Over seven gruelling months, canadian jeff fuchs took on the challenge of following traditional muleteers along this twelvehundredyearold route. Tea horse postfermented puer tea qinghai sichuan sikkim sikkimese silk road silkworms southern yunnan tang dynasty tea bricks tea caravans tea estates tea horse road tea horse trade tea mountains tea porters tibet tibetan autonomous region tibetan plateau today tourist traffic. While parts of the ancient tea horse road pass by the bustling, picturesque cities of dali, lijang, and shangrila, most of the ancient path crosses a rural terrain of imposing scenery and soulstirring quietness. Ancient china video clips, cartoons, documentaries. The ancient commercial passage, dubbed the ancient teahorse road, first appeared during the tang dynasty 618907, and lasted until the 1960s when tibetan highways were constructed. International journal ofcultural chinaheritage studiestourism and ancient tea horse road 531 vol. Thanks to this perilous passage, the fame and influence of yunnans puer tea spread far and wide. Chinas ancient tea horse road by andrew forbes, david henley. Our first chinese guide, michael, was also superorganized. Known as the ancient teahorse road, this unpaved and rugged path which was formed only by the foot traffic of humans and horses is one of the most dangerous ancient commercial roads.
Meanwhile, the road also promoted exchanges in culture, religion and ethnic migration, resembling the refulgence of the silk road. The tea horse road or chamadao now generally referred to as the ancient tea horse road or chamagudao was a network of caravan paths winding through. Pdf cultural heritage tourism and the ancient tea horse road of. The tea and horse road budget tour colorful china travel. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the creative commons cc0 license. Chinas ancient tea horse road cognoscenti books book 1. Chapter 12 the ancient tea horse road and the politics of cultural heritage in southwest china. It seems fitting that a route that was imbued with both tea and mountains, the ancient tea horse road, would become a fixation in my life. Along the tea and horse road colorful china travel. Speaking about the ancient tea horse road jeff fuchs. Whos who in ancient china cheat sheet ancient china for kids. Our guest rooms feature signature artwork and creative details, from a horsesilhouette closet to breathtaking. Tea horse road asian art and culture chinas ancient trade road to tibet.
This route through the sky, a pathway that ushered life, commodities, ideas, dna, languages and culture along for uninterrupted centuries. Regional identity in the context of a rising china gary sigley. Silk road foundation an authoritative article about the ancient tea route by yang fuquan, director of the yunnan academy of social sciences. The ancient tea horse road meanders across the rooftop of the world. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Teadrinking is a constituent part of chinese culture. Fuchs is enroute to remote areas of the world looking for new tea. Chinese businessmen often bartered local products, such as tea for yaks, with tibetan people who lived beyond the dadu river. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The silk road game 12 class periods several lesson ideas for ancient china. Travel the yunnan province along the old tea and horse road, an ancient trail network in yunnan for trade between the tea growing areas in the southern yunnan province and tibet. The construction of internal settings of the tea horse road museum is in the tea horse ancient road culture. Museum of the ancients investigate real life artifacts.
Meanwhile, the road also promoted exchanges in culture, religion and ethnic migration, resembling the. Located at the strategic southern gate of the tea horse caravan trail, the hotel indigo lijiang ancient town hotel merges caravan culture and local folklore in our decor and design. Depart dali this morning and drive north along the ancient teahorse trail to shaxi village. The ancient tea and horse caravan road, the silk road. Sometimes chinese tea would be exchanged for tibetan ponies. I first read the kindle version of ancient tea horse road over one year ago. The ancient teahorse road plays a similar role as the silk road does, and is a vital part of the international trade in the history between china, india and middle asia. Zhang yun the buddhist, seeing what was going on and seeing, regardless of his good intentions, it wasnt going to work, left the main contingent taking me with him high into the mountains basically retracing the steps of the ancient chamadao, the tea horse trail or tea horse road. The ancient tea route, also called the tea horse road.
Travels with the last of the himalayan muleteers first edition by fuchs, jeff isbn. Mar 20, 2018 the ancient tea horse road was a network of caravan paths winding through the mountains of southwest china. Chinas ancient trade road to tibet freeman, michael, ahmed, selena on. In other words, we followed the ancient tea and horse road, which links up with the silk road in tibet. Phytoliths and biomolecular components extracted from ancient plant remains from changan xian, the city where the silk road begins and ngari ali. The ancient tea horse road museum lijiang 2020 all you. China needed war horses to protect its northern frontier and tibet could supply them. After lunch, rent horse from local villagers and ride it along the ancient teahorse road. Jun 30, 2008 the ancient tea horse road winds its way through some of the most unforgiving terrain on earth. Pdf thirty years of reform and openness have brought great changes to the peoples republic of china. Check back frequently to read stories and view video diaries from every leg of his journey. For over a millennium, one ancient footpath has connected the tea markets of yunnan, china to the qinghaitibet plateau.
