Unique Fujian Tulou and Picturesque Yunshuiyao Ancient Town
Fujian Tulou is a unique architecture in Fujian province. It is a huge enclosed style four story residential building. The wall is made of natural mud, thus came the name Tulou (earthen building). There are hundreds and thousands Tulou in Fujian. I visited Nanjing Tulou with one of my young friends. She was born and raised in the area. However this was also her first time seeing Nanjing Tulou. We saw two shapes of Tulou: circle and rectangle. The enclosed inside open area usually has a well and/or a stage for public use, while the stories were used to be private rooms. But today, very few people still live in Tulou. Many of them became museums and visitors can go to rooms to see what’s inside. Tulou’s 1st floor usually is used for kitchen and cafeteria, 2nd floor usually is for grain storage, and 3rd 4th floor usually is for bedrooms.
This particular rectangular shape Tulou was built on marsh lands. How amazing it is! When we walked inside, we could feel the spongy like ground. Like many, I can’t help but wonder will the building sink? The answer is no. It has stood for hundreds years. According to some documents, the earliest Tulou appeared in the 16th century.
On the day to see Tulou, we also came to a picturesque ancient town called Yunshuiyao. Its natural beauty attracts a lot of tourists each year. This place was also a movie shooting place and the movie is also called Yunshuiyao. Its serenity makes people feel like living in the past time. I like the huge banyan trees, their branches stretched so elegantly outward. I like the watermill, the stream running gently, and many students do their paintings under banyan trees. Spending a day with a friend and sightseeing together was most marvelous.
