Sights in Xishuangbanna

Olive Dam is named for its olive-like shape. In Thai, it's called "Menghan," meaning "the place where cloth is rolled up." Olive Dam is one of the main settlements of the Dai people in Xishuangbanna. The Lancang River runs through the center of the dam from north to south. Over 80 villages dot the Olive Dam plains, where every household cultivates fields and fruit trees. Every village has a rubber plantation, and every village has forests. Within the Dai Nationality Park scenic area are five Dai villages: Manjiang, Mansongman, Manting, Manzha, and Manga. Mansongman (Garden Village) and Manting (Flower and Fruit Village) are the two largest Dai villages within the scenic area and are must-sees for visitors. From a high vantage point, Dai wooden buildings and Buddhist temples and pagodas are nestled among a variety of tropical trees. Entering the villages, banyan trees, cycads, and other tall trees shade the sky, creating a lush green landscape, covered in lush grass and a profusion of flowers. As the poet said: "I was a guest in Olive Dam one day, and I dreamed of the Dai Garden every night."

The Wild Elephant Valley is crisscrossed with rivers and dense forests, home to Asian elephants, bison, green peacocks, giant lizards, pythons, hornbills, pig-tailed macaques, macaques, black bears, pangolins, giant civets, and a vast array of butterflies, birds, and amphibians. The scenic area features walking trails, an elevated walkway for viewing elephants, a tree hotel, and a forest bar. During the day, visitors can enjoy elephant performances, witness plant strangulation, buttress roots, and flowering on old stems, and marvel at the tropical rainforest scenery. At night, witness the vibrant wild elephants as they emerge from the forest to forage for food.

Manting Park, once the imperial garden of the Dai king, is home to the famous Zongfo Temple, a replica of the Manfei White Dragon Pagoda, and the Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion. It is the oldest park in Xishuangbanna. Manting, called "Chunhuan" in the Dai language, means "Garden of the Soul." The park features eight scenic areas: an ethnic cultural square, a vine garden, a tropical orchid garden, a peacock garden, a release lake, a Buddhist cultural area, a tree planting memorial, and a tea garden. The park boasts a well-preserved forest of over 500 ancient ironwood trees and vegetation, as well as a bronze statue of Premier Zhou Enlai, a Burmese temple, a peacock garden, and two bodhi trees and inscriptions planted by the Thai princess during her visit to Jinghong, symbolizing Sino-Thai friendship. The evening "Lancang-Mekong Night" performance and bonfire party are highlights of the park and well worth seeing.

The Zongfo Temple, known as "Wabajie" in Dai, is a pilgrimage center for Buddhists in Xishuangbanna. Before liberation, it was a sacred place for worship by the region's supreme rulers and their chieftains. It is also the highest-ranking Buddhist temple in Xishuangbanna. Its main buildings include the Weihan Hall and the Buddhist College teaching building. Today, an altar stands in front of the north wall of the building, housing several Buddha statues. The wall is painted with a half-illustration of the Jataka Tales. A seven-armed Buddha statue is enshrined on the altar on the east wall.

The Manfeilong Pagoda is a famous pagoda complex in Xishuangbanna. Known as the "Bamboo Shoot Pagodas" for their rapid growth, they resemble bamboo shoots in spring. Also known as the "White Pagodas" for their white color, they are a symbol of Xishuangbanna. Construction began in the 565th year of the Dai calendar (1204 AD) and consists of nine pagodas: a main pagoda and eight subsidiary pagodas. Their bases are shaped like a multi-petaled plum blossom, with the main pagoda surrounded by eight smaller pagodas at eight corners. A human ankle imprint, believed to be the footprint of Sakyamuni, can be found on the native rock beneath the niche directly south of the pagoda, inspiring the construction of the pagoda. The Manfeilong Pagoda is highly renowned in China, Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand, attracting thousands of pilgrims each year to pay homage, offering sincere gifts and expressing their reverence and veneration for the Buddha.

The Mengle Grand Buddha Temple was restored and rebuilt on the site of the ancient Dai Dynasty's royal temple, the Jingpiao Temple. The temple was built by a Dai king named Bolong in memory of his deceased consort, Nansha Weibian. Originally constructed during the Ming Dynasty, the temple was destroyed during a war in 1848 AD and rebuilt in 2005. Built into the mountainside at a height of 122.8 meters, it takes the form of a seated Buddha. From the square in front of the Thousand Buddha Pagoda, one can overlook Jinghong City and enjoy the breathtaking tropical scenery.

Amidst the vast tropical rainforests of Xishuangbanna, live the Jinuo people, a people known as "descendants of uncles" (Jinuo means "descendants of uncles" or "people who respect uncles"). The slow pace of primitive society once lingered here for a long time. Jinuo Mountain, known in Chinese as Youle Mountain, is home to the Jinuo people. It is one of Xishuangbanna's four major tea mountains and one of the six major production areas of the renowned Pu'er tea. The former grand mansions, the remnants of carved wooden records, the majestic and resonant sound of drums, and the rich and unique Jinuo culture captivate visitors like a giant magnet.

