On April 23, the fifteenth day ......of the third month of the lunar calendar, the 2024 Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture "March Street" Ethnic Festival and the 25th Traditional Sports Games of Ethnic Minorities were grandly opened at the March Street Racecourse in the ancient city of Dali. This thousand-year-old event opened again, and the wave of carnival celebration was surging between Cangshan and Erhai.
The thousand-year-old city of Dali is full of people and is very lively. People from all over the world gather here across the mountains and seas to catch the market, watch horse races, watch performances, taste food, and go to this folk feast of 10,000 people.
The fireworks of "March Street". Photo courtesy of the courtesy of the
Literature and art are flourishing, and bright spots are frequent
In the early morning of the opening ceremony, the "March Street" racecourse was filled with spectators waiting to enter the stadium early. "I live near the Three Towers, and I got up early today to come here. Cheng Ya, a first-time visitor to the March Street Ethnic Festival, said excitedly that she was looking forward to the upcoming opening ceremony and the horse racing conference.
The opening ceremony, which took 50 days to prepare and was attended by 2,200 cast and crew, was a surprise affair. Dragon dance, lion dance, dragon head three strings staged in turn, Dali Prefecture White Opera Troupe's "Golden Flower" and "A Peng" dance the overlord whip, pull the small float, Midu lanterns, Yi singing, horse dance, Miao dance and other programs are wonderful, Jianchuan wood carving, Heqing silverware, Dali tie-dye and other intangible cultural heritage elements are also cleverly integrated into the program arrangement, winning the applause of the masses.
Theatrical performance at the opening ceremony. Photo courtesy of the courtesy of the
In previous years, the "March Street" National Festival has many cultural and entertainment activities that the masses like to see, and this year is no exception. Under the big green tree, the folk artists sing one after another, the ancient music of the Dongjing is melodious and simple, and the big song is played and sung with endless charm; in the racecourse, the exciting races make people's blood boil; and the dragon dance parade walks through the street, which is very lively......
With the in-depth development of the integration of culture and tourism and the growing demand for experience, the activity scene of "March Street" has become more and more colorful. On the tower of the "Cangshan Gate", the "Appearance of Erhai Lake" photography exhibition shows the beautiful scenery and humanistic stories of Erhai Lake with a photo; at the "Dali March Carnival" celebration, the Bai Jinhua leads the tourists to dance and carnival under the moonlight with the tracks such as "Annual March Street" and "Dali Love Song...... The interweaving of tradition and modernity, and the deep integration of culture and tourism, not only allow people from all over the world to appreciate the unique and diverse charm of Dali's national culture, but also make the excellent traditional culture glow with the brilliance of the new era.
The host and guest share the folk feast
"The song is to the old, the more the heart is sweeter. "In Dali, singing is the best way to express emotions. During the "March Street" National Festival, on the singing platform under the big green tree in the ancient street, the 23rd Dali Prefecture National Folk Original Ecological Singer Contest is underway. 36 pairs of singers from 12 counties (cities) in Dali Prefecture dressed in gorgeous national costumes and sang their signature tracks, "Brother Has Love, Sister Has Intention", "Yi Love Song", "Red Flower Tune", ...... The original tone, the singing is high-pitched and pure, and the aftersound is endless, adding a romantic atmosphere to Dali's "March Street".
An artist who plays the three strings of the dragon's head. Photo by Yang Jipei
"We will also improvise duets according to the situation on the scene, sometimes singing about natural scenery, sometimes singing love songs, and the tunes are also folk tunes that have been passed down for thousands of years. Yang Haixing, a pair of singers from Xizhou Town, introduced that the Bai people's duet song is far more than just expressing love, but also a folk competition full of knowledge and wisdom. When the song meets an opponent, as long as the content of the song can be connected and the rhyme can be through, it is often difficult to decide the winner for several days and nights. The love songs on the ancient street and the heartfelt appeal under the big green tree have also become an indispensable ritual sense during the festivals of many Bai people.
On the other side of the March street, the atmosphere of the crossbow shooting competition of the traditional sports meeting of ethnic minorities was "arrows" and "crossbows". The contestants draw crossbows, put on bamboo arrows, aim, and fire, all in one go. The sports activities of "March Street" have a long history, bringing together many unique national sports, such as horse racing, spinning top, crossbow shooting, blow guns, swings, etc. These projects are not only competitive and fitness, but also full of artistry and appreciation, carrying a profound national cultural heritage, and bringing rich and colorful visual enjoyment to the people of all ethnic groups.
