Poetic Mount Lao: The Scent of Coffee Drifting from the Hills, An Ideal Life Handcrafted

Xiejiahe Community is located on the eastern foot of Mount Lao. The village is embraced by mountains on three sides: Tianma Mountain to the east, Zhuizigu to the south, Pishikou to the west, and Binhai Avenue to the north. It nestles in the lush, scenic Mount Lao range.

The protagonist of our story is a girl from Mount Lao who grew up by the sea in Shazikou. She has opened a coffee shop along the Shibapan mountain road in Xiejiahe.

Every romantic soul dreams of owning a café.

In fact, this girl born in 1996 has loved the mountains since childhood. During her studies in Jinan a few years ago, she discovered and fell deeply in love with coffee culture. It was then that Shun Yao first had the idea of returning to Mount Lao to open her own coffee shop.

"The freshness of the mountain wilds is different from the sea. It truly lets you slow down and be still."

When away from home, Shun Yao would often yearn to walk back through the mountain forests, wandering through the misty hills, listening to the streams and birdsong, watching the sunset tint the mountains. She longed to open a tiny café in the mountains, so that when drinking coffee, you could also breathe in the scent of the mountains.

Making dreams come true is actually a mix of passion and practicality.

A twist of fate brought Shun Yao past this place. She felt the environment and location were exactly what she had been looking for, and she fell in love with this old house at first sight.

The journey toward her ideal life was not smooth sailing. Her family had differing opinions, and when faced with difficulties, she even considered giving up.

From design to renovation, Shun Yao took on the design herself to bring her vision to life. She worked alongside the craftsmen, refining every detail to turn her design into reality.

When it comes to coffee, Shun Yao has her own obsessive pursuit of quality. She studied under several mentors, transforming from a yoga teacher into a professional barista and then into a shop owner living her dream. She thoroughly enjoyed this journey of transformation.

"Watching it gradually turn into my ideal, every hardship has been worth it."

Gradually, the old house took on a new look. The blend of authentic Mount Lao village charm with a minimalist Euro-American style, the coexistence of herbal scents and coffee aroma, gives life here a distinctive flavor.

"The coffee is what I offer you; life is what you give yourself."

Here, a good cup of coffee is brewed with the sweet water of Mount Lao and specialty coffee beans, carefully crafted to release a unique, blended aroma worth savoring slowly.

The ideal life here is one of relaxation amid pastoral landscapes — the mint growing in the yard, a window with character, a state of mind that savors beauty...

And this life is loved by different people for different reasons — perhaps the mysterious uncertainty of unexpected encounters, a brief escape from the mundane yet near the city, or a free and independent spiritual world.

What is portrayed here is actually the life Shun Yao wants for herself: making coffee and chatting casually when there are guests, preparing a cup for herself and picking a good book in her spare time. When resting, she grabs her camera to capture mountains, water, and clouds, writing down the sights and sounds. She shares the beauty of her hometown with wanderers and distant friends.

Gradually, more and more people come here, leaving their own experiences while carrying away stories of others. Hello, stranger.

Are you also searching for such a life — sharing good coffee, good stories, and a love for life, with sentiment and poetry? When you are travel-weary or drowsy from driving, come sit in these mountains, take a short nap, order a good coffee, pick up a book, and immerse yourself in a leisurely moment.