Last stop of media tour brings fireworks to visitors

Liuyang city, the last stop of the foreign media tour in Hunan, offered the group opportunities to learn about the rich and happy lives that the local rural revitalization program has brought to villagers.

They first visited Dayao town, birthplace of fireworks. The town is also the world's largest supplier of fireworks' raw and auxiliary materials. It supplies more than 70 percent of such materials globally. Fireworks used in the National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the opening and closing ceremonies of the London Olympic Games were from Dayao.

Traditional techniques of making fireworks have been passed on in the town for more than 1,000 years and Tanghua Export Fireworks Factory plays an important role in that inheritance. It has provided more than 400 jobs.

The foreign media representatives visited a fireworks museum, learned about making fireworks and tried out sparklers. Zain Ahmed Siddiqui, editor from Pakistan's Dawn.com, said Dayao is prospering, driven by industries that provide ceaseless vitality to rural development.

Tianxi village in Liuyang was once on the provincial list of impoverished villages. Beginning in 2015, the village committee raised money from villagers to invest in rural tourism, which also promoted the growth of other sectors. In 2018, per capita income of the villagers surpassed 12,000 yuan ($1,755).

"Alleviating poverty is something the whole world is doing and from the situations of Hunan's rural areas, (we can find) China is no exception," said Ho Wah Foon, editorial consultant at Star Media Group Berhad, adding it is an amazing achievement.

In Zhulian village of Liuyang, foreign journalists said they saw the harmonious coexistence of humans and nature. In recent years, many young people that had worked elsewhere came back to the village and developed industries such as flowers, vegetables and homestays.

A reporter from Cambodia said young people in his country want to work in big cities. As for how to attract them to rural areas, he said practices in Hunan have reference value.

Liuyang impressed the foreigners the most with its delicious food, such as spicy winkles (called luo in Chinese) and local steamed dishes. Azizov Dashqin Mehdi Oglu from Azerbaijan said: "I like eating Hunan cuisine very much as (people in) our country also eat spicy food." The countryside beauty of the city also astonished him. Oglu said he admired the hard work and wisdom of the Hunan people.

Feng Zhiwei contributed to the story

(China Daily 06/27/2019 page7)