Thoughts of the route and its legacy, its commodities, and the precious cultures that lie along the route. The route earned the name teahorse road because of the common trade of tibetan ponies for chinese tea, a practice dating back at least to the song dynasty, when the sturdy horses were important for china to fight warring nomads in the north. The ancient tea horse road winds its way through some of the most unforgiving terrain on earth. The ancient tea horse road plays a similar role as the silk road does, and is a vital part of the international trade in the history between china, india and middle asia. For thousands of years the tea horse road was the most significant corridor connecting the ancient civilizations of yunnan and sichuan in southwest china with tibet and. While parts of the ancient teahorse road pass by the bustling, picturesque cities of dali, lijang, and shangrila, most of the ancient path crosses a rural terrain of imposing scenery and soulstirring quietness.
The ancient tea horse road was an enormous network of trails which grew up between yunnan, sichuan and tibet in the long historical period. Pdf cultural heritage tourism and the ancient tea horse. Tea horse road jeff fuchs tea and mountain journals. It stretches across nearly 2,500 miles of mountains, rivers, canyons, valleys and planes. Aug 17, 2018 the ancient tea horse road in china was a trade route mainly through yunnan, sichuan, and tibet. Whos who in ancient china cheat sheet ancient china. One of the longest and most dramatic trade routes of the ancient world, the tea horse road carried a crucial exchange for centuries between china and tibet. Jan 01, 2008 the ancient tea horse road winds its way through some of the most unforgiving terrain on earth. We traveled with wildchina from jinghong to shangrila.
In a region famed for biodiversity and ethnic diversity, visitors can still step back into the ming dynasty if they know where to look. As of today we have 77,375,193 ebooks for you to download for free. The addition of the word gu or ancient, making the currently popular name chama gudao or ancient teahorse road is a much more recent designation. One of the longest and most dramatic trade routes of the ancient world, the tea horse road carried a crucial exchange for centuries between china and. The ancient tea horse road in china was a trade route mainly through yunnan, sichuan, and tibet. The tea horse road is an old trade route, which connected south of the yunnan province to the tibetan highlands. As early as 2,000 years ago, during the western han dynasty 206 bc24 ad, tea was being traded. This is a 3 hour drive that follows an old winding trail the original teahorse trading route through beautiful hill country. Exploring the history behind chinas ancient tea horse road.
The ancient tea horse road museum also known as the grand palace. The ancient tea horse road played a crucial role in the history of solidarity and exchanges between the han and tibetan ethnic groups in china. There will be plenty of opportunities to stop and take photos along the way. The rise of the outdoors and chinas first long distance branded hiking trail. Jeff fuchs is a canadian explorer, mountaineer and writer. It was used as a commercial passage for transporting tea, salt and other commodities. The ancient tea horse road has concentrated the best natural and human sights of china. He gained prominence with his successful bid to become the first westerner to trek the entire yunnantibet ancient tea horse road, stretching almost six thousand kilometers through the himalayas and a dozen cultures, documented in the book the ancient tea horse road.
Our plan had been to follow vestiges of a trading route that chinese scholars and officials call the ancient teahorse road, and some call the tea and horse caravan trail. In order for the tea to survive its long journey, ancient tea merchants had developed a preservation method where the tea leaves were steamed and subsequently compressed into bricks for easy transport on horse back. Exploring the history behind chinas ancient tea horse road which began during the tang dynasty 618907 and still used up to the 1960s, with several different routes originating in the town of puerh, in chinas yunnan province to tibet and other points. Tourists visit lijiang to find the legendary tea horse road, to enjoy scenery or to search for inner peace. Pdf the ancient tea horse road and the politics of cultural. Sichuantibet tea horse road and yunnantibet tea horse road. Nov 04, 2016 tourists visit lijiang to find the legendary tea horse road, to enjoy scenery or to search for inner peace. The ancient tea horse road is a 4000 km route used by ancient tea and horse traders in ancient china. Insight on asia asian corridor in heaven made by kbs. Life along the tea horse road is briefly reignited in a passionate and unforgettable adventure. After lunch, rent horse from local villagers and ride it along the ancient tea horse road.
The ancient tea and horse caravan road, the silk road of. What is it like on the path of the ancient tea horse road. The ancient tea horse road museum in lijiang justgola. Tea horse road national geographic magazine the tea horse road, jeff fuchs, the silk road, vol. The ancient tea and horse road first appeared during the tang dynasty 618907, and. Beginning in kunming, the capital of yunnan province, youll travel north to the tibetan plateau via the ancient settlements of dali, shaxi, lijiang and. Chinas ancient trade road to tibet reprint by michael freeman, selina ahmed isbn. We provide free delivery for orders within thailand.
