|
 Oliver
Sandbar known in the
language of the Dai
people as Menghan, the
Oliver Sandbar on the
Lancang Rivers a
world-famous “peacock
tail” meaning the most
beautiful part of
Xishuangbanna. “No trip
to Xishuangbanna is
complete without a visit
to Oliver Sandbar” as
the popular saying goes.
Situated at the end of a
37-kilometers trip down
the Lancang River from
Jinghong, and covering
an area of 50 square
kilometers at an
altitude of 530 metres
(the lowest point of
Xishuangbanna), the
Oliver Sandbar derives
its name from the fact
that its forever clothed
in greenery and that it
takes the shape of an
olive. A total of 64
Dai-inhabited villages
are found on the
sandbar, and bamboo
abodes gleam in the
verdure of coconut
trees, with water
flowing past them all
the year round, and
flowers in full bloom in
all four seasons. Thus
the phrase “Bamboo
pavilions under coconut
trees” becomes
synonymous to the Dai
people’s dwellings. The
Oliver Sandbar, its
tropical landscape
looking sylvan in the
ethnic Dai tradition,
evinces an air of
classic sanctity and
natural repose. |
