Taiyuan, 29 Jan (Xinhua) -- As the New Year approaches, Chiqiao Village, located at the foot of the West Mountain in Jinyuan District, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, is bustling with activity, and every household is busy cleaning glass, sweeping houses, and handling New Year's goods.
Zhang Aiqin's family in the south of the village, seven or eight mothers-in-law and aunts gathered together, and the noodles were made and the noodles were steamed, and the cakes were wrapped.
This is a tradition in Chiqiao Village. Every year before the year, the women in the village always get together to make rice cakes, one day to the family, for more than ten days in a row, to eat at home, but also to give away. In recent years, more and more cakes have been wrapped, and the women's cake wrapping time has become longer and longer.
The picture shows the women of Chiqiao Village, Jinyuan District, Taiyuan making rice cakes. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ma Xiaoyuan.
There are more and more B&Bs in the village, and the Spring Festival is the peak period of stay, and many people will send guests a cake of their own bag, so the more and more cakes are packed. Villager Zhao Cuihong's homestay is called "Qinghuai Yashe", there are 11 rooms on three floors, and now the order has been scheduled to the eighth day of the first month, for which she prepared 40 catties of noodles, and plans to make cakes and give them to the guests.
Speaking of Chiqiao Village, it can be said to be well-known far and near. With a history of more than 2,500 years, it is said that it is the place where "Yu Rang Thorn Zhao" took place, leaving an allusion to the "death of a confidant". It is adjacent to Jinshui, has a long history of agricultural irrigation, and has given birth to a long agricultural civilization, and there are still ancient acacias, ancient bridges, ancient temples, ancient dwellings and other scattered villages, and intangible cultural heritage such as traditional papermaking and Jin opera has been inherited for thousands of years. In 2019, Chiqiao Village was included in the fifth batch of Chinese traditional villages.
Ren Longbiao, a member of the party branch of Chiqiao Village, said that Chiqiao Village itself has rich historical and cultural resources, coupled with its close proximity to well-known scenic spots such as Jin Temple and Tianlong Mountain, with convenient transportation and superior geographical location, which is particularly suitable for the development of tourism industry, but in the past, infrastructure construction was relatively weak and industrial development was slow.
The past few years have been different, and the village has changed a lot. Ren Longbiao said that in recent years, with the improvement of the rural living environment, the road surface in the village has been paved with cement roads, and solar street lamps have been installed, and the courtyard walls of every household have been painted pale yellow, and the whole village has taken on a new look.
The clean heating renovation has also removed "obstacles" to the development of tourism in the village. The villagers told reporters that in the past, the village used to light a stove, and in winter it was a choking smell of soot, and every house piled up coal piles, and ash had to be poured every day, and the house was dark everywhere. After the "coal to electricity" policy, the village is cleaner, the air is better, and more people are willing to come.
Culture is the soul of a village. While making up for the shortcomings of the infrastructure, Chiqiao Village has extensively mobilized villagers and local cultural figures to collect historical materials and cultural relics, write village history, study Chiqiao celebrities and village culture, and build a unique rural cultural memory museum with the support of the first generation, which not only leaves nostalgia for the villagers, but also allows tourists to appreciate the thickness of Chiqiao.
The picture shows the Rural Cultural Memory Museum in Chiqiao Village. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ma Xiaoyuan.
Since 2019, there has been a boom in the village to open homestays, and nearly 40 homestays of different styles have been opened in the village, with a total of more than 500 beds. During the "May Day" and "Eleventh" holidays in 2023, it is even difficult to find a homestay here.
The reporter visited the village and saw that the homestays carefully built by the villagers have their own characteristics: some have opened up small gardens on the roof, built swings, corridors, and tea tables; Some have special billiards rooms, video rooms, table tennis rooms, karaoke rooms, and e-sports rooms; Some B&Bs provide services such as free pick-up and drop-off and travel route planning; Some can also carry out parent-child experience projects such as cold cake making and handicraft making.
The rise of B&Bs has also driven the catering industry in the village. Today, there are four or five restaurants in the small village, serving "local flavors" to guests from the north and south. The villagers told reporters that there are many employees needed for homestays and catering, and there are not enough villagers in their own village, and many villagers from neighboring villages come to work.
Villager Li Xiang used to do business outside, but in 2019 he decided to return to his hometown to open a homestay, and now he is doing a prosperous job. "Now not only is the income stable, but also I can make friends from all over the world, you see, this is the fruit sent by Hainan guests who have been here before. Li Xiang took out a box of red lotus mist, which reflected the flaming red lanterns outside the window, setting off a strong New Year's flavor.
*: Xinhua News Agency).