Over seven gruelling months, canadian jeff fuchs took on the challenge of following traditional muleteers along this twelvehundredyearold route. Whats more, it was a road linking culturally tibetans and other chinese in the history, and promoting the spread of buddhism. The ancient tea and horse caravan road, the silk road. Shortly after the japanese invasion was edging up and overtaking many portions of the tea horse road a woman by the name of olga greenlaw, the wife of the second in command of the flying tigers wrote a book titled the lady and the tigers. Chinas ancient trade route to tibet, a beautiful book with stunning photographs by michael freeman, whose photos above were taken along this route.
The ancient tea horse road winds its way through some of the. Sep 15, 2016 such prosperity on the tea horse road created the splendid history of dali and lijiang ancient towns, the major transfer centres of the ancient road to tibet or down to southeast asia. 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 fuchs frequent tea thirsts. Exploring the history behind chinas ancient tea horse road. As the title of this book suggests the topic is about an extensive network of physical pathways and small local routes that came to be collectively known as the tea horse road. Aug 07, 2015 an interesting and informative journey, linking ancient traditions of tea making, commerce, horse and mule transportation, and their routes, the ancient tea horse roads. If you book with tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. We sat down for tea to talk story with jeff fuchs about his journey to the mountains of yunnan. From now until 31 december 2019 the ancient tea horse road augoct concept of the offer. Jeff gives a detailed account of how he found his passion for tea and what he is doing now to bring this tea to north america.
Located at the front entrance of shuhe old town, hotel indigo lijiang ancient town is convenient for those who want to spend a day or two walking around. 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. Less familiar is its more southerly equivalent, the ancient teahorse road that once linked the lush tea gardens of southwest china with the frigid. Sometimes chinese tea would be exchanged for tibetan ponies. Guests can visit the ancient tea horse road museum situated within 20 minutes drive from the hotel. To make it, you will need postfermentated dark tea, yak butter, and a tea barrel or an electric blender if you want to be like fancy modern tibetans who traded their nomadic lifestyles for. Meanwhile, the road also promoted exchanges in culture, religion and ethnic migration, resembling the. Before the modern era of easy travel on paved roads goods were moved over high dangerous mountain passes, lonely desserts and rough trails, by men of extraordinary courage and character. Chinese ancinet teahorse road, discover the ancient tea. In 20067 five tibetans and myself would complete a 7. 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. Book the intercontinental lijiang ancient town resort stay at this 5star luxury hotel in lijiang. The ancient tea horse road winds its way through some of the most unforgiving terrain on earth. Intercontinental lijiang ancient town resort in lijiang.
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 the mountains of sichuan, yunnan and tibet in southwest china. 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 is an everlasting theme in lijiang. Explore free books, like the victory garden, and more browse now. Traversing the ancient tea horse road with jeff fuchs wildchina. 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. The ancient tea and horse caravan road, the silk road of. Dec 31, 2019 package specific terms and conditions. Life along the tea horse road is briefly reignited in a passionate and unforgettable adventure. This offer is valid for stays from from 20 aug 2019 until 31 oct 2019. 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. Puer tea has been grown for centuries in the six great tea mountains of yunnan province, and in imperial china it was a prized commodity, traded to tibet by horse or mule caravan via the socalled tea horse road and presented as tribute to the emperor in beijing. 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.