Good things gather to shop in Dali
From ancient times to the present day, commodity trade and material exchange are important activities, and even in today's era when information and logistics are so convenient, people who love to catch up with the "street" always have a reason to come to the "March Street" to get together. In this year's "March Street", Dali Guotou Group has set up nearly 1,000 booths, which are divided into five areas, including "Yunnan Good Things", Chinese herbal medicine exhibition and sales area, agricultural assistance and department store exhibition area, cultural and creative intangible cultural heritage exhibition area and food area.
Pickled peppers and garlic are the gourmet partners of Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken. Photo courtesy of the courtesy of the
Walking into the boutique exhibition area of 12 counties (cities) in Dali Prefecture, Eryuan's milk fan and plum fruit products, Binchuan's mandarin orange and Zhu Kula coffee, Weishan's papaya vinegar and perfume lemon, Midu's curly hooves, rose puree and other famous and excellent products are overwhelming. These carefully selected specialties from various counties and cities are not only included in the must-buy list by locals who know the goods, but also a way for foreign tourists to quickly understand Dali's products.
"Among my products, the best one to sell is pork liver bream, in addition to the locals like it, many foreign merchants who do catering in Dali have also recognized our goods. On the first day of opening on April 23, Dong Sulan, a merchant from Heqing, brought more than 100 catties of pork liver bream, which was quickly sold out on the 24th, and she hurriedly asked her son to drive overnight to send more than 100 catties. "This is the first time for our family to do business on March Street, and we hope that more people will come to taste and learn about this traditional dish. Dong Sulan said.
Yongping yellow stewed chicken. Photo by Li Li
In the "March Street" market, from gourmet snacks to local specialties, from intangible cultural heritage handicrafts to national costumes, there are a wide range of items, everything. Between shopping, eating, shopping, you can feel the most real fireworks in Dali's life.
According to the relevant person in charge of Dali SDIC Group, this year's "March Street" adopts early registration, pre-qualification, and on-site lottery to match merchants and booths, strictly control the business qualifications and product quality of merchants, and introduce good products and characteristic intangible cultural heritage from all over the world to improve the quality of merchants. At the same time, market supervision, agriculture and rural areas and other departments have also formed a commodity quality supervision and management group to carry out law enforcement inspection and supervision on the price publicity of restaurants, listed medicinal materials, food labels, etc., to ensure that tourists can eat and buy with peace of mind.
From "settling in a shed and making a market" to "setting up a stage for culture and singing opera", "March Street" has passed through thousands of years, arousing people's yearning for a better life and constantly bursting out with new vitality. Nowadays, "March Street" has become a comprehensive event integrating cultural performances, sports events, leisure and entertainment, and cultural inheritance, attracting more and more tourists to come to experience the charm of national culture. With the continuous development of society and the continuous change of people's needs, the activity scene of "March Street" will continue to be enriched and innovated, bringing more diverse and wonderful cultural experiences to tourists.
Watch the passion on the racetrack
The early morning wind blows through the green shade with a hint of coolness, and the Dali "March Street" racecourse is full of neighing and people's voices. With a whistle, the brakes opened, and the riders galloped out of the horse like an arrow from a string, heading straight for the finish line, showing the speed and passion of the horse.
On April 23, the 2024 Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture "March Street" Horse Racing Conference officially opened. This year, a total of 23 teams and 126 horses participated in the race, from Kunming, Lijiang, Diqing, Baoshan and some counties (cities) in Dali Prefecture, as well as well-known equestrian clubs in Beijing, Liaoning, Inner Mongolia, Guizhou, Shanxi and other places. During the four-day competition, the competitors will compete in 13 events, with the best horse receiving the "King of Horses Award".
