Yunnan Say A Little Prayer

As the Yunnan borders onto Tibet, there are many similarities. We visited a few Buddhist temples.  Large and small. The large near Shangri-La, a homage to the Potala Palace. Still under construction!

View of the temple from ShangriLa

Covered prayer wheels..

Tibetan doors and windows..

The small temple of Damo high in the mountains, a genuine not-just-for-toursists -temple, the monks going in for prayer,

A little late..

The door shuts...

Glimpses of the warm glow of the interior, the sounds of chanting, the drums and the gongs. The colourful robes against the scenic frescos.

Young boys and old men. A discarded robe. A tarnished gong..

I was haunted by the prayer flags, ever present from Lijiang and around the Tibetan borders. Vast swathes of flags draped across trees, telegraph poles, in inaccessible places. It was as if there had been a party and the decorations left behind, never removed just added to at each new party or festival.

Across the glacier..

 They added a magical quality to the bleak beauty of a rainy mountain landscape.

And a fairytale grotto feel to a green leafy valley.

A rarely glimpsed view of the peak of the Meili Snow mountain at mid autumn festival, with prayer flags..

And then there were mystically offerings, hung in the trees...