thick slices, spicy fish hot pot, pepper sausage, golden cake, back cake, fennel, fire tree silver flower, rice cloth, rice wine, beef Liver mushrooms, tribute balls, papaya milk, pumpkin dumplings, tender beef, lemon custard;

Chicken soup with cabbage, chicken oil, green hands, fried eggplant with sauce, golden fried chicken, golden jade, golden bean flour, fried kudzu powder with chives, purple rice cake, blood sausage, roast chicken tendon, dry mushroom, corn syrup, Dry pot shrimp, cold fish skin, rice milk cake, glutinous rice cake, hot and sour powder, fried milk, stewed pig’s feet, Guandu cake.