Langdeshang Miao Village or Upper Langde Miao Village is located 27 kilometers away from Kaili, near Leishan Town in southeast China s Guizhou Province. This small Miao village has become a popular stopping point for tourists. Langdeshang Village attracts travelers mainly for its three distinctive features: The first feature is that it is an excellent example of traditional Miao architecture; The second feature is that the village brims a strong ethnic atmosphere which is best presented by the Welcome Ceremony; the third feature is the picturesque landscapes-most travelers know Langdeshang Village for its ethnic culture, however, the natural scenery in this part of the country alone is worth a trip.
Miao Ethnic Minority is both mysterious and exciting. The Miao people are identified by their dialect, dress, location and other customes. In dress we have Long Skirt Miao, Short Skirt Miao, Black Miao, Flowery Miao and Long Horned Miao. By location there are River Miao and Mountain Miao. The villagers in Langde wear long skirts, hence they are "Long Skirt Miao". The Miao style houses "Diaojiaolou" and its featured and creative festivals will cause you spell bound.
Around 500 villagers in ten families, the Langde Miao Village is considered small. Members of the Miao Ethnic Minority, they adopt common habits and customes. Entering the village, visitors would find themselves literarily immersed in works of art.
Langdeshang Village preserves a large number of old wooden Diaojiaolou buildings-buildings on stilt, which is the traditional Miao building. These wooden building is generally held together by means of wooden joinery, i.e., without recourse to either metal (nails, screws, bolts, etc.) or glue, but simply by means of interlocking joints such as mortoise and tenon ("peg and hole") joinery and other, more articulated joinery methods (think of a jigsaw puzzle). All the wood cottages in the village are multi-storeyed and built on an incline. There is indeed method in this seeming madness, and it demonstrates the adeptness of the Miao people in artfully adapting to the challenging conditions that they have faced since ancient times.
Villagers in Langdeshang keep their centuries-old tradition and custom, with the most distinguished practices being the Welcoming Ceremony. Visitors to Langde Shang Village will be greeted on the way to drink the "block-the-way" wine -a local tradition of greeting guests. The welcoming ceremony continues as the guests pass the tables. Villagers will then set off firecrackers, play Mangtong (a kind of local musical instrument), and sing songs. Guests will be finally led to the Lusheng ground-where the Lusheng Show is performed to enjoy the Lusheng Show.
The travelers who have visited Langdeshang Village is highly unlikely to forget its quite, refreshing and beautiful surroundings. The Village is located beside a crystal river, surrounded by rolling mountains. By the rivers are stone grain mills and mill wheels which remains what they were for centuries.
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