Page 11 - YunnanTourismCultureTimes (114)

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Finding home away from home

此心安处是吾乡

Location: Shangri-La
Narrators: Long Ying, owner of the Huksum Art studio in Dukezong Ancient Town, and Cheng Guangyu, founder of the Bantu Erfei Travelers’ Café.

“Fifteen years have passed in the blink plained Wang Yuan, Party Branch Secretary
of an eye. My child was born in this ancient of Jinlong Community. He added that it is this
town and learned to walk on these flagstone longstanding multiculturalism that has shaped
lanes. We know all our neighbors—the Zang Shangri-La’s distinctive atmosphere of free-
auntie who shares her tsampa bread, the Bai dom and openness.
uncle who brings over freshly picked mush- In 2012, when Cheng Guangyu, from
rooms. The kindness and openness here have Shaanxi, first stood by the shores of Napa
long made what was once a foreign land Lake on the Yila Grassland, he felt some- Long-Stay Travel Journal
feel like home.” In Jinlong Community of thing open up inside him. Prayer flags lifted in Shangri-La
Dukezong Ancient Town, Shangri-La, Long in the wind, yaks moved slowly through
Ying, owner of Huksum Art, traced the hand- shallow water, snow peaks reflected on the 1. Attractions & Activities
carved patterns on her shop counter as she lake’s surface. “Right then,” he recalled, Visit Sumtsenling Monastery
spoke, giving voice to a feeling shared by “even the air tasted like freedom.” Over the to sense the solemn atmosphere
many new Shangri-La residents. To her, this next ten years, he kept returning, camping on of the “Miniature Potala Palace”
place of woven cultures is no longer some- the grassland, riding horses across its open (remember to circle clockwise).
where unfamiliar; it is a hometown where spaces, joining Guozhuang circle dances Stroll through Dukezong Ancient
her roots have grown deep. in Dukezong Ancient Town. Little by little, Town and turn the world’s largest
Shangri-La, meaning “the sun and moon those moments of warmth turned postcard prayer wheel to send blessings.
in my heart” in the Zang language, lies where scenery into something lived and familiar. Walk the wooden plank trail at
Yunnan, Sichuan, and Xizang meet. Histori- It was this growing sense of belonging Shudu Lake in Potatso National
cally a key hub along the Ancient Tea Horse that finally led Cheng to stay. In 2022, he Park, where you may encounter
Route, the area has long been a crossroads. At opened his Bantu Erfei Travelers’ Café along squirrels or yaks. Napa Lake
its center sits Dukezong Ancient Town, which the road that circles Napa Lake. When the transforms with the seasons: a
for over 1,300 years has served as a living win- sign went up, swaying slightly in the breeze, reflective lake after rains, and the
dow into the cultures of Zang, Naxi, Yi, and he felt it clearly: he was putting down roots. expansive Yila Grassland when
Lisu peoples. Within the town, Jinlong Com- Today, the small shop sells over 400 cups of dry. Cycling around its perimeter
munity embodies this spirit of inclusion: its 988 coffee on peak days—and in running it, he is a serene, restorative experience.
households include 2,778 permanent residents has found his own way of connecting with
and 2,432 temporary dwellers, who live togeth- this land. “What I’m really brewing,” he said 2. Food Recommendations
er in quiet harmony. Notably, 75% of families with a smile, “is my bond with Shangri-La.” Yak meat hotpot, matsutake
here are multi-ethnic. “This day-to-day reality With its open spirit and serene beauty, chicken soup, butter tea with
shows the deep sense of interdependence and Shangri-La remains a place that nurtures tsampa, barley bread, and yak yo-
connectedness among all ethnic groups,” ex- those in search of meaning, cultural connec- gurt.
tion, and a deeper way of life. Here, the line
between “another place” and “home” has
softly faded—because home, in the end, is
simply where your heart
settles.