Jingxiang Travel Notes 024丨Miao Village Style

Time:September 3, 2009

Location: Sanya City, Wuzhishan City, Hainan Province

Jingxiang Travel Notes Chapter 24 | Miao Village Style

For me, there are almost no interesting attractions in Sanya. Places such as Tianya Haijiao and Betel Valley do not interest me, so I just "stop here" and go directly to Wuzhishan the next day.

Just like when you come to Beijing, "You are not a hero unless you have reached the Great Wall", when you come to the famous Wuzhishan area, it seems that you can only complete your visit by climbing the 1880-meter peak. I am no exception and plan to climb Wuzhishan. However, I was more interested in the ethnic minorities in Hainan, so I asked my local friend Mr. Lu who was accompanying me: "Is the largest ethnic minority in Hainan the Li ethnic group?"

Mr. Lu shook his head and said: "No, the largest one is the Miao ethnic group. It just so happens that there is the largest Miao ethnic group village here. "

Hearing what he said, I immediately became excited: "Go in and have a look!"

So, under the guidance of Mr. Lu, I came to Yananshang Village, the largest Miao village in Hainan Province.

This is not a tourist attraction, it is just a very ordinary village, and the lives of the villagers have not been affected by the outside world at all. It was around nine o'clock in the morning. Maybe the villagers had gone to work and the village seemed very quiet.

The few villagers who occasionally walked around the village didn't pay much attention to me as an uninvited guest, but the three children playing on the bluestone paid me attention.

Apparently it was not busy farming at this time. A woman was sitting leisurely at the door of her house in slippers, playing with needle and thread, as if she was embroidering something. Mr. Lu saw that I was interested in this item, so he asked to borrow it in Hainan dialect. Although the woman was a bit shy on her face, she handed it over generously.

It turns out that this is the headdress (hat) of a woman. I believe that every woman here has a pair of dexterous hands to embroider the characteristics of the Miao people stitch by stitch.

After leaving Yananshang Village, we came to the Miao Village in Shuiman Township. This Miao village is not simple, not because of how well it is built, but because there is a Miao leader living in the village. In addition, you can climb Wuzhi Mountain from here.

This Miao village must be visited, but we were already at the uphill intersection of Wuzhishan, so we decided to climb Wuzhishan first. But after I walked for a while, I either found the road difficult or encountered snakes.

I asked Mr. Lu: "This road is so difficult to walk. Which finger of Wuzhishan are we going to now?" I thought we had reached the little finger.

However, Mr. Lu's answer made me lose the confidence to insist on climbing Wuzhishan: "This section of the road is relatively easy to walk, but it will become more and more difficult to walk as you go. In some places, you even have to use your hands to climb." After he finished talking about the road conditions Then he said our current position: "You are still in the tropical rain forest under Wuzhi Mountain, and you have not yet reached the position of any finger."

Oh my gosh! I quickly backed off: "Go back and meet the Miao leader!"

This is a very ordinary-looking Miao village, not as big as Yananshang Village, but there lives a celebrity who has been received by Premier Wen. He is Li Richang, the Miao leader who has been the branch secretary of the village for 37 years.

Secretary Li was very talkative. He moved a stool in front of his yard and chatted with me about trivial matters in the Miao village that made me, a Han, feel mysterious. The women next to me never interrupted. Is it because they didn’t understand the language? Or is it a way for them to respect their guests? I didn't solve the mystery in the end.

It was already noon, and I reluctantly got up to say goodbye. Secretary Li was very enthusiastic and repeatedly invited me to stay for lunch and let me taste the Miao family’s home-brewed wine. If it weren’t for the tight schedule, I would really want to stay a little longer.

Here, the simple folk customs make you forget about the prison-like anti-theft nets in the city, and you don’t have to worry about being ordered to pay compensation by the judge when you lift up an old lady; here, you don’t have to worry about the meat stall crawling with flies at the entrance of the village giving you food poisoning , maybe the villagers don’t know there is such a thing as clenbuterol;

Here, you can climb a tall coconut tree and pick a coconut to quench your thirst without having to drink chemically synthesized beverages.

I was thinking: What should the Miao family’s home-brewed wine taste like? Even though I don't drink alcohol.

Preview of the next article: This issue is about local travel in Yangjiang. Let's go to Dongshui Village, Xinxu Town, Yangxi County with everyone, see the ancient papermaking method and experience this ancient production tool, and recall the ancient folk customs. Please pay attention to " Deep in the Mountains".