Day 1 This time, I decided to discover those minority villages in Guiyang . Just open your mind and eyes, folks, there're more to explore in China than food and panda.... hehe...hope you like it... Day 2 Today, I left Guiyang for Leishan…Read More

Day 1
This time, I decided to discover those minority villages in Guiyang . Just open your mind and eyes, folks, there're more to explore in China than food and panda.... hehe...hope you like it...

Day 2
Today, I left Guiyang for Leishan to visit Langde Miao Ethnic Group Village there. The Miao style houses "Diaojiaolou" and its featured and creative festivals will cause tourists spell bound. Around 500 villagers in ten families, the Langde Miao Ethnic Group Village is considered small. Members of the Miao Ethnic Group adopt common habits and customs. Entering the village, tourists would find themselves literarily immersed in works of art. Here, people are wearing colorful festival dress. Women wear gorgeous and complex silver jewelry, and some young ladies adorn silver horned coronal on their heads; men robe themselves in blue-black, with chuddar of the same color covered their heads. Festivals are occasions for Miao Ethnic Group to get together and show off their culture. They have many traditional festivals all year round.

Next, I was going to another two Miao Villages, Nanhua Miao Village where people wear long skirts and Datang Miao Village where people wear short skirts. They are the counterpart of Langde, about twenty kilometers from Kaili. Either will bring you unexpected pleasant surprise. * Overnight at Kaili.

Day 3
This morning, I first drove to Zhaoxing and explore in the Basha Miao Village , which is tinted with its time-honored Miao traditions and a strong local flavor. Miao villagers here have maintained the characteristic lifestyle of the Miao Ethnic Group, still retaining the living customs and dressing code of the Ming (1368 - 1644) and Qing (1644 - 1911) dynasties.

Next, I went to experience another ethnic group's culture at Dong People's Village . Dong People's Village is the largest and oldest Dong villages in China. There are five Drum Towers, Wind and Rain Bridges and traditional stages in the village.

My final stop today was Tang'an Dong Village , located on a mountainside and surrounded by paddy field and lush greens. The village has a long history, though it hasn't got any written records of its history. There are village gate, drum tower, drama tower, and ancient graveyard, ancient well, water-powered roller for grinding grain, barns and the pit to worship the female ancestors of Dong people. There are also ancient stone paths and wood houses in the village. All of these make it a perfect place for people to return to nature.

Day 4
The first highlight today was Black Dragon Cave , which has a long history of 500 years. It is the largest ancient architecture remnants of Guizhou. The Black Dragon Cave seems to cling to the mountainside in an orderly tiered way due to the precipitous cliff, which makes it blend the characteristics of a garden with the style of a temple.

Then I moved to Zhenyuan , a town with a long history of more than 2000 years. Located on the eastern part of Guizhou province, the sub-tropical humid climate, makes Zhenyuan Ancient Town an ideal tourist destination all year round. The town covers only an area of 3.1 square kilometers, but greets you with more than 160 scenic spots including caves, palaces, pavilions, temples and rivers with their unique architecture, exquisite engravings and marvelous natural landscape. Zhenyuan Ancient Town has 22 ethnic minorities, such as Miao Ethnic Group, Dong Ethnic Group and so on. These ethnic minorities left huge folk custom culture.

Day 5
The first stop today was featured Duyun and so I had a look at the Shiban Street which is built in the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644). The street is 200 meters long and paved with 10,001 bluestones. Blue tiles, red walls, carved windows and doors, make the street look so elegant and charming.

Then I got to Wenfeng Park , a park for leisure. It got its name from the famous Wenfeng pagoda stands here. And we can experience the traditional Chinese style of park construction. Following that is a look at the Sword River, the mother river of Duyun.

Day 6
Today's tour was in the Dragon Palace Scenic Area . It refers to over 90 karst caves linked up like a chain of beads that run through 20 hilltops. A karst landform is a feature created on the Earth's surface by the drainage of water into the ground or by its discharge at springs. Dragon Palace's strange krast cave is one of typical karst landforms in China even in the world, as result of erosion to soluble rock by flowing water. This scenic spot will provide you with various underground water caves, land caves and ponds on or under the ground. A small boat can bring us to these 4,000-metre-long terrific caves.

Huangguoshu Waterfall on a sightseeing bus. It measures 74 meters high and 81 meters wide and boasts the biggest of its kind in China and also one of the world's most magnificent. Hidden behind the waterfall is a 134-meter long Water-Curtain Cave with fantastic stalactites. On the hill opposite the cataract is a pavilion, where visitors can have a whole view of the powerful cataract.

And the newly-opened Tianxing Bridge (Bridge of Stars). This scenic spot is distinguished with its sights of various types. Here, you can forget the outside world and enjoy the fabulous scenes and sights; including limestone caves and stone forests.

Day 7
After back to Guiyang, I first Visited Jiaxiu Tower which is a landmark of Guiyang, means "First Scholar's Tower." Green tiles, red pillars, engraved windows and white stone parapets make the tower superb and striking. Ascending the tower you can get a good view of the surrounding city scenery.

Next stop was Qianling Park . It is named after Mt. Qianling which was awarded the title of "the First Mountain in South China." This park offers a fantastic mixture of forested seclusion, religious solemnity, and amusement park madness. It is a uniquely large park in the city and boasts clear waters, green mountains, tranquil forests and old temples.

