Yunnan, In Pictures

Yunnan has been one long jaw-dropping moment after another. So different from the barren landscape I wrongly anticipated, Yunnan proved itself full of flowers, fields, mountains, lush pastures and pine trees, peopled with friendly and welcoming people from the smallest village of five houses, to the largest city of millions. Temples. Richly patterned ethnic dress. Unusual and exotic foods. I could write about Yunnan for the rest of the year, quite happily, without running out of material - in fact I could stay in Yunnan for the rest of the year, quite happily, under its intense blue skies with bright colours that remind me of home in Australia -  but travel is all about moving on, so before I go on to neighbouring Guizhou Province, I wanted to leave you with a pictorial kaleidoscope of Yunnan, in all its vibrant colour.