The tea horse road for those with an interest in this ancient caravan history, we recommend the tea horse road. In the morning, start your day off with a relaxing breakfast while jeff gives you an introduction to the ancient tea and horse caravan road pass by waving coconut palms and banana trees as you drive along the mighty mekong river to the stilted bamboo houses and buddhist pagodas of ganlanba trek to a dai minority village and local monastery hidden in the hills enjoy a. In the 1990s, as the tea s noble lineage and unique process of aging and fermentation were rediscovered, it achieved cult status. Chinese tea and tibetan horses were long traded on the legendary tea horse road, a harsh 2,250km trail stretching from chinas sichuan province to tibets capital city of lhasa. Meanwhile, the road also promoted exchanges in culture, religion and ethnic migration, resembling the refulgence of the silk road. Travels with the last of the himalayan muleteers 2008. Trade along the ancient teahorse road, a title used for a informal network of caravan routes across a vast swath of asia, began in earnest around. The ancient tea horse road museum lijiang tripadvisor. It is also one of the oldest and highest trade routes. 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. Part travel dialog, part history, part adventure story and partly a study of a group of friends who undertake to retrace the ancient trade route known as the tea horse road. Selena ahmed, ethnobotanist and author of the gorgeous new book tea horse road will be at the garden for a book signing this saturday, may 21 at 3 p. During the time greenlaw was writing the book and was being published 194243 the war was still raging. Jeff fuchs the author follows the last of the lados on the perilous and ancient path through asia known as the tea horse road.
Less familiar is its more southerly equivalent, the ancient teahorse road that once linked the lush tea gardens of southwest china with the frigid wastelands of tibet and beyond the torrid plains of northern india. 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. Jeff fuchs is the first documented westerner to travel both the ancient tea horse road and the tsalam nomadic route of salt and documenting them for the first time to western audiences. The ancient tea horse road is an excellent read for people who love adventure trekking, written memoirs, cultural studies, and tea. The tea horse road or chamadao now generally referred to as the ancient tea horse road or. Follow the jingling mule trains carrying tea across the centuries from china to tibet.
For both regions, it was the centerpiece of social interaction. For teaproducing regions, it was a critical means of obtaining tibetan warhorses that would help distant dynasties administer their borderlands. Jeff fuchs is the first documented westerner to travel both the ancient tea horse road and the tsalam nomadic route of salt and documenting them for the first time to western audiences you must learn to look at the world twice if you wish to see all there is to see jamake highwater. The longest trade route in the ancient world, chinas tea horse road is one of the worlds great romantic journeys.
Today, it is harder and harder to find someone alive who travelled the ancient tea horse road. Travels with the last of the himalayan muleteers first edition by fuchs, jeff isbn. If so, please drop me a comment with the title and author. 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. The ancient tea horse road china heritage quarterly. If you are interested in learning more of the history and journey of the ancient tea horse road, i highly recommend a book called the ancient tea horse road by jeff fuchs. Lux tea horse road lijiang is within a 30minute drive to lijiang airport.
China needed war horses to protect its northern frontier and tibet could supply them. Jan 09, 2018 tibetan butter tea, princess wencheng, and the ancient tea horse road butter tea is a staple in the tibetan diet. Jeff fuchs is a canadian explorer, mountaineer and writer. Jul 25, 2016 trade along the ancient tea horse road, a title used for a informal network of caravan routes across a vast swath of asia, began in earnest around the seventh century and peaked between the late. The ancient tea and horse road first appeared during the tang dynasty 618907, and lasted until the construction of the tibetan highways in the 1960s. The treks he writes about were all organized by himself, and he was the only westerner involved. The ancient tea horse road meanders across the rooftop of the world. One of the longest and most dramatic trade routes of the ancient worl. The hotel of indigo lijiang might be the perfect place to start the journey.
There are numerous surviving archaeological and monumental elements, including trails, bridges, w. Tibetan butter tea, princess wencheng, and the ancient tea. The ancient commercial passage, dubbed the ancient tea horse road, first appeared during the tang dynasty 618907, and lasted until the 1960s when tibetan highways were constructed. Fuchs is a canadian who traveled almost the entirety of the remnants of the. The center of lijiang is a 10minute walk from the property. 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.
