The quaint and ancient city town of Lijiang in Yunan, a province of China is generously well endowed by nature with magnificent and beautiful mountains, rivers and a long history. Not surprisingly, this county was entered into the list of world cultural legacy by the World Legacy Committee of the United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization in 1997.



Lijiang's history can be traced as far back as 800 years to 900 years dating from the Sung Dynasty. Why is town one of the most beautiful tourist attraction and destination in the world?

Well, firstly, it is one of the very few cities which is over a mile high above sea level. Smacked in the middle of the Lijiangba Dam, the town surrounded by towering snowcapped mountains and a river that traverse through an oriental forest with small streams meandering into the town itself. Some tourists even called this place "Heaven On Earth" or "The Shangri-la".

In Feb 1996, a tragic earthquake Lijiang measuring 7 on the Richter rocked Lijiang killing more than 5,000 people, mainly the of Naxi community. This ethnic tribal people is the major community in Lijiang. The Naxi people are a hardy lot and they make a living by herding yaks and doing smalltime retail businesses.

Although the earthquake was a shattering blow to the local population, the catastrophic event caught the attention of the world and suddenly, Lijiang's natural beauty was exposed and tourism boomed like never before. As such, Lijiang is now one of the most popular tourist travel destination and attraction in China.

The construction of the ancient Lijiang city was quickly developed in the Ming Dynasty period. This is because the Ming Dynasty made a large number of people in Anhui Province to migrate into Lijiang in order to station military garrisons and common people in the border areas.

As a result of the mass migration, the buildings of Lijiang ancient city were very much influenced by the architectural style of Anhui Province. The original buildings of the Naxi people can now only be found in the rural areas surrounding Lijiang.

The Yuan dynasty and the Mongol Emperor then, Kublai Khan stationed military garrisons in Lijiang in 1253. He brought the foreign Mongolian culture to this city and as such, Lijiang was also influenced by the culture Central China, such as Buddhism and Taoism, and then Christianity and Islamic culture from the early 1900s. The Naxi community assimilated all these cultures and today Lijiang is also very much appreciated for its cultural landscape not only in China, but the entire Asia. Millions of tourists travel to Lijiang every year to enjoy Lijiang's primitive simplicity, tranquility and elegant culture.

The folks in this town know how to enjoy music too. You can hear the spellbinding tunes emanating from humble homes in Dayanzhen Town. The musicians carry their home made musical instruments to take part in household parties all over the town.

The Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in Lijiang is perhaps one the most beautiful mountain range in the world, famous for its perilous, beautiful and breathtaking landscapes. The peak of the Jade Dragon Mountain is about 5596 meters (about 17,000 ft) above sea level. The mountain's thirteen peaks viewed from south to north look an like elegant flying giant Chinese dragon. A very formidable view indeed.

So if you are visiting China, do drop by and take in the sights of this breathtaking tourist attraction called Lijiang.