At the horse race, the three competitors were "neck and neck". Photo by Li Li
On the first day of the race, the mixed group 2000m, the national group 2000m speed horse race, and the mixed group 1000m horse race were carried out in turn. The riders were in high spirits, chasing after me, the atmosphere was tense and intense, the audience was crowded, and cheers and shouts resounded over the field. "It's so exciting, it's so exciting! It's the first time I've watched a horse race live, and it's a great experience. Ms. Wang, from Honghe Hani and Yi Autonomous Prefecture, rushed to the racecourse early in the morning to experience Dali's unique horse racing culture. "This kind of shock can only be felt in the field. She said.
The horse racing conference is the "highlight" of the "March Street" ethnic festival in Dali, and it is also one of the most eye-catching sports events in Dali, with strong national characteristics and competitiveness, ornamentation and entertainment, attracting tourists and horse racing enthusiasts from all over the world to participate every year, and is favored by the people of all ethnic groups. In recent years, with the participation of equestrian associations and clubs in Beijing, Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and other regions, the influence of the "March Street" horse racing conference has been expanding, and horse racing activities have also become a large-scale competition for professional racers from equestrian clubs across the country from the random registration of the masses. Whether it's a fledgling novice or a seasoned veteran, every horse and rider has their own stage here.
"The 3000m race took about 4 minutes, which was good. In the arena, a horse named "Jianggua" caught the eye, and the rider on horseback was a 24-year-old rider from the Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Equestrian Association. He told reporters that he came to Dali to participate in horse racing when he was 15 years old, and this year he signed up for the 2000-meter speed race, 1000-meter horse walking and 3000-meter horse walking race, hoping to get good results.
Watching the horse racing conference has become an indispensable part of the "March Street". This ancient land has witnessed the harmony between horse racing and nature, and the perfect combination of traditional customs and modern sports, which has become the most eye-catching scenery on Dali's "March Street".
100 people with the same yellow stewed chicken
In the "March Street" National Festival, in addition to horse racing, singing, and trading, tasting food on the street has also become one of the must-have "check-in" items.
More than 10 cauldrons are lined up, and the chefs wield shovels to pour peppercorns, garlic, dried chili peppers and other condiments into the oil pot, and add chicken to stir-fry repeatedly. In less than half an hour, plates of fragrant Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken were served, and the golden chicken, green onions, white garlic chunks and fiery red peppers were tumbling in the fragrant rapeseed oil, making people want to feast on it.
Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken, with its beautiful color and flavor, fragrant aroma, oily but not greasy, unique taste, fast cooking, won the reputation of "a chicken in western Yunnan", "the first brand of famous dishes in western Yunnan" and "the first taste of chicken", and was successfully selected into the list of intangible cultural heritage of Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture. For Dali people, ordering a plate of yellow stewed chicken on the "March Street", accompanied by spicy peppers, garlic, fragrant chicken and sour pickles, is the enjoyment of the taste buds, and it is the continuation of feelings.
Yongping yellow stewed chicken. Photo by Yang Jipei
At about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, the Hu Kee Yellow Braised Chicken Shop in March Street was crowded, and the chef's spatula flew over, and the fragrant yellow braised chicken was out of the pot one after another. "This year's business is really hot! We have been busy since 9 o'clock in the morning until now, and we expect to consume four or five hundred chickens today. Hu Xiusong, the person in charge of Hu Ji Huang Braised Chicken Restaurant, said excitedly that the restaurant has also expanded the number of pots from 6 to 13 to ensure that every diner can taste this delicious dish as soon as possible.
Ma Ji Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken is also full of people in the store, the reservation phone keeps ringing, and the scene of hundreds of people eating yellow stewed chicken is frequently staged. Diners sat around and tasted the aroma of the braised chicken and enjoyed the joy of the food.
Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken has not only become a food legend on "March Street", but also a beautiful business card of Dali.
In order to further promote the local specialties of Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken, Yongping County has carefully organized 6 merchants in the county and Yongping Vocational High School to participate in the 2024 Dali "March Street" Ethnic Festival through open solicitation, carried out the promotion activities of Yongping Yellow Braised Chicken, and invited the Yunnan Catering and Food Industry Association to continuously standardize and improve the business behavior and service quality of merchants. Let the diners from all over the world taste the delicious yellow stewed chicken at the same time, and deeply feel the warmth and hospitality of the people of Dali.
The traditional "medicine street" is charming
The earliest commodity traded in "March Street" was medicinal herbs, and it used to be the largest medicinal materials trading market in southern China, so "March Street" was also known as "Medicine Street" in the early days. The prosperity of the "Medicine Street" continues to this day, thanks to the persistence of several generations of medicine farmers, medicine workers and medicine merchants to the tradition.
