'Rustic' feel of villages in Zhejiang is being revived

Two centuries ago, an idyllic view of a pristine plain fringed by wooded hills and clear creeks persuaded a passer-by to settle down in what is now Wuyantou village in Zhejiang province. The isolated expanse of land has since seen hundreds of stone cottages sprout up to form a settlement.

Twenty years ago, the once-bustling area of about 1.5 square kilometers had virtually died. Most residents moved to towns closer to urban areas, and only a few elderly people remained in the crumbling cottages.

"The whole area was desolate and hollow," said Yang Guiqing, director of the urban planning department at Tongji University, describing the scene as it was when he first visited in 2013.