The Men Don't Work? The Woman Do it ALL!

There is a place in China where the woman do all the work and the men retire after they get married. The Hani minority peoples of south Yunnan province are such a group. The woman above I met with her family in Qingko village south of Jinghong. She was about to be married and invited me to her wedding. There is a down size however to this arrangement and that is if they divorce, she takes EVERYTHING and he is left with nothing! They are a farming community and indeed the women were doing all the work and make a great home made wine. Their dance and musical chanting sounds very much like our American Indians. Since they have no locks on their doors, they carry their limited wealth in a bag with them wherever they go. I managed to buy one which of course was hand made as all their clothes are made and sewn themselves. After leaving the compound, I went to a local restaurant and yes, found many men playing cards, smoking and drinking wine. I asked what else they do during the day and they said they enjoy fishing too. At first glance it all sounded great but the men depend on the women for everything and it can all end quickly with a simple divorce. Divorce happens when they go to the village leader and take a small stick. They declare their divorce and the stick is then broken in half signifying they are now separated and divorced in the eyes of the village. There are over 57 minority peoples in China and although I haven't visited all of them I have visted many and will be writing about them in future blogs. Tours to China can be arranged at www.interlakechinatours.com Hope to hear from you. ChinaDave