Ni Linmei combs out her long hair on Dec 6, 2011. The 55-year-old woman, who lives in Taiyuan, the capital city of Shanxi province, has become famous for her big braid in her community. She started growing her hair when she was 14, and it has grown to 2.53 meters long today. She says her hair grows 16.7 centimeters every year and she plans to apply to the Guinness World Records for longest hair in a few years.[Photo/CFP]

Ni Linmei carefully wraps her hair in a piece of cloth for protection on Dec 6.[Photo/CFP]