Kaiping | Blue Lapis Road

JINJIANGLI (錦江里村) VILLAGE, Kaiping, China

After Majianlong, our hired driver Kwan drove further southwest to Jinjiangli Village, near the town of Xian Gang. Jinjiangli is relatively less visited by tourists because of its distance from Chikan. We went here specifically to see Ruishi Diaolou (瑞石樓), the tallest diaolou in Kaiping. Ruishi Diaolou is still privately owned. We were fortunate that someone from the owner’s family was there when we went to Jinjiangli, who was willing to open the door for us with a fee.

With 9 storeys at a height of 25m, Ruishi Diaolou (瑞石樓) was built between 1923 to 1925. The owner was a Hong Kong businessman named Wong. The tower was structurally constructed in reinforced concrete. Building material in China was scarce back then, Wong imported the concrete, steel rebars, glass, and timber from Hong Kong and transported up to the site via canals. The diaolou was a mixture of architectural styles, including Roman, Byzantine, Baroque and Chinese influences. From the living room on ground floor, we walked up the stair to visit every single floor. The second to sixth floors were similar, with bedrooms, kitchens and bathrooms. The seventh housed a semi-outdoor terrace, the eighth an ancestral hall, and the ninth a watchtower. The view from the top of Ruishi Diaolou to the surrounding diaolous, village homes, bamboo forest, and distant rolling hills was marvelous.

At Jinjiangli, we also passed by the other two diaolous, the Shengfeng Diaolou (升峰樓) and Jinjiang Diaolou (錦江樓). Shengfeng was built in 1928, again using reinforced concrete. It featured a fusion of Indian and South Asian architectural styles. Jinjiang Dialou was built in 1918. We didn’t stay long at Jinjiangli because we needed to catch an afternoon bus to Guangzhou. The tour of Jinjiangli concluded our visit of Kaiping Diaolous. Other than its photogenic qualities, the diaolous are highly valuable in documenting an era of interesting social and architectural phenomenon, when thousands of Chinese from this region of Guangdong left their homes to work and lived in the West. Some settled permanently on foreign soil, but showed affection to their homeland by building these unique fusion architecture throughout Kaiping; while some others returned from the West with new architectural visions, and also resulted in erecting their unique versions of diaolous.

After Jinjiangli, Kwan drove us all the way to the bus terminal at Kaiping. We were grateful to have Kwan as our driver. Without him, we weren’t able to reach Majianlong and Jinjiangli in half day’s time. We left Kaiping with the 3pm bus to Guangzhou.

Another scene of Chinese rural setting greeted us at the entrance of Jinjiangli Village.

The gateway of Ruishi Diaolou, with Shengfeng Diaolou and Jinjiang Diaolou at the background.

Ruishi Diaolou is the tallest tower in Kaiping.

Fresh paint was visible on Ruishi Diaolou.

The vivid colours of Ruishi Diaolou looked a little funny.

Photograph of Ruishi Diaolou before its new paint.

In many floors there would be a common space, with bedrooms flanking both sides.

Old photos of the owner’s family were allover the interior.

Birdeye’s view of Jinjiangli Village from top of Ruishi Diaolou.

Baroque details near the roof against a bamboo forest.

View of Jinjiang Diaolou (centre left) and Shengfeng Diaolou (centre right) from roof of Ruishi Diaolou.

The Shengfeng Diaolou was heavily influenced by Indian architecture.

Final view of Ruishi Diaolou after we returned to the ground.

Shengfeng Diaolou was highly decorated with Indian motifs.

Closeup of the architectural details of Shengfeng Diaolou.

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1) TWO EPOCHS OF EAST MEET WEST: Kaiping (開平) and Guangzhou (廣州), China
2) QILOU (騎樓) BUILDINGS OF CHIKAN (赤坎鎮), Kaiping, China
3) DIAOLOU (碉樓) OF ZILI (自力村) VILLAGE, Kaiping (開平), China
4) VILLAGE OF MAJIANLONG (馬降龍村), Kaiping, China
5) JINJIANGLI (錦江里村) VILLAGE, Kaiping, China
6) ZHUJIANG NEW TOWN (珠江新城) AT NIGHT, Guangzhou, China
7) SHAMEEN ISLAND (沙面島), Guangzhou (廣州), China
8) CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE, Guangzhou, China

March 13, 2016 | Categories: China, China: Kaiping and Guangzhou 2015, Guangdong | Tags: China, 瑞石樓, 碉樓, diaolou, 錦江里, 錦江樓, 開平, Guangdong, Jinjiang, Jinjiangli, Kaiping, Ruishi, Shengfeng, 升峰樓 | Leave a comment

VILLAGE OF MAJIANLONG (馬降龍村), Kaiping, China

The next morning, we took a local bus to Chikan again for another half day of diaolou tour. At Chikan, we found out that the tourist shuttle bus going to Majianlong Village was temporarily suspended due to a damaged road bridge. Across the canal from Chikan Movie Studio, we stepped in a youth hostel to seek for advise. The staff was very kind and she suggested us to either rent a bike or hire a car/ driver. We opted for a local driver because of time constraint. The driver Mr. Kwan turned out to be nice and talkative. From the construction of diaolou to the standard of living in the region, Kwan offered us good insights into the history and life in Kaiping. We requested Kwan taking us to two more villages, Majianlong (馬降龍) and Jinjiangli (錦江里) for diaolou visits.

