Pingnan, Exploring Ancient Villages - Part 2 (Random Notes from a 26-Day Trip in Fujian and Guangdong, No. 12)

Shuangxi Town was still the seat of Pingnan County government in the 1950s.

A county government building with a strong Republican-era style is undoubtedly its highlight. Now it has become a meeting room in the backyard of the county government.

Of course, there are many prominent families in this town, and talented people have emerged in large numbers.

The red beans on the mountain were ripe; the locals were tasting them while chatting.

The former supply and marketing cooperative, which was probably the largest store in the village back then, has been closed for decades. Now inside the house, a peasant woman has set up a formation of mouse traps to defend a bag of taro.

A 630-year-old ginkgo tree is hailed as the King of Ginkgo. Actually, it would be appropriate to call it the Mother Ginkgo as well. Although its leaves have turned yellow and fallen, many branches have grown from the root system of the mother plant, forming small trees. It should still be in its reproductive stage.

It is not a banyan tree, but it forms a forest from a single tree. Magnificent!

In Zhengjiashan Village, not only the ginkgo is eye-catching, but several ancient cryptomeria trees at the village entrance are also strikingly tall and lush.

A local mute old man, seeing my interest, excitedly gestured and said that when he was a child, there were many such ancient trees, but they were all cut down.

Of course, my driver, Master Zhou, translated for me.

Winter is coming; every household has prepared a pile of fruit tree branches and dead wood in front of their doors. These are important fuel for the mountain folks to make fires and keep warm.

Guangkeng, a village surrounded by mountains on all sides, although accessible by road, is said to have no scheduled bus service and is rarely visited.

A nameless ancient covered bridge, a cluster of dilapidated old houses with almost no new buildings in between, and a series of moss-covered stone paths on slopes — a scene of pure decay and rawness.

Alas, ancient villages are becoming fewer and fewer; they will eventually succumb to the ravages of time and fade away from us.

Master Zhou said that the villagers nowadays are not poor; they do business and live outside. These ancestral houses, because there are too many descendants to inherit them, no one bothers to take care of them, and over time, they have become like this.

Autumn drying by the bridge. In fact, in rural areas, the autumn drying mostly consists of dried sweet potatoes, dried vegetables, dried bamboo shoots, dried fish, etc. Red chili peppers are rarely dried.

Who knows the birthday of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven? Let me tell you: it's today! Of course, I just found out too.

Just as I entered Jitou Village, I heard the clang-clang of gongs and drums. Inquiring from the villagers, I learned that a play was being performed in the ancestral hall, as today is Sun Wukong's birthday.

I was about to hurry over to join the fun, but unexpectedly the afternoon show had ended, and the villagers were coming out of the ancestral hall in groups.

The actors in costume were busy eating; at 6 PM, there would be another evening performance.

You chip in 100, I chip in 50, and he chips in 1000 to show support. The villagers pooled money to invite a Fujian opera troupe. Although I could watch for free, I probably wouldn't understand a single word of the opera.