Now brought to you by lux in the spirit and essence of the old caravanserais that served the leaders of the packtrains carrying tea from the burmese border to the high plateau of tibet, lux tea horse road is a series of. Such prosperity on the tea horse road created the splendid history of dali and lijiang ancient towns, the major transfer centres of the ancient road to tibet or down to southeast asia. Thanks to this perilous passage, the fame and influence of yunnans puer tea spread far and wide. Jeff fuchs, the author, lives in china, so he knows the people and the territory well. The ancient tea horse trade route also known as the southern silk road is a sprawling web of millenniaold paths. Jan 01, 2008 the ancient tea horse road winds its way through some of the most unforgiving terrain on earth. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Chinas ancient tea horse road andrew forbes, david.
The antique silk road that connected the chinese and mediterranean worlds for more than a millennium, facilitating the exchange of both goods and cultures. The tea horse road began to decline after the 1960s with the opening of the yunnantibetan and sichuantibetan highways, but some sections of the famous road remain open and are still used for transport purposes. Jun 30, 2008 the author and his friends in retracing the ancient rout also visit the camps, villages, and old trade centers and even meet a few of the surviving men who once, not so long ago, practiced the ancient, difficult and backbreaking work of trading on the tea horse road. This route would appear to have been in use long before it became an avenue for the tea and horse trade during the tang and the song dynasties, for it was a very important corridor connecting the ancient cultures of the areas of present tibet, yunnan and sichuan. Author unknown translated from chinese by chu daye the ancient tea horse road the ancient tea horse road is a 4000 km route used by ancient tea and horse traders in ancient china. Are there any other puerh books floating around out there. Today the ancient tea horse road is at the forefront again with the development of tourism in chinas sichuan and yunnan provinces. Tea horse road jeff fuchs tea and mountain journals. Ancient sichuantibet tea horse road lainchung nangsa. Though the book is not specifically about tea, the tea drinker will find.
The book, written in the casual essay style of chinese rather than the. It is also sometimes referred to as the southern silk road or southwest silk road, and it is part of a complex routes system connecting china and south asia. Amazingly beautiful ancient teahorse road this is a network of paths in what was one of the first teaproducing areas of china. 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. We recommend booking the ancient tea horse road museum tours ahead of time to secure your spot.
This offer is open for bookings from from 20 aug 2019 until 30 oct 2019. 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. Enlightening and beautiful pictures accompany the text, a journey diary and a detailed historical description together. Aug 17, 2018 the ancient tea horse road in china was a trade route mainly through yunnan, sichuan, and tibet.
The tea and horse caravan road as a corridor of ancient civilizations. It was used as a commercial passage for transporting tea, salt and other commodities. Ancient sichuantibet tea horse road search results iucat. For centuries, this road carried tea out of the forests of yunnan province, china to the faraway lands of tibet, nepal, india and burma. Today, regardless of the vitality of this thoroughfare of commerce and rich fusion of commodities, the ancient landscape seems to be changing. 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. Traversing the ancient tea horse road with jeff fuchs. Hotel lux tea horse road lijiang lijiang yunnan 4 china.
Mar 20, 2018 the ancient tea horse road was a network of caravan paths winding through the mountains of southwest china. Kindle store go search best sellers gift ideas new releases deals. When the tibetans discovered tea in the 7th century, it became a staple of their diet, but its. What is it like on the path of the ancient tea horse road. The antique silk road that connected the chinese and mediterranean worlds for more than a millennium, facilitating the exchange of both goods and cultures, is widely known and celebrated. This is the first comprehensive visual documentation of the tea horse road that takes the audience on a journey from the birthplace of the tea plant along the oldest trade route of tea in the world. A surprising journey along chinas tea horse road the globe. Two nights stay in hot spring retreatkingtwin daily breakfast and unlimited outdoor hot spring up to 2 adults. You must learn to look at the world twice if you wish to see all there is to see jamake highwater. See all 1 the ancient tea horse road museum tours on tripadvisor. Historically, the ancient tea horse road was almost the same as the western frontier of china. The history of the tea horse road, chinas ancient trade route. One of the longest and most dramatic trade routes of the ancient world, the tea horse road carried a crucial exchange for.
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