Portrait of an LBX

"The Han are inseparable from ethnic minorities; ethnic minorities are inseparable from the Han; ethnic minorities are inseparable from each other - CCP Xiahe Organization Department" If you follow our Flickr feed, you know one of my side pursuits out here is recording modern propaganda. This is tangential to the goals of this site, but seriously, wow, I had to show this to the world. It was taken in Xiahe (known in Tibetan as Labrang), the site of the most pilgrimized Tibetan monastery outside of Tibet. The southern half of town is old and Tibetan, and the northern half is modern Han/Hui. The old side is being torn down bit by bit to make way for new development, and the monastery itself is being tapped for tourism.

An elderly Wa (佤族) woman watches the evening goings-on in Xuelin (雪林鄉). A wedding was being held in the house across the street. We passed by three times and lingered but failed to garner an invitation.

Two ethnic Wa sisters walk down the streets of Xuelin (雪林鄉).

Two Miao (苗族) women walk through the Ameng Wednesday market. Check out those leg wrappings!

The Chinese government should require that people smile more if they're going to dress so colorfully!