Tea Has Come a Long Way from a Medicine in Ancient Times to Modern Tourism Attraction, Yang Feiyue Reports

CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Tuesday, June 1, 2021 | 17 LIFE Redefining the humble leaf Tea has come a long way from a medicine in ancient times to modern tourism attraction, Yang Feiyue reports. teeped in the roots of China’s of tea today,” says villager Lan Jinqin. development of their tea industries. history and culture, tea has Lan is happy that she does not have Tan Rongbing, an official with long been considered the to leave her hometown to work and Naxi district of Sichuan’s Luzhou city, national drink. can make a living near home. Her says more than 19,000 locals who SIt is held on par with silk and chi- income from tea picking can cover were below the country’s poverty line na, and was mainly used for medici- her family’s daily expenses. had all gotten back on their feet nal purposes in the ancient times. The plantation where Lan works through tea and related tourism The Classic of Tea written by Lu Yu covers an area of more than 12,600 development in 2019. during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) mu (840 hectares) and is home to a Ecological tourism, organic tea expatiated on the history, produc- variety of tea. It is one of nine major plantation and processing have tion and ceremony of tea. This tea plantations in Jianzhong. The tea brought benefits to more than 10,000 helped refine tea brewing and drink- industry has provided job opportuni- locals in the once poverty-stricken ing rituals, and initiated the transi- ties to 10,000 locals in the neighbor- Jiazhuyuan town of Shaanxi prov- tion of tea from medicine to popular ing area. “We are committed to ince and turned the town into a pop- drink. making tea a medium in the creation ular tourism zone. Increasing public As time went on, tea began to of a beautiful rural themed pastoral interest in tea has been the driving boost the development of bronze complex,” says Huang Hongying, force of the tea tourism boom. “We and porcelain wares. Places like who is in charge of running the tea have found the public is not satisfied Jingdezhen city in Jiangxi province plantation. Since the town began with just scratching the surface, but and Xuyang county in Hebei prov- building a provincial white tea park they are increasingly fond of immer- ince have been engaged in the mass in 2014, tea has played a predomi- sive experiences,” says Zhu Yang, an production of increasingly fine tea nant role in uplifting Jianzhong’s officer with the China National Tea ware, which in turn became an economy. Jianzhong then initiated Museum in Hangzhou, Zhejiang important part of tea culture. the development of its tea tourism in province, about tea culture. Over the years, tea has been repre- 2016. Before the pandemic, the museum sentative of China’s values and phi- The integration of tourism ele- received about 600,000 visitors losophy, and has also made its ments has injected vitality into the every year, with foreign tourists presence at many significant events. local tea industry and increased vil- accounting for 20 percent of all visi- In 1972, when the United States lagers’ incomes. “We take advantage tors. Zhu says interaction with local President Richard Nixon visited Chi- of the mountains, ecology and rural tea farmers and artists, tea perform- na, Chairman Mao Zedong present- leisure tourism ... to provide a way for ances and do-it-yourself tea making ed him with 200 grams of locals to increase their incomes and experiences have been especially dahongpao tea. Dahongpao means become rich,” says Liu Feng, Party favored among the museum’s visi- big red robe, and it is the most secretary of Jianzhong. Liu says the tors. The museum also holds regular famous oolong tea in China. Mountainous Jianzhong town in Guizhou province boasts a long history of tea planting. Tea-related sec- goal is to transform the town into a tea related programs for the public, Sensing Nixon’s doubt, Premier tors play a predominant role in boosting the town’s economy. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY tea tourism destination featuring so as to encourage more enthusiasm Zhou Enlai explained to him that green development. The town covers for tea tourism and cultural experi- the annual yield of six dahongpao the economically underdeveloped also nurtured rich varieties of tea, successful path of tea production and an area of 232 square kilometers and ences. mother trees, which have survived and impoverished areas in China each carrying a distinct local flavor. its related tourism development. is 1,350 meters above sea level. According to the China Tea Mar- hundreds of years, was a mere 400 are hidden in the depths of the Experts say a great number of tea In Jianzhong town of Guizhou, The close proximity to downtown keting Association, the economic grams. Zhou joked that the chair- mountains. Some of these areas are production areas have fostered pro- tea trees have become a spectacular Guiyang, highway networks and benefits brought by tea gardens have man had given Nixon “half of the not suitable for growing grains, but found tea culture over the years, sight. At a tea plantation 1,300 local tea industry have helped pack encouraged tea plantation. In 2019, country”. are great for cultivating tea leaves. which paved the way for the incorpo- meters above sea level, bursts of the town with tourists from neigh- the area of tea gardens in 18 major In modern times, tea plantations At the southern tip of Gansu prov- ration of leisure and tourism experi- laughter can be heard from time to boring areas. Tourists can now expe- tea production provinces reached 3 and tea themed tourism have ince, Wenxian county’s moderately ences into the tea industry. time amid lush tea trees in early rience fruit and tea leaf picking, million hectares. played an effective role in enriching acidic soil and misty rainy climate To date, the provinces of Gansu, April. They were from the local tea fishing, hiking, and living at rural travelers’ experiences while are ideal for tea cultivation. The Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan, Guizhou workers. homestays in Jianzhong. Many other Contact the writer at increasing local incomes. Most of vast range of territory in China has and Yunnan have all explored the “I’m now picking my third basket places have escaped poverty through [email protected].

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