Nu way of thinking brings prosperity in NW Yunnan

 

  

Yu Wulin, inn keeper and inheritor of intangible cultural heritage. [Photo by Cheng Yuezhu/China Daily]

The regular performers include 67-year-old Bo Jinshan, a provincial-level inheritor in dabiya. He explains that odede is often used among the Nu ethnic group to express love, and he voluntarily comes to the inn and visits the local kindergarten to teach children.

"As long as they want to learn, we will never turn them away. Any children interested in learning the traditional arts can come here, and we will offer them free board and lodging," Yu says.

"The learning is very flexible. We simply want the youngsters to learn about the existence of these ethnic cultural elements as early as possible. If they are still interested when they grow up, they might carry on learning."

The 150 Inn set an example for the locals, and after 2004, other homestays were established, and the village now has over 20 inns.

These, in turn, drove the development of the village's agricultural industry, as the hotels depend on the local farmers for food supplies and the tourists purchase their products as local specialities, including matsutake mushrooms and honey.

One such product that is particularly popular among tourists is tea. In 2010, a farmers' cooperative was established in the village, purchasing and growing over two million tea seedlings.

  

Up in the mountains of Fugong county, Southwest China's Yunnan province, the village of Laomudeng presents an idyllic countryside scene, with its pleasant natural landscape and well-preserved ethnic culture. [Photo by Cheng Yuezhu/China Daily]

According to local government statistics, by the end of 2019, the cooperative's tea growing area has exceeded 132 hectares and its members have increased to 125 households.

The cooperative has also been working with external companies in developing their own tea brand, the Laomudeng mountain tea, which produced revenues of four million yuan last year.

Facing a growing market demand, the cooperative is now planning to expand its factory and upgrade its production line in order to produce tea more efficiently.