China torch relay: Kaili

By Robyn Schorn Guizhou province

While the women get into their finery, the men relax in jeans and T-shirts

Young women, some weighed down by several kilos of silver, shuffle around a drummer in a circle, their jewellery tinkling to the beat.

It is day two of the Sisters' Meal Festival in the village of Shidong, two hours by bus from Kaili in south-eastern Guizhou province, and the party is in full swing.

One of China's poorest and least developed provinces, Guizhou is also one of its richest in terms of culture and scenery.

Its 18 ethnic minority groups, including the Miao and the Dong, make up about 35% of the province's population.

Their colourful markets and packed events calendar are bringing much-needed tourist dollars.

Originally a way for young Miao to find marriage partners, the Sisters' Meal is one of many festivals held annually by ethnic minorities in this part of the province.

We have seen big changes in Guizhou in recent years and I have felt them personally A reader's view from Kaili

But these days it is a one-sided affair.

The women, dazzling in embroidered aprons and Miao silverware, sing and dance on the banks of Shidong's Qingshui River. The men stand around watching horse-racing nearby, dressed in jeans and T-shirts.

Mass migration to the cities has not helped, depleting the pool of eligible bachelors, as young men leave in search of work.

Scenic charm

Bustling, modern Kaili is the gateway city to a cluster of ethnic minority villages such as Shidong in Guizhou's southeast.

Tourists are attracted to the beautiful scenery and diverse local customs

Buses hurtle along winding mountain roads that are often rough and sometimes unpaved.

While it might be a bumpy ride, travellers are rewarded with stunning mountain vistas at every turn and a patchwork of rice paddies stepped into hillsides at improbable angles.

Locals can be seen tending their crops, carrying cumbersome bundles along the roadside and resting after hours of toil. Tough-as-nails Miao women go about their business with babies strapped to their backs in embroidered slings.

In Xijiang, the biggest Miao village in China with a population of about 5,800, locals are used to foreigners roaming the narrow alleyways that run between their charming wooden hillside homes.

Opportunity

Xiao Mei is a savvy young Miao who runs the local branch of mobile phone company China Unicom.

CHINA RELAY CITIES IN FOCUS Use the map to see the full Olympic torch relay route or read about some of the key cities: Full route map, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Xiamen, Jinggangshan, Shanghai, Nanjing, Huangshan, Three Gorges, Kaili, Lhasa, Urumqi, Xian, Yanji, Weihai, Qufu, Anyang, Beijing.

Having taught herself English, she recently opened her home to travellers, offering basic accommodation and the chance to have a meal with her extended family.

These home-stay experiences are popular with tourists wanting to get an insight into minority cultures.

Mei is from a small village several hours' walk from Xijiang. She says she met her husband, who works at the local power grid, four years ago - not at the Sisters' Meal Festival, but in an online chatroom.

She made the trek to Xijiang to meet him during the Miao New Year celebration - and they married four days later.

Young and old

Construction and development is everywhere in China, and Xijiang is no exception.

New wooden homes are going up all over the village. A demolition team of men and women pitch in to tear down a modern building, piece by piece.

The region is being heavily developed and promoted

Tiles are removed from the roof and passed along a human chain that extends down a ladder to the ground and across the street, where they are neatly stacked by the final link.

Increased government promotion of ethnic minorities in the province is certainly evident.

Television screens on buses show happy Miao couples in their finery strolling hand-in-hand, taking in idyllic mountain views and gazing into the distance.

There is also footage of the Sisters' Meal gala opening at a sports ground in the town of Taijiang, more reminiscent of a pop concert than a village festival.

For years, these festivals have connected minority communities like the Miao, and this is still the case as the sun goes down in Shidong.

Young and old gather around bonfires to feast, drink rice wine, swap stories, sing and dance into the wee hours.

The torch arrives in Kaili, Guizhou province, on 13 June.

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