On the third full moon of the lunar calendar, the circus comes to Dali. Ok, it s not exactly a circus, but it sure looks like one. San Yue Jie (三月街), or "Third Month Street", is the biggest festival of the year for the local Bai people. If you re wondering why the festival uses the word jie (街), meaning street , and not jie (节), meaning festival , that s because the celebration is named after the street on which the giant marketplace sets up.