On January 24, the young men arrived at the Lancang River Bridge
5 college students cycle from Kunming on a long-distance journey
Just before the winter break, while most people were busy trying to secure a ticket home, five college students from Yunnan University and Yunnan University of Finance and Economics took a different path. They combined public welfare promotion with a playful spirit, cycling together from Kunming all the way back to their hometowns in Xishuangbanna. In doing so, they achieved three goals at once: going home, promoting a good cause, and enjoying a road trip.
Cycling together on a long-distance trip
Recently, a Weibo post titled “Cycling Home: A Charity Ride from Kunming to Xishuangbanna” caught the reporter’s attention. “We’ve been cycling for six days now, and we’ll reach Jinghong today,” said the blogger behind the post, who goes by the online name “Farmer Ma Guotou.” When the reporter reached out, the third-year student from Yunnan University of Finance and Economics introduced himself as Ma Jiyang, hailing from Yongping County in Dali Prefecture. This cycling journey from Kunming to Xishuangbanna was not only a chance for him to explore during the winter break and engage in public welfare activities but also an opportunity to accompany two classmates from Xishuangbanna on their trip home.
On the afternoon of the 24th, the reporter met the five college students, who had cycled 690 kilometers to the Lancang River Bridge in Jinghong city. The energetic group looked a bit worn out. After briefly greeting the reporter, they hurried off to find a hotel to rest and recover.
It turns out that Ma Jiyang from Yongping in Dali and Huang Ran from Mengpeng Town, Mengla County, Xishuangbanna, are schoolmates, while Huang Ran and Ma Chen, who studies at Yunnan Mechanical and Electrical Vocational and Technical College, are fellow townsmen. The three have long enjoyed cycling. Through social groups and Weibo, they also got to know Wang Yicheng and Jiang Zhicheng, two other cycling enthusiasts from Kunming who attend Yunnan University. The initiators of this cycling home initiative were actually the two Xishuangbanna natives, Huang Ran and Ma Chen, with the other three joining them to form the “Cycling Home Charity Ride” team.
Trying a different way to go home
“Although we often cycle for exercise, aside from seeing some foreigners biking to Xishuangbanna, none of us — nor anyone around us — has ever tried cycling such a long distance,” said Huang Ran. Thinking about the crowded ticket-buying experience during every holiday, he and Ma Chen came up with the idea of cycling home. Along National Highway 213, their route passed through Jinning, Eshan, Yuanjiang, Mojiang, Tongguan, and Pu’er. It took them seven days to reach Jinghong, covering over 690 kilometers in total. From Jinghong to Mengla, there are about another 200 kilometers, making the whole journey approximately 900 kilometers.
According to Ma Jiyang, they set three themes for this cycling trip: “Cycling Home,” “Joint Call for Food Safety,” and “Low-Carbon Travel for Environmental Protection.” So prior to departure, they prepared banners for these three topics, promoting them along the way and documenting their journey via photos and Weibo posts. Throughout the trip, they not only enjoyed beautiful scenery but also had many unforgettable experiences during their promotional rides — including being warmly hosted for meals by locals, being chased by a dog in Yuanjiang, having kind-hearted police officers watch their bikes, and experiencing the unique culture of different regions.
The charity cycling activity will continue
Yesterday morning, after spending a day playing in Jinghong, the five young men went their separate ways, beginning individual cycling journeys from the Lancang River Bridge in Jinghong. Huang Ran and Ma Chen cycled through Olive Dam, visiting the Dai Park and Botanical Garden along the way, before cycling straight to Mengpeng Town in Mengla County to go home. Ma Jiyang, Wang Yicheng, and Jiang Zhicheng first took the Xiaomao Highway to Menglun, then visited the Botanical Garden and the Sky Trees scenic area, continued through Olive Dam and the Dai Park, and finally cycled back to Jinghong to go home.
“Depending on the time, if we have enough, we might cycle all the way back home after finishing our trip in Xishuangbanna. If not, we’ll take a bus,” the trio told the reporter. They said they will keep carrying out public welfare activities during their cycling journeys.