Years ago, I remember flipping through a National Geographic magazine seeing a photograph of a person performing dentistry on a sidewalk in China. That remained in my mind one of those must-see-it-for-myself things.

My fantasy instant of Chinese sidewalk dentistry finally came true at the Friday market in Shaxi, a town in Yunnan Province between Dali and Lijiang. The streets lining up to the town market were completely filled with ad hoc stalls and buyers from the surrounding villages. Among them were tables set up by these dental personnel.

I don’t know exactly what kind of procedures were taking place here, or if the practitioners had any kind of professional training. I did see some dental tools on the table and plenty of individual false teeth.

Have you encountered sidewalk dentistry during your travels? Let me know where in the comments below.