Due to the damage of the road bridge, Kwan took us on a rural journey via a network of small village roads. After winding through old villages, fish ponds and rice fields, we finally reached one of the parking lots at Majianlong. Kwan dropped us off at the village entrance and we ventured into Majianlong on our own. The area of Majianlong was relatively large, with a few villages clustered within a large expanse of bamboo forest. Through winding footpaths in the shade of bamboo groves, we visited a number of diaolous in Majianlong. It was a pleasure to wander in the bamboo forest to look for the diaolous and villas. Mosquitoes were sometimes a nuisance but in general arriving at each diaolou was like a small discovery in the forest. Some diaolous were actually opened for visitors, with staff at the entrance checking tickets. We also visited a privately owned diaolou where a small fee was paid to a lady by the door. Even more so here than in Zili, the interior of some diaolous were magnificently preserved with antique furniture, beautiful floor tiles and interesting wall motifs. For a few times we climbed up to a diaolou’s roof terrace to appreciate the scenery of distant hills and bamboo forest, in which nostalgic diaolous stood out from a sea of green.

The high walls and diaolou watchtowers reminded visitors of the violent history of the area when banditry was common.

One of the many small lanes leading into the village centre.

Red painted political slogans could be found on walls of many village homes.

In one of the diaolous we visited, a darkened oil painting was hung in the ground floor living room.

Old black and white photographs of the owner’s ancestors and families in one of the diaolous.

A richly articulated stair led to a diaolou’s rooftop patio.

Like Zili, the diaolous in Majianlong presented an interesting fusion of East and West design styles.

A diaolou stood in the midst of a bamboo forest.

Some diaolous in Majianlong were covered in the shade of bamboo for most of the day.

Walking on the footpath under the bamboo shade was pleasant if not the occasional mosquitoes.

Because of the humidity and lack of maintenance, the exterior walls of many diaolous were not in good shape.

This kitchen of a diaolou looked untouched for decades.

Photos of different generations of house owners could be found in many diaolous.

Bedroom with an overhead storage.

A splendid villa partially hidden in a bamboo grove.

Most of the diaolou interior opened to the public had been repainted.

Because of its height, the main stair of a diaolou was an essential element of the building.

Classical keystone and column capital were popular back then.

Splendid balcony of a diaolou.

Local villager drying hey.

We encountered a lot more villagers in Majianlong than in Zili.

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March 12, 2016 | Categories: China, China: Kaiping and Guangzhou 2015, Guangdong | Tags: Chikan, diaolou, 馬降龍, Guangdong, Kaiping, Majianlong, rural, villa, village | Leave a comment

DIAOLOU (碉樓) OF ZILI (自力村) VILLAGE, Kaiping (開平), China

Thanks to a number of local movies such as “Let the Bullets Fly” (讓子彈飛) that took its diaolou (碉樓) as film set, Zili (自力村) has become the most well known village in Kaiping. The diaolous of Zili have been inscribed in the World Heritage List since 2007. Since then, tourists, mainly local visitors, came to Zili to experience a bygone era. We picked Zili as our first village to visit because of its proximity to Chikan and Kaiping.

From Chikan, we bought the Kaiping Diaolou combined ticket and took the tourist shuttle bus to Zili. Passing through some lily ponds and rice paddies, a boardwalk led us to the entrance plaza of Zili. The village wasn’t big. We were told that Zili could be swamped of tourists during public holidays. It was a Friday afternoon when we were there. Luckily not too many tourists were around. Certain part of Zili seemed like an open air museum, in which fifteen diaolous and old villas (廬) survived to this day. These buildings were constructed in the first half of the 20th century, ranging from 1917 to 1948. There were a few diaolous that we could actually go inside. Inside the diaolou, old housewares, furniture and photos were on display. In every diaolou that we entered, we always climbed up to the roof terrace. From the roof, we could fully admire the scenery of Zili, where spectacular diaolous mushroomed upon a lush green carpet of rice paddies. We spent roughly two hours wandering in Zili before catching the last shuttle bus back to Chikan.

Once entered the village, we arrived at an open square flanked by old brick villas with interesting ornaments typical for traditional rural houses in China.

Architectural ornaments inspired by the West could easily be found in Zili.

Impressive diaolous greeted our arrival beyond a small lily pond.

Footpaths were well maintained for tourism.

Inside a dialou, antique furniture and housewares are on display. A main staircase leads visitors to various levels at the back side of the building. On each level, the stairwell opens to a living room, flanked by smaller bedrooms along the sides.

Old furniture and housewares in one of the study room of a diaolou.

