Confetti: 开平碉楼 Kaiping Diaolou

An afternoon visiting diaolou in Kaiping with my Cousin Sum, her husband, and Mom, started with Jinjiangli Village.

(Right: Banana trees)

We pass through this old city and follow another sign (modern and thus really out of place) to a slightly more rural looking area.

Houses here are bigger, but also much older, and we decide to explore on foot.

Finally! A"scrubber" melon in fruit.

We discover what looks like an abandonned diaolou - not the one we're looking for - and go back to the car.

(Left: A pomelo tree in someone's backyard.)

Not to far away was Jinjiangli Village. Chickens and ran freely in the streets, and rather strange snakey plants grew over brick walls (below).

We walked into the village, which was just as old, but also, it seemed, nicer and more well-kept than ours, with little trouble. A older woman asked us what we were doing here. Or so that's what I guessed (her accent was really difficult for me to understand), when Cousin Sum told her we were looking for the diaolou. She gave us some directions and walked off with her pole and baskets.

And then, we were there, at the back of 瑞石樓 Ruishi Diaolou.

We backtracked out of the village and around to another entrance (since our path was blocked by bamboo).

We reached the official entrance to Ruishi Lou.

Per the sign:

"The Ruishi Lou was built in 1923 by Huang Bixiu, a villager who was a merchant in Hong Kong, and who built it as a residential tower on his return to the village. It cost more than 30,000 Hong Kong dollars to build, and construction took two years. Huang Bixui named his tower from this second name, Ruishi, (the name means "Auspicious Stone"). The 9-storey Diaolou, built of reinforced concrete, has been famed as the No.1 Diaolou of Kaiping. In June 2001, the building was declared by the State Council a protected Major National Cultural Heritage. "

(Right: Wooden inlayed wall panel)

The proud descendant of the original owners gave us more information:

- All the art and furnishings are originals

- Each floor had four rooms plus a living room, and was meant for a family each

- The family didn't actually live there for very long, since almost all went to to the USA

(Right: An old toilet.)

(Left: A kitchen stove.)

(Below: Two baby walkers.)

The sixth floor view.

Concrete statues decorate the edges.

Cousin Sum and her husband.

View from the very top:

The climb back down.

Other dialou in the village, included Jinjiang Lou and Sheng Feng Lou.

"The Jinjiang Lou was built in 1918 as a communal refuge for the village, with funds donated by villagers. It therefore took its name from the village. It is 5 storeys high, and is made of reinforced concrete. The lower four storeys were divided into rooms where the village families could take refuge from bandits or floods. In June 2001, the building was declared by the State Council a protected Major National Cultural Heritage."

"The Shengfeng Lou was built by Huang Fengxiu, a villager living in the United States, when he returned to the village in 1919. It was designed as a residential tower by a French architect. The 7-storey Diaolou is built of reinforced concrete. This Diaolou took its name (which means "Reaching the Peak Tower") from the wish of the builder that his family should be lucky, and extremely prosperous. Huang Fengxiu, in his old age, reitred to the village, and ended his life in Shengfeng Lou. In June 2001, the building was declared by the State Council a protected Major National Cultural Heritage."