Nakeli Village, Tongxin Town, Ning'er Hani & Yi Autonomous County ,a former important relay station on the Tea-Horse Road. Before this pandemic, groups of students - including some overseas students from Laos, Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries - come and visit this place every weekend.

Starting from the source of Tea-Horse Road, Pu'er is connected to Southeast Asian countries and regions by this thousand-year-old route. Today, the number of overseas students from neighbouring countries who intend to study in Pu'er keeps growing. The overseas students from Laos, for instance, who are currently studying at Puer University, total more than 200. At the same time, a rising number of graduates are choosing to take up employment in neighbouring countries.

"On the ancient silk road and tea-horse road, different nationalities and cultures are helping supply each other, and learning from each other."

During the Yunnan Global Promotion Event, held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, the "Tea-Horse Road" became a hot word, mentioned frequently by guests and diplomatic agents stationed in China.

All this time, the tea-horse road has always been a road with nostalgia for Yunnan people. The stone road with footprints of horses, the hundred-year-old Wind and Rain Bridge, the saddles passing down from multiple generations... Since 2007, Nakeli Village has conducted the tea-horse road protection and developmental repair project, which has restored the historical appearance of the ancient tea-horse relay station. Besides the fundamental tourism facilities, it also constructed water landscapes, the Horse Jump Stone, the Horse-Washing Platform and the Ancient Road Gallery in the relay station. 

Taking credit for the good reputation of Tea-Horse Road, Nakeli Village is rising in its popularity with tourists. Now, 40 percent of people in Nakeli are there for tourism.

A "Nakeli Tea-Horse Road Relay Station Association" has been founded in the local region.

In May 2013, the State Council listed the Tea-Horse Road (Ning’er Section) in the Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units. And Nakeli Village was added to the China Traditional Villages list in the same year. In 2015, Nakeli Village was put into the National Eco-Cultural Villages list.

Along with the opening-up of Yunnan and its deepening cooperation with neighbouring countries, more and more people recognise the pioneering spirit and sharing culture embedded in the Tea-Horse Road. Sharing the history and culture of the Tea-Horse Road and showing the image of Yunnan is growing.

Now, a "Tea-Horse Road" series of themed tourism projects are on the horizon. In 2014, Pu'er City and Yunnan Mekong River Group signed an agreement to conduct a protective development on the start sith of  Tea-Horse Road between Lameipo and Tuditan, which adopted the national 5A tourist scenic standard, to build the Pu'er Tea-Horse Road Tourist Scenic Zone.

The group also collaborated with the China Oriental Performing Arts Group for a large performance - "Tea-Horse Road" at the Pu'er Grand Theatre. Joining with the construction of the tea-horse ancient tourist town, tea-horse night market and other commercial tourism projects to share the history and culture of the Tea Horse Road.

"The Tea-Horse Road culture brand has a unique historical value and resource scarcity. Deduction of the ancient road culture and horse gang story will definitely seize the heart of the tourists." Bao Jianbin, General Manager of the Yunnan Mekong River Group, is confident about the developmental potential and space of tea-horse road culture resources.

Thus, the Yunnan Mekong River Group has provided a large investment for the project. Bao Jianbin hopes that more and more people will get to know that Yunnan people had the wish and actual practices as early as a thousand years ago, through the construction of the Tea-Horse Road tourist scenic zone.

Bao also hopes it will get more and more young people thinking about how to promote Yunnan, such a good place with so many good products, to the whole country and the whole world.