Century-old village revitalized

Xinhua News Agency, Guangzhou (Reporters Zhang Xiaoyu, Huang Haoyuan, Deng Ruixuan) In the evening, Xixi Ancient Village, located in Liaobu Town, Dongguan City, Guangdong Province, was crowded with tourists. People wore traditional costumes rented in the ancient village to check in and take photos, long queues formed in front of food shops along the street, and activities such as opera singing, dragon and lion dancing attracted tourists. As the sun sets, the streets and alleys light up with distinctive lights, and the nightlife of the century-old village has just begun…

The ancient village is revitalized with guests from all over the world, which is exactly what the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area construction and Guangdong Province\’s \”Hundred Counties, Thousand Towns and Ten Thousand Villages\” \”High-Quality Development Project\” has achieved fruitful results through continuous advancement.

The reporter learned from the interview that a few years ago, Xixi Ancient Village was a place where locals would take a detour when passing by. Yin Jianliang, a villager in Xixi Ancient Village, felt deeply: \”The house is in disrepair and the environment is dirty and poor. Although the ancestral home is in the village, no one is willing to come back.\”

The turning point happened in 2018. Liaobu Town activates historical and cultural resources on the premise of protecting the overall texture of the village, introduces market institutions, continuously strengthens the environmental improvement of the ancient village, improves infrastructure, cultivates new cultural consumption scenarios, and creates a tourism that integrates tourism, vacation, urban leisure, and cultural industries. destination.

With the gradual implementation of these measures, the once-withered ancient villages have become internet celebrity check-in points in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, attracting more than 2 million tourists every year. During the day, primary and secondary school students from many places in the Bay Area study in the ancient village, wander around the stone alleys, and explore the past and present. At night, colorful lanterns light up the night economy of the ancient village, shouts and laughter are intertwined, and fireworks are rising everywhere.

The revitalization of a century-old village not only activates the development potential of local cultural tourism, but also brings huge changes to the lives of villagers. Villager Yuan Xuemei made an calculation for reporters: \”In the past, I could barely make ends meet by opening a small shop by myself. After the renovation and upgrading of the ancient village, I ran a dessert shop in the food street, with an annual income of over 700,000 yuan, and my life became more and more prosperous. ”

Stories like Xixi Ancient Village that promote the revitalization of ancient villages and rural revitalization according to local conditions can be seen in many places in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Walking along the masonite road of the ancient ancestral hall and the gate, the green water and green mountains convey the youthfulness of the ancient town. In an open-air courtyard not far away, the resident writer is contemplating a new work. In Guancang Community, Zhangmutou Town, Dongguan City, 74 writers have settled in as villagers in the \”Writer Village\”, many of whom have won the Mao Dun Literature Award and the Lu Xun Literature Award.

Guancang Community preserves ancient Hakka buildings with a history of more than 300 years and has a profound cultural heritage. Luo Yongguang, a member of the Party Committee of Zhangmutou Town, introduced that in 2023, the local government will carry out a contiguous renovation of the \”Writers\’ Village\” in Guancang Community, carry out exterior facade upgrades and exquisite interior decoration, and divide them into artistic creation, public cultural performances, exchanges and sharing, and leisure and cultural activities. The five major areas of tourism and landscape experience promote the comprehensive improvement of the living environment, the \”from old to new\” community appearance, and the significant improvement of the cultural environment.

Building a village, enriching the land and water, Zhangmutou Town has a more long-term plan. \”The renovation of the ancient village has attracted more writers to sign and settle in, which not only expands the influence of the \’Writers\’ Village\’ literary brand, but alsoCan use literature as a medium to gather people to promote development and accumulate strength for the subsequent in-depth integration of literature and cultural tourism industry. \”Luo Yongguang said.

Li Zhou, deputy director of the Institute of Advanced Health Tourism of Jinan University, believes that facing the huge market of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the demand for rural tourism is increasingly strong. Revitalization of ancient villages, cultural excavation and innovation , and the transportation network is perfect, which is a great The characteristic villages in the Bay Area bring a rich source of urban tourists. Guangdong promotes the in-depth integration of \”agriculture and tourism\” to help tourists experience the natural beauty, farming fun and time stories of Guangdong\’s countryside.

Entering Yakou Village, Nanlang Street, Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province, The rice farmland in the village is fertile and the sea and sky are the same as the Pearl River Estuary. This ancient village with a history of more than 700 years has established a strong village company to coordinate the management and comprehensively improve the competitiveness and attractiveness of the village, forming a collective effort, villagers\’ participation, and tourists\’ enjoyment. A virtuous cycle from afar .

The \”small\” transformation of rural areas is related to the \”big\” strategy of revitalization. Rooted in cultural protection and development, using market resources for scientific development, many ancient villages in the Greater Bay Area have been given new looks and lively fireworks. Make people stop and linger

Source: Xinhua Daily Telegraph