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Zhou Na

In Yunnan, women toil 10 hours a day harvesting marigolds. The flowers will be processed to make traditional medicine.

Children play in Yubi, a village that straddles the old southwestern Silk Road in Yunnan province, China. Mule caravans once plied local stone-paved trails carrying jade, ivory, and other goods between Southeast Asia and China. Salopek and his walking partners hiked these ancient trading routes, now often overgrown and little used.

On September 28, 2021, the first day of Paul Salopek’s China trek, he passes through Heshun on his way to Tengchong.

Lanterns provide a decorative touch in Heshun, a popular tourist destination. The town’s first McDonald’s restaurant has been closed temporarily postponed because of COVID-19.

Women pick corollas at the village of Yusan. The petals will be rendered into essential oils and medicines.

An archway marks the edge of historic Heshun, near Tengchong, in the far southwest of Yunnan Province. Built during the Ming Dynasty, Heshun was an important caravan stop on the southwestern route of the ancient Silk Road.