In Qianling Park, I foun the Hongfu Temple . The temple was first built in the 11th year in the reign of Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, where pilgrims come from home and abroad to worship Buddha, the Goddess of mercy, Manjusri and other Bodhisattvas. Hongfu Temple is the largest temple of Zen Buddhism in Guizhou Province It is one of the key Buddhist monasteries open to tourists in China, one of the key provincial class cultural relics.
Close

The predominant minority tribes in the Zhangjiajie region are the Miao and the Tujia tribes. During our tour of the Hunan province, specifically Zhangjiajie, we learnt the many interesting customs and traditions of both tribes. The best place to learn such customs is perhaps the…Read More

The predominant minority tribes in the Zhangjiajie region are the Miao and the Tujia tribes. During our tour of the Hunan province, specifically Zhangjiajie, we learnt the many interesting customs and traditions of both tribes. The best place to learn such customs is perhaps the Tujia Folk customs park located in Zhangjiajie town.

The Tujia Folk customs park is a replica of a typical Tujia village. It was built in 2000 with the intention to introduce visitors to the customs and traditions of the Tujia ethnic minority. The main attractions in the park are the "village square" where key performances such as the Maogusu Dance, a ceremonial dance that was part of a sacrificial ceremony are performed. Our visit coincided with the country's period of mourning which meant that all performances had been cancelled.

Another highlight of the park is the wooden 9-storied Jiuchongtian Hereditary Hall that was constructed on a steep slope without using a single nail was even listed in the Guinness World record. It contains thousands of relics of the Tujia and is the "museum" of all things Tujia. Walking through the park, we stopped by wooden houses that showcased different aspects of the Tujia tribe, from unique embroidery skills to farming techniques and wine-brewing, we experienced the typical life of a Tujia villager. We were also able to view the "crying marriage" ritual and learn more about the customs and traditions of the Tujia ethnic minority.

Courtship
As many of the minority tribes stay in the mountainous areas, song competitions between both sexes during festive occasions are popular modes of courtship. To win the favour of the lady, the man must be able to "match" the lady's songs three times. Failure to do so not only meant rejection from the lady but also a penalty is incurred. The man must perform hard labour for the lady's family from one to nine years (depending on who is narrating the customs) before he can either try to woo her again or move on.

To attract a lady's attention during weekend markets or festive gatherings, the man must step firmly on the heel of the lady. To reciprocate, the lady will return his "favour" by stepping on his foot even harder. If the lady chooses to ignore, it means the man still has a 50% chance as she maybe considering. A loud scolding from the lady usually means total rejection.

Marriage
Perhaps the most interesting custom is the "crying ritual" performed by the bride-to-be before marriage. The bride-to-be has to perform this ritual for two weeks leading up to the marriage ceremony. The are several ways of "crying". This includes tears expressing sorrow for leaving her parents, wailing and cursing the matchmaker for interfering and "ending" her single life, fear of the new life ahead; all these are performed in a song-like fashion, either alone or with their bridesmaids. Young girls are taught this ritual at an early age for the Tujia believes that a bride-to-be who performs well is reflective of her filial piety and personality. What began as a form of protest against arranged marriage is now a yardstick to measure the worth of the bride-to-be.

Others
Other practices include the funeral dancing rites, "ganshi" where a priest would chant charms while he "ships" the dead body back home for a proper burial, "quan se" or charming a snake into a circle by a faith healer to heal the sick. Today, such practices are rare and usually seen in remote areas. Close

Day 1 I do not know if you guys get crazy about ancient stuff. I know I do. I'm pretty obssessed with their mysteries and unique people living there. I had a trip in Zhangjiajie lately. At first, I just wanted to…Read More

Day 1

I do not know if you guys get crazy about ancient stuff. I know I do. I'm pretty obssessed with their mysteries and unique people living there. I had a trip in Zhangjiajie lately. At first, I just wanted to see trees or animals there. But later I found that, ancient towns in Zhangjiajie also very attractive. They are just not that famous as national parks or something.

Day 2

The next day, my trip began. After breakfast, I jumped into a coach and headed for my first stop-Furong Town . It is a It is an old village with a history of two thousand years. Until a famous movie entitled "Furong Town" was filmed there; it got known all around the country. Most of the people there are of the Tujia ethnic group. And Furong's main attractions are the older, architectural structures and the wooden buildings that provided most of the film's sets.

And then, I experienced thrilling torrential rapids, which are interspersed with calm stretches, giving you a chance to enjoy the breathtaking scenery along Mengdonghe River. That was quite amazing.

Day 3
After overnight drive, I arrived at Phoenix Town (rather famous than the previous one). Today, I thought I would stay here for whole day before I stopped by my next stop-Zhangjiajie National Forest Park.
Surrounded by mountains and rivers, Phoenix Town (Feng Huang Cheng) is a very famous Chinese historical and cultural town which has a history spanning 1300 years. Upon entering the town, visitors will be impressed by its air of mystery, elegance, and primitive simplicity, just like a phoenix. That's why it got its name, right? I asked my tour guide, pig pan, an overweight cute girl. She smiled and said "quite right..".

Day 4
Today was spent visiting Zhangjiajie National Forest Park . It is known as the first state-level forest park in China and featuring its unique hills, queer ridges and peaks, tranquil valleys, thrilling streams and abundant plant and animal resources.

You will experience Huangshi Village , the most important scenic spot in Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. You can reach to its top and back by a cable car.

After lunch, explore the Jinbian Stream with crystal clear water running quietly between strangely-shaped peaks.

Day 5
After breakfast, I had a hiking on Mt. Tianzishan , which is renowned for four scenic wonders, namely Cloud Billows, Moon Brightness, Sun Glow and Winter Snow. Not bad huh? Close