Editor's Note:
Whether taking over public squares or driving up gold prices, Chinese dama are a force to be reckoned with. This do-it-all demographic of middle-aged Chinese women captured the attention of the Internet again on July 5, when a photo of dama extraordinaire Wei Caihong standing on one foot atop a stone post - while balancing her pet cat on her head – went viral.
Though long known throughout China for dancing away their golden years to high-volume tracks, dama drew international attention in 2013 with their appetite for gold. The Wall Street Journal reported that “dama” had so heavily invested in gold that they affected the entire global market, cementing the term in the financial lexicon.
Jiang Zhijun, 65 of Jilin, Northeast China’s Jilin Province, shows off her pole dancing skills on April 25. 
Four Chinese women sport “facekinis” at a beach in Qingdao, East China’s Shandong Province on June 3. The sun-shielding masks are popular among middle-aged beachgoers. 
A group of Chinese dama wait in line to purchase gold on the first floor of Beijing’s Guohua Shopping Mall on July 5. 
Two middle-aged women from Shanghai check the latest stock price reports on their phones on July 5. 
Two women dance together while wading in water at a wharf in Wuhan, Central China’s Hubei Province on July 5. 
Women demonstrate a traditional way of grinding tea in Changde, Central China’s Hunan Province on June 13. 
Wang Baorong, 80, takes a break from leading a dance group of more than 200 people in Beijing’s Taoranting Park on May 23. 
Several Chinese dama wearing crab-shaped hats pose for photos at a long-distance running competition held in Jinan, East China’s Shandong Province on May 22. 
A middle-aged woman belly dances at an international belly dance festival in Zhengzhou, Central China’s Henan Province on May 14. 
Several Chinese dama dance on Wuhan’s Subway Line 2 in Central China’s Hubei Province on Mother’s Day, which fell on May 10. 
Thousands of Chinese dama dance to the mega-hit Little Apple at a sports meet in Binzhou, East China’s Shandong Province on May 10. 
A group of dama wearing army-themed clothing dance in Beijing’s Taoranting Park on May 9. 
About 20 women perform a “smoke pipe dance” at the cultural pavilion of Pingliang, Northwest China’s Gansu Province on April 21. 
Several dama wearing qipao dance in an event at an appliance store in Nanjing, capital city of East China’s Jiangsu Province on April 12. 
Chinese dama take part in a lingerie show in Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang Province on April 6. 
Several women dance in the aisles of a market of Nanning, South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on March 27. 
A group of Chinese dama in traditional Manchu costume perform a yangko dance, a traditional dance of northern China, at a yangko dance competition held in Changchun, Northeast China’s Jilin Province on March 5. 
Octogenarian Feng Huageng lines up a shot at a pool hall in Changchun in Northeast China’s Jilin Province on May 9, 2012, where she has earned the name “grandma billiards.”
