After the Minor Heat solar term, the temperature in Guiyang, Guizhou hovers around a comfortable 28°C at noon. Yana, a Russian girl born after 2000, immediately set up her phone on a stand upon entering Longjing Village in Huaxi District, Guiyang. She began capturing the white-walled, black-tiled houses, blooming lotus flowers, elderly people chatting in a pavilion, and the tranquil bridges and streams.
“I’m an international student in China and a content creator. I love sharing what I see and experience in China with the world,” Yana said, wearing a dress adorned with Chinese characters. She described Longjing Village as a hidden paradise, reminiscent of the idyllic scenes in Tao Yuanming’s poem: “Picking chrysanthemums by the eastern hedge, I gaze leisurely at the southern mountain.”
Longjing Village, where Yana was filming, is a traditional Bouyei village with over 500 years of history. At its heart lies an ancient well, from which water flows into a scenic channel. Women in traditional Bouyei attire often gather by the channel to wash clothes and vegetables, while tourists enjoy taking photos on the bridge or sipping tea by the river.
Yana, who loves Chinese culture, came to study in China in 2019. She speaks fluent Mandarin and enjoys traveling, having visited cities like Beijing and Sichuan. However, this was her first time exploring a Chinese village. To her, Longjing Village exudes a sense of “relaxation,” blending the ancient with the modern, where every corner offers a scenic view.
In recent years, Longjing Village has leveraged its Bouyei culture, local customs, and natural beauty to develop various new businesses such as batik workshops, distilleries, embroidery studios, pottery shops, tea houses, and guesthouses. These attractions have drawn numerous tourists, both local and international, offering them an “immersive” experience of rural slow living.
Tourists often stroll through the village’s peaceful ancient alleyways before heading to a batik workshop. There, they can choose their favorite designs, using wax as ink, knives as pens, and fabric as canvas to try their hand at batik dyeing. Others visit the distillery, learning from Bouyei elders how to brew sweet rice wine using water from the village well.
Following the trend of “City Walk,” “Country Walk” has gained popularity among young people seeking to experience rural slow life and reconnect with nature. This rural “relaxation” has also inspired many young people to return to their hometowns to start businesses or find employment.
Ting Yingmei, 23, returned to Longjing Village as a tour guide after graduating from university in 2023. She explains the village’s origins, development, ethnic culture, and ancient architecture to over 100 visitors each day, many of whom are foreign tourists.
To Ting, the village lifestyle is one of contentment. Each morning, villagers stroll through the village, play chess in pavilions at noon, sing traditional songs by the river in the afternoon, and host bonfire parties in the evening. “It’s the simple yet rich life of the villagers that draws visitors to experience it for themselves.”
Wang Bangli, a “post-90s” girl, runs a tea house with her husband in the village. They also sell handmade batik items, including clothes, hats, scarves, earrings, and headbands. During their downtime, Wang works on her crafts while her husband plays Bouyei songs on his guitar, and children play happily nearby.
Not far from Wang’s tea house is the Longjing Market, where elderly villagers dressed in blue traditional clothing sell homegrown fresh produce, sausages, blood tofu, and other local specialties. The market is a hotspot for tourists, who love to take photos and sample the goods.
By turning old houses into workshops, transforming farming skills into handicrafts, and converting traditional homes into guesthouses, Longjing Village has successfully introduced new industries. This has not only revitalized the village but also boosted the popularity of rural “slow living” tourism.
