Qingming Leisure Trip: Rapeseed Blooms at Baoqizhai, Lantian & Jiaodai Town Fair

Spring arrives with vibrant life, bringing the stunning beauty of the countryside straight to your soul. Baoqizhai Village, near Jiaodai Town in Lantian, is hailed as 'China's Provence' and is a favorite spot for photographers to capture inspiration.

On the eve of Qingming, I visited Baoqizhai to enjoy the spring flowers. Seeing the fields of golden rapeseed blossoms, I couldn't help but want to run wild among them. Immersed in the spring fields, all fatigue vanished instantly, and I wished to melt into nature's embrace right then and there.

Standing on the rolling loess plateau, I was captivated by its beauty. Layers of ravines, slopes, and terraces were divided into a patchwork of golden rapeseed flowers, lush green wheat fields, and reddish-brown soil — the earth's spring attire, a sight too beautiful to take in all at once.

Baoqizhai is embraced by mountains on three sides, with winding roads that appear and disappear among overlapping ridges, birdsong, and fragrant blossoms. Amidst grey bricks and black tiles, a village sits veiled in soft mist, hiding traditional Guanzhong-style houses that exude a sense of solidity and rustic simplicity.

If your visit falls on the 3rd, 6th, or 9th day of the lunar month, be sure to check out the big market in Jiaodai Town. The market bustles with crowds jostling shoulder to shoulder, filled with laughter and lively chatter. Elderly women sell wild mountain greens and fresh vegetables from their own gardens — be sure to bring home some tender spring toon shoots.

The market's array of street snacks will make your mouth water. Lantian's hele noodles are especially delicious, and the local beef is also quite famous.

For lunch we ate at a farmhouse restaurant, where the simple home-style dishes tasted incredibly good. The owner said the spinach and green peppers were grown in their own fields; I found them even more fragrant than dishes cooked at home. Especially those small green peppers — not spicy, but richly aromatic, and for the first time I tasted the natural sweetness of the peppers themselves.

Jiaodai Town is bordered by the Western Film Studios to the east, Tangyu Hot Spring Resort to the west, Yuntaishan Scenic Area to the south, and the Guanzhong Ring Road to the north. It's just 15 km from Lantian county seat and 40 km from Xi'an city, with very convenient transport. This Qingming holiday, bring your family and go run wild among the flowers!