From the edge of Xinjie I walked into the countryside. Xinjie is perched on the mountain like a medieval Italian hill town. But we are in China’s Yunnan Province and here ethnic minority groups from the surrounding villages come in to buy and sell goods. You can notice them by their distinct and sometimes very colorful clothing.

I came to Xinjie to see the rice terraces of Yuanyang. They are well-known and attract tourists from all over China—mostly the camera and tripod-toting city folk. It was a few days after Chinese New Year when I visited and the small town was overloaded with visitors. The first day in Xinjie a thick fog enveloped the town throughout the entire day. On the second day I walked to see the terraces.

Winter may be the finest time of year to view the terraces—all flooded with water before the planting season. I passed through a few hamlets, down into the lower elevations where I saw a whole mountainside terraced and absolutely no people. Then I was satisfied. I shot my photos and while returning caught the glow of the late afternoon sun and its reflection off the flooded terraces.