15 March,
Taxia
Unreadable name 120CNY
Built of
rammed earth and glutinous rice, reinforced with wood chips and bamboo strips,
the tulou (mud buildings) of Fujian
Province are an astonishing sight. Over 3000 tulou dot the hilly countryside,
46 of which have been granted Unesco status. Built on circular, rectangular or
oval floor plans, these multi-storey “apartment blocks” were built to house
entire clans. To protect the residents from bandits and animals, there was one
entrance only and no external windows on the lower floors. The living quarters
inside the exterior mud wall are constructed of wood. Many tulou remain
inhabited, dedicated now to earning tourist dollars. We bought a ticket to the
Tianluokeng cluster, which entitled us to visit three sites, some including
more than one tulou. We based ourselves in the small riverside village of
Taxia, one of the three sites, and today walked most of the 8km uphill to visit
the other two sites, hitching a ride back mid-afternoon. In one tulou, 300
years old, we watched two chickens being slaughtered, their throats cut with a
small pair of scissors, their blood purposefully splattered onto special paper,
for reasons beyond our understanding, and we tasted three different teas at a stall
beautifully managed by a young woman, who turned the tasting into an
aesthetically pleasing event. In another we bought a local peanut brittle and a
fridge magnet for my mom whose fridge is about to topple over from the weight
of her collection. Back in Taxia we visited the Zhang Ancestral Hall with its
23 carved stone pillars commemorating the achievements of prominent villagers
before calling it a day. Awesome.
Taxia
Yuchang Lou tulou
Yuchang Lou tulou
Yuchang Lou tulou
Yuchang Lou tulou
Yuchang Lou tulou
Yuchang Lou tulou
Yuchang Lou tulou
Tianluokeng tulou cluster
Tianluokeng tulou cluster
Tianluokeng tulou cluster
Tianluokeng tulou cluster
Tianluokeng tulou cluster - honey
Tianluokeng tulou cluster
Tianluokeng tulou cluster