Mama Ding's multicultural melting pot

Mama Ding was one of the first Chongding villagers in Bingzhongluo to open their homes to travelers. The 68-year-old Tibetan woman, Jin Xiulan, is called "Mama Ding" because her husband's surname is Ding. But she is the head and backbone of her multi-ethnic, 17-member household.

Her husband comes from the Nu ethnic group and her three daughters are married to men from the Bai, Lisu and Han ethnic groups respectively.

The Ding family started receiving travelers in 1998, when "visitors could only make shakedowns on the floor".