Beijing Municipality is land of great contrasts. It was an important commercial crossroads long before it became a political centre in antiquity. Its hills and mountains were dotted with important cultural centres hundreds of years before its Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven were built.

Now, when roaming its inner-city hutong, its World Heritage treasures or when travelling by taxi among its gleaming skyscrapers and modern architectural monuments, it's easy to forget that the municipality also has a vast and historic rural culture that is also being touched and transformed by modernization. In some ways, the rural transformation may rival that of the urban area in overall socioeconomic importance. They are, at least, intertwined; one depends on the other.

One place to view Beijing's rural modernization and to enjoy a day, a weekend or even longer relaxing outside the city is the Beizhai Ecology and Folk-Custom Village, based in a traditional Chinese village located northwest of the Huairou Reservoir and the intersection of the Jing-Cheng Expressway and National Highway 101 in Huairou District's Qiaozi Township. Beizhai's leadership, headed by Party Branch Secretary Xie Changming, in 1996 decided to change the village's fortunes by turning to "ecological tourism," and it appears to be succeeding magnificently.

But we must use the term "village" loosely here. To be sure, any visitor to Beizhai will experience the natural beauty of rural Beijing, its blossoming fruit trees and flowers, its evergreens and willows, its flowing streams and mountains and rural creatures like ducks, chickens, cattle and even wildlife like pheasants and hawks, but all these things and more can be experienced without any of the hardships typically associated with village life. Pleasant diversions available in Beizhai are almost endless: fruit picking, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, cycling, bodybuilding, X-sports training (including shooting), golf, tennis, swimming, music, the local market and numerous fine restaurants (try the wild vegetables with barbecued trout). Spend your night sleeping on a farmer's kang or in a comfortable bed for as little as 15 yuan per night (plus meals) or choose one of the area's fine lodges or hotel rooms, designed to suit any taste. Enjoy board games with your family or simply a quiet visit with friends.

For a feel of real rural China, try one of the villages' 13 folk-custom culture courtyards or one of their 68 folk-custom farmhouses. For another level of service based in the rural environment, try the Goose and Duck Ranch in the southern part of the village or the plush Renji Mountain Lodge and golf course on its north.

In the hills north of the village, Beilong Mountain Lodge offers quiet rooms overlooking farmland in the valley below. Here you can feast on local fare such as wild vegetables and barbecued trout. An even more "farm-like" experience can be had at the Luming Lake Holiday Ranch, where its restroom-equipped, air-conditioned cabins surround an authentic courtyard. Here, you can swim or fish nearby and your children can marvel at chickens, ducks, geese and even an emu or two. Strawberries and other vegetables and fruit are grown in greenhouses overlooking the ponds. The village is popular among tourists from home and abroad. About 60 percent of its rooms for tourists are booked during weekdays and it's always packed on weekends and national holidays.

"Our prices are very reasonable," said Cao Yuzhen, a woman in charge of the ranch's reception station. "We only charge 15 yuan for a night's stay per person, 50 yuan each including three meals and a night's accommodation."

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