In Shangri-La County, Dechen Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, there is an ancient town with more than 1300 years history. Named Dukezong, the town is known as “City of Moonlight.” It is a town with well preserved Tibetan houses in Tibetan-inhabited areas of China, a crucial cultural exchange site for various ethnic groups, and a major rest stop on the Tea Horse Road.

Shangri-La County, located in the southern part of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau and the intersection of Yunnan Province, Sichuan Province, and Tibet, is described as a peaceful and serene land in the Far East in the novel, The Lost Horizon, by James Hilton, the renowned British writer.

In the town known as the “City of Moonlight”, there are Tibetan-Chinese families where four generations live under one roof, Tibetan herders who have worked here for generations, hard-working ethnic minority students, folk artisans who dedicate themselves to passing on the legacy of intangible cultural heritage, and experts who know stories about every ancient house in town.

They are the people of Shangri-La, and they are the owners of the City of Moonlight.

 
Tibetan students taking notes in a Tibetan language class

   
A Tibetan woman working on traditional Tibetan gowns

A senior resident enjoying the sun outside a bar in Dukezong

The heirs of the craft of Nixi Ceramics working on Tibetan style ceramicware

Archaeology expert of Dukezong