Zhaotong | A world-class origin for Gastrodia elata and highland potato cultivation, home to southern apples and Chinese bamboo

🌈 Even a small city with five lines can produce blockbuster films like those from Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. ♥️ Historically, Zhaotong City has been an important gateway from Yunnan Province to Sichuan and Guizhou provinces, a major channel for Central Plains culture to enter Yunnan, one of the three origins of Yunnan culture, a key point on the 'Southern Silk Road', and known as 'the lock and key of southern Yunnan, the throat of western Sichuan'. It is an important passage connecting the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Zone, and a major corridor for inland China to South Asia, Southeast Asia, and from Yunnan to the inland. ♥️ Zhaotong City is rich in hydroelectric resources, with three giant power stations within its territory: Xiluodu, Xiangjiaba, and Baihetan. It ranks first in the province in coal and sulfur reserves and is the world's high-quality Gastrodia elata seed source base, the world's capital of highland seed potatoes, the largest high-quality apple base in southern China, and the hometown of Chinese bamboo. In 2022, Zhaotong City achieved a gross regional product of 154.102 billion yuan, an increase of 3.7% over the previous year. ♥️ Located on the right bank of the lower reaches of the Jinsha River, at the junction of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan provinces, Zhaotong City has a plateau monsoon climate, with no severe cold in winter, no extreme heat in summer, and simultaneous rainy and hot seasons. The terrain is high in the southwest and low in the northeast, sloping northward, presenting a typical plateau mountainous topography. During the Qin dynasty, Zhaotong was under the jurisdiction of Shu County. In the ninth year of Yongzheng (1731), Wumeng Prefecture was changed to Zhaotong Prefecture, under Yunnan Province. In 2001, the prefecture-level Zhaotong City was established. ♥️ Zhaotong City has initially built a comprehensive 'road, rail, water, and air' transportation system. Its highway mileage has jumped to the fourth in Yunnan Province, and Zhaotong Airport has basically set up an air corridor connecting the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Chengdu-Chongqing urban economic circle, the Pearl River Delta, and the Yangtze River Delta. Zhaotong is one of the three birthplaces of Yunnan culture, with a distinctive and diverse 'Zhuti culture', possessing 5 national key cultural relics protection units and 3 national-level intangible cultural heritages. Zhaotong City has 21 A-level scenic spots, including 6 4A-level and 9 3A-level scenic spots.