A Western style antique chair against the paint motif on a plaster wall.

Covered terrace on the top floor of a diaolou.

Columns with Classical order was popular back then, though craftsmanship was usually crude, reflecting that the local contractors responsible for the construction had little knowledge on what they were building. Some of them actually based their construction on postcards sent by the owner who lived abroad.

Diaolous and rice paddies viewed from a roof terrace.

Rich details of carved balustrade is still visible today.

Some villagers still live in some parts of Zili, leading a simple rural life.

In some spaces inside a surviving diaolou, paint touch-ups from recent renovations looked unnatural and overdone.

Interior details like stained glass windows and antique clock belong to an era of East meets West.

Old floor tiles in a bedroom of a diaolou.

Interior details of a diaolou.

The sun angle get considerably lower by the time we visited our last diaolou of the day.

Two diaolous leaning toward each other.

The late afternoon sun cast a golden glow to the diaolous, and so as the rice paddies.

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March 7, 2016 | Categories: China, China: Kaiping and Guangzhou 2015, Guangdong | Tags: Architecture, Chikan, China, 碉樓, diaolou, 自力村, 讓子彈飛, Guangdong, Kaiping, paddies, rice, rural, village | Leave a comment

TWO EPOCHS OF EAST MEET WEST: Kaiping (開平) and Guangzhou (廣州), China

Throughout history, there has been a number of periods when Western influences played a role to enrich the architectural developments in China. However, despite occasional outside influences and technological refinements from dynasty to dynasty, the evolution of Chinese architecture remained relatively consistent in terms of its structural principles, construction techniques, planning strategies, and overall aesthetics. This remained so until drastic social changes took place in recent two centuries when first China was forced to open its doors to the West in the 1800s, and second when modern China welcomed the new ideas of urban development, international commerce, and contemporary living in recent two decades. Only hours of bus ride from Hong Kong, the County of Kaiping and City of Guangzhou are two great places to examine how Western influences came to fuse with local habits in defining Chinese architecture that reflect the unique values of two distinct eras.

Four hours of bus ride connects Hong Kong to Kaiping (開平), a county in the Chinese Province of Guangdong. We left Hong Kong early in a Friday morning by bus, and arrived in Kaiping at around lunchtime. We spent a little over a day exploring the Kaiping area, visiting a few of its photogenic villages and diaolous (碉樓) or fortified towers, and the splendid architecture and atmospheric colonnaded streets of the town of Chikan (赤坎鎮). On Saturday, we took a two-hour bus from Kaiping to Guangzhou, the cosmopolitan provincial capital of Guangdong or Canton (廣州) where we stayed for the second night at its unique Shamian Island (沙面島), a small sandbank island where once controlled by the British and French during the 19th century. Lastly, we spent much of Sunday in Guangzhou visiting some of its flamboyant architecture built recently.

Before 2007, few other than photography enthusiasts in Hong Kong and Guangdong knew about Kaiping. After some villages of diaolous were inscribed in UNESCO’s World Heritage List, Kaiping gradually became a popular destination for both domestic and international tourists. Since the Ming Dynasty, villagers in Southern Guangdong built fortified towers to safeguard their properties from bandits. But it wasn’t until the turning of the 20th century when villagers of the area erected all kinds of towers with a mix of architectural styles from all around the world that Kaiping diaolous became such a unique phenomenon found nowhere else in China. The phenomenon revealed Kaiping’s close connections with the outside world. Many families in Kaiping had members either studied, worked, or even moved abroad at the turning of the century. Popular destinations of the exodus included United States, Canada, Australia, and Southeast Asia. Many of these emigrants settled abroad, but returned to Kaiping from time to time. Many of them returned with foreign design ideas, postcards of Western mansions, or even architectural drawings to build towers full of personal tastes. Some would even imported building materials from Hong Kong or abroad for tower construction. Local contractors, on the other hand, would use their imagination and interpretation to construct the towers based on the limited information provided by the property owners living abroad. As a result, a unique mixture of Western design and traditional Chinese craftsmanship formed the basis for diaolou’s construction. At its peak, over 3000 diaolous were erected in Kaiping. Today, there are about 1800 survived.

Guangzhou or Canton, on the other hand, has always been a vibrant city in China. It is the third largest city in the country, after Shanghai and Beijing. Historically Canton was the most important trading hub between China and the outside world. Since the arrival of Portuguese traders in the 17th century, a romanticized Canton was once the sole source of imagination for the Western world to comprehend the Chinese civilization. In modern times, Guangzhou gradually regained its former glory in recent decades as China reopened its doors to the world. With its close proximity to Hong Kong and strategic location at the core of Southern China’s manufacturing heartland, Guangzhou once again came under international spotlight with its new iconic buildings.

It felt like going back in time when we first arrived at the town of Chikan (赤坎鎮), the transportation hub for most travelers visiting the villages of Kaiping.

Zili Village (自力村) is dotted with diaolous (碉樓) or fortified towers. The village has become famous domestically ever since a number Chinese movies and television shows were filmed here.