This year, there are a total of 280 booths in the Chinese herbal medicine exhibition area, and for nearly half a month, the pharmacists eat and live here.
He Duji, 39, and his wife, Li Yongjuan, run the "Plateau Impression" medicinal herb shop, and he remembers that since he was a teenager, he has been selling medicinal herbs with his parents every year during holidays. He said: "In the past two years, my parents have been old, and my wife and I have set up the stall. He Duji and his wife operate more than 200 kinds of more than 1,000 kilograms of Chinese medicinal materials, which are open from 7 o'clock in the morning to 12 o'clock in the evening, with daily sales of more than 5,000 yuan.
A view of "Medicine Street". Photo by He Duji
On the "March Street", there are many pharmacists similar to the situation of He Duji's family, their grandparents came to settle in the Eryuan area of Dali from Diqing, and generally started the medicinal materials business after settling, and the tradition of setting up stalls on "March Street" every year has continued for three generations.
Zhengjiazhuang Village in Sanying Town, Eryuan County, came to six pharmacists this year. Yu Junkang, who runs the "Tibetan Cottage", told reporters that he rushed from his 20s to "March Street" to 63 years old, saying: "In the past, several families in the village rented a tractor and drove over, but now the traffic is more convenient. His booth had more than 400 kinds of medicinal herbs, including saffron, snow lotus, cordyceps and more. The variety of medicinal materials is complete, and the pharmacists have a good reputation accumulated for many years, which is the reason why many Dali people want to search every corner of the "medicine street" for "good medicine is not afraid of deep alleys".
Surprisingly, many young people in Dali also fell in love with the "medicine street", and they liked to buy longan meat, wolfberry, American ginseng slices, roses, chrysanthemums, etc. Xiao Liu, a college student, said: "Today's young people pay more attention to health preservation, and they also like Chinese medicine culture. I am a medical student, and what I am most looking forward to this year is to come to the herbal medicine area to 'sweep the goods'. ”
Popular literature and art are enjoyed by the public
"Go to the 'No. 1 Stage' to see the show!" "In the ancient street, people rushing to the street invited each other. This year's special "No. 1 Stage", in 7 days, from 12 counties (cities) in Dali Prefecture, the State Qunyi Museum and the State White Opera Troupe will carry out 14 special performances.
Under the big green tree, the song platform Dali Prefecture Qunyi Museum. Photo by Yang Ting
At noon on April 25, 60 performers from Binchuan County appeared on the stage with 14 programs. "Spring Comes Early in Yi Township" is set in the Yi Township of Laou, showing that the once closed mountain township is now attracting more and more young people. The little white drama "Treats and Gifts" is easy to understand and down-to-earth, and there are frequent laughs. Zhou Zhiwei, deputy director of the Binchuan County Bureau of Culture and Tourism, introduced: "Binchuan County is a well-known hometown of overseas Chinese, with 4 overseas Chinese communities, and these two programs are choreographed according to the cultural characteristics of the community. He introduced that there is no special theatrical performance team in Binchuan County, and the actors this time are recommended by various towns and towns, and many actors are from rural areas, "Everyone is busy with farm work while taking time to rehearse, and in more than a month, from not being familiar with each other to getting along with each other, they jointly presented this performance, and everyone was very happy." ”
The special programs of various counties (cities) have been staged on the "No. 1 stage", such as "Three Bends" in Nanjian Yi Autonomous County, "Xiaohe Flowing Water and Clear Leisure" in Midu County, "Winding Sanling" in Dali, Heqing Tiangong Tune, Jianchuan Dongshan Sheep Singing Tune, Yangbi Yi Nationality Knife Dance...... Singing and dancing gatherings, heroes gathered. The actors from Yongping County, after contributing a shocking Miao reed sheng dance at the opening ceremony, are still in full swing rehearsals, preparing to perform on the "No. 1 stage" on the 29th. Luo Jing, deputy director of the Yongping County Bureau of Culture and Tourism, introduced that the performance in Yongping County is the last performance of the "No. 1 stage" of March Street this year. (Source: Yunnan Daily, Yunnan Release)