Eighteen Oddities | Ancient Chinese Culture

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Eighteen Oddities in Yunnan

Eighteen Oddities in Yunnan, also called Eighteen Wonders of Yunnan, are eighteen unique traits in Yunnan Province.

Eighteen Oddities in Yunnan are generally presented as follows:

1. The eggs are sold tying up with straws.

2. Bamboo hats are used as pot covers, which are of good breathability.
3. Three mosquitoes can make up a dish as the mosquitoes are so large that just three mosquitoes are large enough to compose a dish.
4. Bamboo is used for smoking pipes.
5. Erkuai – a local famous snack made of rice, which is very savory and glutinous. It can be boiled, braised, fried, etc.

6. The same clothes can be worn for all four seasons. You may also see the clothes for all four seasons on a day in Yunnan as the climatic conditions may vary widely. Maybe during the day you are wearing the T-shirt, but at night you have to wear the sweater.
7. Young girls are usually called “Old Lady”. It is expression of intimacy and goodwill, wishing it can bring the girls good health.
8. Automobiles run faster than trains as there are many curves around the high mountains and canyons.
9. Toes are exposed all year round, which can make people feel cool as people often climb mountains.
10. Rain here but sunshine there as the weather in Yunnan is often variable between areas.
11. Girls wearing flowers for all the four seasons.
12. Girls carry tobacco bags as in some regions, girls have the habit of smoking.
13. Green vegetable is called bitter vegetable. It got its name not from its taste but from the old customs.
14. Old women climb mountains faster than monkeys as they are quite diligent and always chop firewood inside mountains. Even at the age of 80 or 90, they still can climb the mountains freely as if they are walking on the flat land.
15. Trains go abroad but not inland. In ancient time, there was only one railway from Kunming to Hanoi of Vietnam but no domestic railway.
16. Monks can have love affairs.
17. Children are raised by men as women are busy with their work, thus most men stay at home to take care of their children.
18. Automobiles are moving in the clouds as roads in Yunnan always wind up along colossal and precipitous mountains and fog spreads all over the mountaintops.

Nowadays, some of the traits already disappeared, while some of them have been retained. However, Eighteen Oddities in Yunnan really reflect the unique location and culture of Yunnan Province.

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