The primeval forest park boasts the best-preserved tropical ravine rainforest south of the Tropic of Cancer. It also boasts a peacock breeding base, a monkey training base, a large-scale ethnic performance venue, the Aini Village, the Nine Dragons Waterfall, the Manshuanglong White Pagoda, a 100-meter-high granite relief, the Legend of Jinhu Lake, and an ethnic barbecue area, among other scenic spots and over 50 attractions. The unique tropical ravine rainforest stretches across the park, while the beautiful Laiyang River flows like a golden belt through the green jungle. Along the way, visitors can admire unique landscapes such as buttress roots, stranglers, flowers on old stems, and ancient vines. They can also witness the spectacular release of hundreds of peacocks. Beyond the natural beauty, the folk customs and festivals of the Aini Village are also captivating.

The Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion was built in 1701 to commemorate the Buddha Shakyamuni. The 21-meter-tall, octagonal pavilion stands beside the former Mengjingzhen Palace. Its shape and location give it the name Jingzhen Octagonal Pavilion. The local Dai people call it "Bosu Jingzhen," with "Bosu" meaning "lotus crown," and "Bosu Jingzhen" meaning "Jingzhen Lotus Crown Buddhist Pavilion." It's said that the pavilion's eight corners represent the eight "Maha Tings" (elite monks) who surrounded Pa Chao, and the four doors on the pavilion symbolize the spread of Buddhism.

Daluo Town is a small border town bordering Myanmar. Daluo means "a ferry crossing where many ethnic groups live together" in the Dai language. The name "Daluo" stems from the fact that the Dai, Bulang, and Hani peoples who once lived here often ferried people across the river. Aside from a single-tree forest (the banyan tree is so resilient that any branch that falls into the soil will sprout, creating a scene where a single tree grows into a forest), there aren't many other attractions here. However, it borders Myanmar's Xiaomengla Town. The Daluo Port serves as China's gateway to Myanmar and is also the location of China-Myanmar Boundary Marker No. 219.

Mengjinglai was once a religious and cultural center on the China-Myanmar border. The clear Daluo River flows west of the village, forming a natural border with neighboring Myanmar on the other side. The pagoda forest, sacred trees, and sacred springs at the entrance of Mengjinglai village all have a long history. During festivals, many believers flock here to pay homage to the Buddha and seek Buddhist scriptures, earning it the reputation of "the first village between China and Myanmar." In Mengjinglai, the village's exquisite buildings and pagodas, the fragrance of flowers and fruits lingering in the air, the soft Dai language of the villagers, and the melodious calls of the birds linger in the ears create a beautiful and harmonious ambiance reminiscent of a paradise.

The Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, also known as the Menglun Botanical Garden, is located on the island of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The Luosuo River, a tributary of the Lancang River, curves here, forming a gourd-shaped peninsula. The botanical garden is located on this island, nicknamed Huludao. Surrounded by mountains, the natural vegetation is well-preserved, and the island boasts a lush variety of exotic flowers and trees, boasting over 3,000 species of tropical and subtropical plants from both China and abroad. This is China's largest botanical garden, primarily based on tropical rainforests, integrating scientific research, plant germplasm conservation, educational programs, and ecotourism.

The Parashorea chinensis scenic area focuses on the conservation of the Parashorea chinensis, a species typically 40-60 meters tall, with the highest reaching 80 meters. It is a nationally protected species. The scenic area includes a tropical rainforest experience center, the Nanla River, the Philip Trail, a skywalk, and the Caixitao Trail. The Tropical Rainforest Experience Center showcases the mystical cultures of the Aini, Buguo, Paijiao, Kemu, and Kami peoples, indigenous to Yunnan. The Nanla River Tropical Rainforest Scenic Belt, known as the Amazon of the East, offers scenic watercraft rides through the rainforest. The Philip Trail commemorates Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Chairman of the World Wildlife Fund. The thrilling skywalk attracts numerous domestic and international experts and tourists annually to experience the Parashorea chinensis rainforest up close.

The Mohan Border Trade Zone, located at the southernmost tip of Yunnan Province, borders the Boten Port in Laos. It is the only national-level land port connecting China to Laos and the most convenient land route to Southeast Asia. From Mohan, it's approximately 62 kilometers to the capital of Nantha Province, Laos, and 285 kilometers to Luang Prabang, the ancient capital of Laos. A two-day trip to the China-Laos border is generally recommended.

The scenic area boasts China's largest tropical rainforest karst cave complex, home to ethnic minorities such as the Dai and Yao, who primarily adhere to Theravada Buddhism and have developed a unique palm leaf culture. Millennia-old tea and redwood forests, millennia-old oil palm trees, ten-thousand-year-old cycads, and the dinosaur-eating Alsophila spinulosa, among many other rare and endangered plants, can be found throughout the area. While strolling through the pristine rainforest and admiring the spectacular scenery, visitors can also enter the caves to view karst wonders such as stone flowers, stone peaks, stalagmites, stone dams, and underground rivers.