An epic journey of tea, mountains, and memories, that opens up a rarely acknowledged part of china and asias ancient past, the ancient tea horse road is a grinding adventure of will, wit, and tea thirsts. Right up until the tibetan highway was built, tea, salt and sugar were transported along this important trade route and tibetan horses were brought to china in the opposite direction. Earliest tea as evidence for one branch of the silk road. From the lowlands of xishuangbanna to the highlands of the tibetan plateau, chinas yunnan province has been connecting tea growers and drinkers for. In 20067 five tibetans and myself would complete a 7. Jul 25, 2016 our plan had been to follow vestiges of a trading route that chinese scholars and officials call the ancient tea horse road, and some call the tea and horse caravan trail. See all 1 the ancient tea horse road museum tours on tripadvisor. Phytoliths and biomolecular components extracted from ancient plant remains from changan xian, the city where the silk road begins and ngari ali in western tibet, china, show that the tea was grown 2100 years ago to cater for the drinking habits of the western han dynasty 207bce9ce, and then carried toward central asia by ca. Chinas ancient tea horse road by andrew forbes, david. Tea and horse caravan road, tea horse ancient road travel. Across the top of the world from teas ancient origins in yunnan into the himalayas and beyond, explorer jeff fuchs covered the once famous but now allbutforgotten tea horse road. Generally speaking, it was divided into two major roads. The history of the tea horse road, chinas ancient trade route.
Travels with the last of the himalayan muleteers fuchs, jeff on. Speaking about the ancient tea horse road with talk travel asia. The tea and horse caravan road as a corridor of ancient civilizations. Journey along the legendary teahorse trail, an ancient trading route connecting west china with tibet and india, on this 16day guided tour of yunnan province. To assist in this effort templar has partnered with jeff fuchs, a tea ambassador, explorer, and author of the ancient tea horse road. Lijiang has been famous all over china as a key town along the ancient tea horse road in yunnan province since the 6th century. The trade road at the time was called yak road, the original ancient teahorse road. Jan 07, 2016 phytoliths and biomolecular components extracted from ancient plant remains from changan xian, the city where the silk road begins and ngari ali in western tibet, china, show that the tea was grown 2100 years ago to cater for the drinking habits of the western han dynasty 207bce9ce, and then carried toward central asia by ca. Thirty years of reform and openness have brought great changes to the peoples republic of china. China is an original producer of tea and is renowned for its skills in planting and making tea.
From the 6th century to the 20th century, people in sichuan and yunnan provinces traveled by foot and horseback with pack horses to exchange tea for horses with people in tibet and thus the pathway was called the tea horse road. China yunnan adventure travel offers yunnan tours packages with best yunnan attractions, hotels, photos, ethnic minorities culture in kunming, lijiang, dali, shangrila. Travel along the yunnan part of the tea and horse road as it winds down from the tibetan plateau towards the old town of dali. Historically, the ancient tea horse road was almost the same as the western frontier of china.
If you book with tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. This ancient route winds precipitously for over 6000 miles, through the hengduan mountainsa major teaproducing area of chinathrough tibet and on. From the lowlands of xishuangbanna to the highlands of the tibetan plateau, chinas yunnan province. Ancient tea route network of caravan paths winding through the mountains of southwest china and extending to bengal in south asia. Speaking about the ancient tea horse road jeff fuchs tea. The tea and horse caravan road of southwest china, aka the silk road of southwest china but called chamagudao in chinese chamagudao teahorseancientroad is an old trade route that stretched east to west and south to north across southwest china, including presentday tibet tibet autonomous region, and down into nepal and india see the stylized map below. On the positive side the living standards of a vast proportion of the population have dramatically improved and china has now realized the long. Its customs of teadrinking spread over to europe and to many other regions through cultural exchange via the ancient silk road and other channels of trade. Again by contrast, the name teahorse road in chinese chamadao was in official use from at least the time of the tang dynasty 618907. Today it seems the ancient tea horse road is set to become one of the worlds most interesting and breathtaking tourist attractions with its rich history, 20 different colorful minority cultures dotted along the route and some of the most spectacular jagged mountain landscapes on the planet.
Free use powerpoints about ancient china for kids and teachers. We recommend booking the ancient tea horse road museum tours ahead of time to secure your spot. Traversing the ancient tea horse road with jeff fuchs wildchina. Jan 26, 2016 speaking about the ancient tea horse road with talk travel asia great pleasure reminiscing and chatting about the tea horse road on talk travel asia with scott coates and trevor ranges. Traversing the ancient tea horse road with jeff fuchs. Great pleasure reminiscing and chatting about the tea horse road on talk travel asia with scott coates and trevor ranges. Travels with the last of the himalayan muleteers 2008. Chinese ancinet teahorse road, discover the ancient tea. Ancient tea horse road photos, ancient tea horse road. After decades of research, were still not sure why. First, it was well organized, and our guide, jeff fuchs, was incredibly knowledgeable and funny. Chinas ancient tea horse road andrew forbes, david.
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