China is famous for its long history and mysterious culture. Therefore, it‟s a great choice for people who are interested in different cultural experiences or cultural visitors. Cultural visitors are people who have special interests in cultural activities, for example, different styles of artistic works, mysterious ethnic habits, and traditional food or interesting celebrations. (“cultural Visitor Profile”). China can satisfy a variety of demands cultural travellers have. China offers a chance to experience both diverse minority cultures and old Chinese civilization.
Yunnan province, located in southern China, has the most minorities in number in China(“25 Minorities Of Yunnan”). So you can experience a lot of cultures in one place. One of the most interesting things is their traditional clothes. All the clothes of these minorities are closely related to their culture. Take Bai nationality, as an example, love white colours which are the same as the meaning of their name in Chinese, white. They believe white colour can bring good luck. Their clothes are colourful, but white is always the main colour. Every Women in the Bai nationality has a beautiful “headdress”, they tell others whether they are married with different type of “headdress” (“The Bai nationality”). Traditional clothes are also an important art form of every minority culture. For example, many minorities like to have many silver things on their clothes; it‟s not only for beauty but also a convenience method to carry wealth. Moreover, travellers can rent or buy those clothes at a low price which will be a precious memory and gift. Another great experience is festival events in different seasons.
As Yunnan has so many cultures here, it has many celebrations here too. The “Water-Splashing Festival” of the Dai nationality is a famous and funny festival in China. It happens in springtime and lasts for several days. People splash water on others on that day because they think water can bring good luck (“Water-Splashing Festival”). However, it looks like a water fight which makes it a fun festival. Furthermore, you should never miss traditional food wherever you travel in China. Minorities here are good at using tools and materials around them to make delicious food, including some special fruit and meat here. Your trip to Yunnan will be a great cultural experience with so many different cultures.
Pingyao is an amazing place for cultural visitors because it has completely remained the “Old City” (“Attractions”). When you walk on the street in Pingyao Old City, you will feel like you are in the ancient time. Everything looks like it did hundreds of years ago, including the outside and inside of the buildings. It‟s like “a huge historical museum”. Some important landmarks, for example bank, temple and government office, offers a good sample for historical education (“Attractions”). These buildings show people what a bank looks like and how government worked hundreds of years ago, which is quite different from today. There is so much information waiting for you to discover in those old buildings. The wonderful paintings on the wall and windows still keep colourful. People designed houses according to the natural environment and religion. For example, there‟s always a second door after the entering door here. The second door is not used for a door. People here believe the wind blowing into the door can take away their wealth, so they built another door to stop the wind.
Those houses also show the condition of people‟s life, poor or rich. There are small houses for normal citizens, and big houses, as large as a palace, for wealthy people. You can not only visit those old houses but also live in them! Because all the buildings here are old ones, hotels are built in those old houses too. Living in the classical old buildings in northern China, and trying traditional food in northern China, will make you feel like part of the life in this fantastic place. In addition, as a famous travel destination in China, Pingyao offers good travel guide services. Visitors can hire a professional guide who can speak English for a low price. Pingyao gives people a great chance to go back into the mysterious history and experience traditional Chinese cultural. China is always an ideal location for cultural visitors because it has diverse cultures and long history. It offers everything cultural visitors want. And you will have a great time experiencing Chinese culture.
Author: Xiaoshi Li