In Jianda Village, prayer flags flutter like drunken dancers in the spring breeze as ceremonial drums awaken the frozen earth. Clad in their bright traditional costumes, the villagers walk in procession to the fields, carrying with them vessels of golden barley wine, a ritual unchanged for centuries. Observing with regal poise, their long necks pivoting gracefully as they follow the human spectacle below, pausing between acts to preen their formal black-and-white "attire."