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At Home in Guizhou

@athomeinguizhou

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Professional fun-haver and food-orderer
Hijinks aficionado
Guizhou, China

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Figured you guys might like to have more chatting, less chaos. Sometimes I'm so busy having fun that I forget people who haven't been here might not know what's going on. So I'll be interspersing a little bit more chat to fill you in on fun details or stories between adventures.

Cheers

#guizhou #chinatravel #lifeinchina #china by @athomeinguizhou

When I first came to Guizhou, I watched local kids catching fish in the rice paddies. Back then I was too shy to join in. You can imagine how excited I was when I finally got my chance recently. I jumped right in, and I’m so happy I did.

Here in Sandu County, and across many parts of Guizhou, young fish are placed in the paddies once the rice has been planted. They grow alongside the rice, feeding on rice blossoms, insects, and natural plant matter, and fertilize the rice as they grow. When harvest time arrives, the water drains from the fields, and this lively harvest begins. These fish are kept in huge barrels for the upcoming fall and winter, to get people through the winter. It’s not just good fun. It’s practical, it’s traditional, and I’m so glad I finally got to take part.

#guizhou #chinatravel #lifeinchina #china #chinesefood by @athomeinguizhou

One of my favorite places to swim in Guizhou, Guanyin Tang waterfall is a gorgeous cold water pool above the Wujiang River. Named after the goddess of mercy, local stories tell of a Guanyin-shaped stone formation, now submerged by the waterfall pool, that boatmen used to pray to for safe passage along the Wujiang's rapids.

#lifeinchina #chinatravel #guizhou #china #summerfun by @athomeinguizhou

Every year when my Guizhou anniversary comes up, I try to do something special. This time was extra special, as I went to a county I’ve never visited before, Sandu. It’s honestly hard to describe how much fun I had, from the moment I stepped off the high-speed rail I was surrounded by unbelievable scenery and rich country life.

Horse racing in Sandu is totally unlike any racing I’ve seen before. The horses race up a steep mountain track, whipping past spectators. You’ll notice many of the riders ride bareback, no saddle or stirrups. It’s optional, but seasoned jockeys demonstrate their skill this way, showing everybody watching who the real pros are. The horses absolutely couldn’t wait to start, there were many false starts as horses led off before the starting shot.

This week was the first week of the celebrations of Duan Festival, and the races will go every weekend until October Holiday, the final culmination of the 50 day festival!

#贵州村马 #guizhou #chinatravel #lifeinchina #horseracing by @athomeinguizhou

In the southern part of Guiyang, there's a beautiful fortress town called Qingyan Old Town. Despite being quite commercialized, it's a spot I visit a couple of times every year because of its specialty, pig feet! Big, braised trotters hit the table next to a pile of gloves, and everybody digs in, dipping the juicy meat in big bowls of chili dip. It's always our first stop when we go. But after that, it's all about the views and the rice wine!

#guiyang #guizhou #chinatravel #china #chinesefood by @athomeinguizhou

Guizhou has a rich minority culture, with many ethnic minorities making their homes in the mountains. Most visitors to the province visit the more better-known Miao and Dong minority villages, but few make their way to the Northeast of the province to step into the less touristy Tujia minority area. I rarely make my way out to this region, so I didn't want to miss the chance to visit Huanhe Village, a village rejuvenated by one man's dream to share his home with the world. Working together with several local women, Ding Lang (the man washing vegetables with me in this video), has spent the last few years sharing local foraging, cooking and farming on Chinese social media. Through the earnings from this, they improved local roads, brought internet and phone signal to the mountain top village, and greatly improved the lives of the few people who remain in their home. This was a brief visit, but I'll definitely be back to talk more with Mr. Ding and learn more about their work.

#guizhou #chinatravel #chineseculture #villagelife #lifeinchina by @athomeinguizhou

I've been working on a longer video about water dragon festivals across Guizhou, but here's a sneak peek at the third one I attended this year. I find it fascinating how three cities that come from different cultural minority backgrounds all ended up with very similar festivals. I have a lot more research to do, but one thing I know for sure is that no matter who is hosting it, a city wide water fight is a real good time.
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#guizhou #chinatravel #china #summerfun #chineseculture by @athomeinguizhou

Here's a rare follow-up for the Border Town video. I rarely speak much in videos but I was so happy to see this that I wanted to share. It may not be as polished as my usual stuff, but as someone who has lived in Guizhou for over a decade, this is really exciting.

I remember one of the first things someone told me when I moved here was that Guizhou would be a poor province as long as the mountains proved too difficult for mechanized farming. Over the years, it's something that I've often rolled around in my head.

Even once drone technology became mainstream, I didn't really see it as a solution; the farmers who carry everything up the mountains on their backs couldn't afford to buy drones with these capabilities. However, with services like this, it's not out of reach anymore.
♥️

#ruralchina #agritech #dronesforgood #chinatech #smartfarming by @athomeinguizhou

Recently, I went on a road trip to visit a spot I've been very curious about for a long time, the border town where Guizhou, Chongqing and Hunan meet. It's referred to as Border Town because that's the title of a novel written by Shen Congwen, native of the Hunan side, that is mandatory reading for Chinese students. However, it's actually the meeting point of three towns or villages, each belonging to its own province.

I spent more time on the Hunan side than the other two, and really enjoyed the food and the atmosphere. It was my first visit to Hunan, and even though it was barely across the water from Guizhou, it was interesting to see how different the food could be. I think this has whet my appetite for some more Hunan travel!

#chinatravel #lifeinchina #roadtrip #china #chinesefood by @athomeinguizhou

Yuping county is the smallest out of the 88 counties in Guizhou, and home to a large population of Dong minority people. I usually spend Chinese New Year in Yuping, so going in the summertime instead was a new treat. Last time I was in town, I missed the Yuping Flute Museum, where you can learn about the famous local bamboo Yuping flutes. This visit, my luck changed, as they had a performer in for some visiting guests, and I was able to hear his performance as well.

#guizhou #chinatravel #flute #lifeinchina #roadtrip by @athomeinguizhou

Did you know that in Changshun County, Guizhou, China, there's a road cut from a naturally occuring karst cave? Guizhou's terrain is challenging for transportation. The mountains that give the area its distinct beauty also divide villages from each other, making travel and trade inconvenient or sometimes impossible.

Before the construction of this road in 2008, there were two options for travel between the two villages: either make the two-hour hike over the top of the mountain, or drive for an hour. With this road, travel time is reduced to about three minutes.

This video is from my first visit to the area in 2023. I went back this year to see what it's like, and they've installed colorful lighting to make the drive more scenic. Let me know if you'd like to see the updated look!

#guizhou #chinatravel #infrastructure #roadtrip #lifeinchina by @athomeinguizhou

Fanpai Miao village is a Miao minority culture village nestled in the mountains of Taijiang County, part of Qiandongnan. I have to admit, I came specifically because they told me I could try hand catching fish. Even though I wasn't successful this time, it was super fun. And I got shots, got to pound sticky rice into ciba for snacking, and got to enjoy a feast and dancing. Never a dull moment in Guizhou ♥️

#guizhou #chinatravel #chinesefood #lifeisgood #travelinspo by @athomeinguizhou