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"A small courtyard" transforms the idle old house into a gorgeous one.
Tourists dine under the apricot trees in the small courtyard.
●Shooting location: Zhangxia Street, Changqing District
●Shooting content: "Courtyard economy" helps the characteristic cultural tourism industry
Young people return to their hometowns to start businesses and "blast reform" old rural houses
Drive along the mountain road to wind up to Xuezhuang Village, which is hidden in the mountains. "One Small Courtyard" is a particularly poetic existence in this almost uninhabited village, which makes people feel like they have come to the desirable courtyard in the hit drama "To a Windy Place" - the century-old apricot trees have produced green fruits, the wanton blooming flowers decorate the oily lawn, the firewood that is stewing local chickens is crackling, the straw-style awning is simple and elegant, and the huge canopy adds a fashionable camping feeling...... Jin Jie, the owner of the courtyard, said that he and his friends rented the old house, which had been abandoned for many years, a few years ago, and originally just wanted to make it a place for friends to relax and live the "longing life" in their hearts, until April this year, when it opened as a restaurant.
"I'm a local, and I know that there are a lot of idle rural houses in my hometown, and I feel that it's a pity, and I always feel that the childhood in my memory is getting farther and farther away. Sitting in the small courtyard that is now unforgettable, Jin Jie recalled its original dilapidated appearance overgrown with weeds, and lamented the bits and pieces that he and his friends had paid for it in the past few years: the mountain roads were rugged, the transportation was inconvenient, and the stones had to be carried and paved by themselves; The exquisite scenery in the courtyard comes from everyone's whimsy, without the help of designers; Old objects such as dowry boxes and old door panels were collected from the villagers' homes, and now they are wrapped with vibrant flowers and vines.
"We used to start a business to make desserts and baking, and now we have returned to the village as a returned youth to start a business, and we have brought this craft back!" Jin Jie's partner, Ding Zihan, who is also a local, said that the courtyard now not only has "village-style" farmhouse dishes such as roast lamb shank and stewed local chicken, but also Western-style simple meals such as steak and pasta, as well as desserts, coffee and fruit tea, which are popular with young people. "Our Zhang Xia is most famous for apricots, so we have also developed all kinds of refreshments with apricots as raw materials, hoping to make it a boutique souvenir!"
In just over 20 days of external business, consumers who came to the "small courtyard" have stepped on the threshold. "Look, it's full at noon on weekdays. Every weekend, our appointment calls are flooded!" Ding Zihan said that many guests sit in the courtyard all day long, enjoying the romance of the mountains. "Because of these guests, this small mountain village, which already has a few families left, is also lively, which gives us a great sense of accomplishment. Jin Jie and Ding Zihan said that they have an extra responsibility on their shoulders to promote rural development and make villagers rich.
Revitalize idle resources to serve tourism and employment
The development of "courtyard economy" is the highlight of Zhangxia Street's layout to promote the development of local tourism. In the process of building the "small courtyard", the street has made a lot of efforts, not only coordinating transport vehicles, handling various procedures, but even specially repairing mountain roads to facilitate the entry and exit of transport vehicles, and street publicity staff to plan promotional copywriting, which makes Jin Jie and his friends feel warm.
In addition to the "small courtyard of one party", there are many characteristic courtyards of "courtyard economy" such as "apricot blossom courtyard" and "such as your courtyard" in Zhangxia Street. The "Xinghua Courtyard" in Yuezhuang Village is on the road to the local signature tourism project "Thirty Miles of Apricot Health Care Valley", and the person in charge, Wu Yue, runs the courtyard after returning to his hometown with her husband. Under the apricot trees in the courtyard, small tents are decorated with apricot blossoms and ancient elements, and the dining environment is extremely comfortable. "In the past, it was difficult for tourists to come to Apricot Valley to find a place to rest and eat, but now we have opened a small courtyard on the side of the road, which is more convenient for tourists to provide catering services. Wu Yue said that the small courtyard mainly provides a variety of farm dishes, and the business has been better than imagined in the business for more than a month, and it is full almost every day.
As a thousand-year-old town, Zhangxia has been an important place for the north-south thoroughfare since the Spring and Autumn Period. More than 800 hectares of apricot trees are planted in the area, and the tourist season begins in mid-March every year until the summer. The "courtyard economy" serves the characteristic tourism industry and also revitalizes idle resources.
"It is already the norm for a large number of houses to be idle in rural areas, and the 'courtyard economy' can make use of these resources and combine them with the existing tourism industry to increase the income of villagers. Chen Yandong, Secretary of the Party Committee of Zhangxia Street Paper Mill Management District, told reporters that now short-distance "micro-tourism" is the choice of many citizens, and they are still continuing to build a small courtyard with a differentiated style in their own jurisdiction.
The employment of "Yifang Courtyard" and "Xinghua Courtyard" is solved from the village or nearby villages. "If you want to keep the 'nostalgia', you must keep the 'villagers'. Jin Jie said that at present, many of the yard builders and rice cooks in the small courtyard are nearby villagers, and most of the natural ingredients used are directly collected from the villagers
On the one hand, this can provide more sales for the agricultural products in the village, and on the other hand, it also brings employment opportunities to the villagers.
The "courtyard economy" continues to develop and lengthens the industrial chain of "Xing Cultural Tourism".
The "May Day" holiday is approaching, and the "small courtyard" is busy renovating to create a "Alice in Wonderland" like a flower land for tourists, providing camping and picnic areas.
"Reservations for the holiday season are all full, and in order to give our guests a better experience, we have planned evening concerts and prepared a play area for children. Jin Jie said that from the elderly who pursue nostalgia to the children who enjoy nature, the small courtyard has attracted a wider range of guest groups, which also makes her have more plans for the future. "We have rented an old house nearby, which is under construction to make a homestay, and if the 'test of the water' effect is not bad, we can continue to spread it out and drive the whole village together!" Jin Jie told reporters that in the process of returning to her hometown to start a business, she became more and more ambitious, hoping to make more contributions to the development of her hometown.
Nowadays, the "courtyard economy" of Zhangxia Street has been effective, and these small courtyards also have a common name - "Xinghua Courtyard".
Liu Shaowen, Secretary of the Party Working Committee of the street, introduced that in 2024, Zhangxia Street will empower the development of the three industries of "Xinghua" with "project deepening", and successfully launched the first batch of "Xinghua Courtyard" by launching the "Xinghua Wish" boutique rural cultural tourism brand, and developed a model for the development of cultural and tourism projects with bright spots, advantages and characteristics with various models such as "courtyard + cultural tourism", "courtyard + homestay", "courtyard + intangible cultural heritage" and "courtyard + industry", showing the business environment and the development level of the cultural tourism industry in Zhangxia in an all-round way.
Now, Wangquan Village and Mung Bean Hoard Village also take "retaining the memory of their hometown and experiencing pastoral life" as their development idea, and actively build nearly 30 sets of experiential homestay courtyards by using idle courtyard resources, constantly improving tourism supporting facilities and activating the potential of rural development. With the implementation of the first batch of "Xinghua Academy", the exploration and development of Zhangxia courtyard economy has gradually integrated and orderly, and the development momentum of better than the expected goal makes everyone full of confidence.