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Introducing Déhóng Prefecture
Déhóng Prefecture (Déhóng Lìsù) and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture, like Xīshuāngbǎnnà, border Myanmar and is heavily populated by distinctive minority groups, but hasn’t yet captured travellers’ imaginations as Bǎnnà has. It’s in the far west of Yúnnán and is definitely more off-the-beaten track than Xīshuāngbǎnnà.
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Most Chinese tourists in Déhóng are here for the trade from Myanmar that comes through Ruìlì and Wǎndīng – Burmese jade is a popular commodity and countless other items are spirited over the border. The border with Myanmar is punctuated by many crossings, some of them almost imperceptible, so be careful if you go wandering too close.
The most obvious minority groups in Déhóng are the Burmese (normally dressed in their traditional sarong-like longyi), Dai and Jingpo (known in Myanmar as the Kachin, a minority long engaged in armed struggle against the Myanmar government). For information on etiquette for visiting temples in the region see the boxed text, p735.
Around Déhóng are signs in Chinese, Burmese, Dai and English. This is a border region getting rich on trade – in the markets you can see Indian jewellery, tinned fruits from Thailand, Burmese papier-mâché furniture, young bloods with wads of foreign currency and Chinese plain-clothes police.
Last updated: Feb 17, 2009
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