Page 18 - YunnanTourismCultureTimes (106)

17 CITY LIFE | 城事

Tuguachong Village: Traditional

homes with migratory dwellers

土瓜冲村：老房子住进“新村民”

As the morning light bathes the air. Young children on autumn
Tuguachong Village in Tongquan outings form long lines, animated-
Subdistrict, Malong District, Qujing ly chatting with one another. Yang
City, Yunnan Province, long-stay Fuheng, a teacher from the School
traveler Liu Chuan’s pastoral life of Fine Arts at Qujing Normal
begins to unfold, accompanied by a University, leads his students in
cup of tea and the comforting scent sketching, as they endeavor to
of books. This retired teacher from capture the village’s stunning
Luzhou, Sichuan, decided to settle scenery on paper.
here after discovering the village's Sixty-eight-year-old villager Li
enchanting landscapes on a short Qiaoxiang chats with her neigh-
video platform. bors while deftly trimming excess
Tuguachong, a village that once bean shoots with scissors. In her
relied mainly on traditional crop Tuguachong relies on everyone’s open-air movie screenings tailored age collection, essential goods view, the village is alive with
cultivation, had fallen into silence efforts,” he notes. During the ren- to the local context. purchasing services, and estab- tourists, as vehicles come and go
as old houses stood idle and land ovation and development process, Yunnan Ruogu Cultural Tour- lishing visitor assistance stations in steady flow. She reflects on how
went underutilized. However, the government departments have ism Development Co., Ltd. is in and convenient medical stations. In Tuguachong Village has experi-
village has since been revitalized, primarily focused on improving charge of renovating the houses, response to community needs, they enced a remarkable transformation
with abandoned farmland being public infrastructure, including sourcing furniture, and managing have set up convenient stalls, small in just a few short years.
restored and old earthen houses road enhancements, sewage col- operations, as well as introducing gardens, and urban-rural bus stops. At “Sister Ling’s Variety
being refurbished. New business- lection and treatment, and the businesses to develop homestays Additionally, they founded Ruogu Store,” which opened last Octo-
es, such as homestays and tea overall living environment within and countryside bars, among Bookstore, introduced village art ber, staff member Liu Ruifen from
spaces, have emerged, flourishing the village. The community has other services. “We’re not just museums and rock painting studios, Wangjiazhuang Village is hard at
like mushrooms after a rain. collectively leased 77 idle old renting out a few houses and and organized rural concerts and tea work. The two villages, Wangji-
Liu often takes leisurely walks houses from farmers for repair, making some basic renovations; gatherings, enriching the cultural azhuang and Tuguachong, are only
and engages in conversations reinforcement, and external reno- attracting and retaining guests and recreational life of the villagers. a half-hour’s drive apart. “The
with “neighbors” from various vation. They have also converted really depends on the quality of In the early morning at Tu- atmosphere here is wonderful, and
places. Tourists visiting for day underutilized land into thriving our offerings and services,” stated guachong Village, tourists gather I can earn 4,000 yuan a month. I
trips, weekend getaways, and green spaces, planting chrysan- the company’s chairman, Zhong in a courtyard with yellow walls hope our village can thrive too,”
study tours continuously come themums and hydrangeas, and Peng. They operate under a “store and gray tiles to brew tea, their Liu said, her words reflecting hope
and go. “The transformation of created camping areas along with assistant” model, providing pack- laughter and cheerful voices filling and anticipation.