Quiet Village

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This is a part of the village where the Lantern Festival festivities were happening. My boss's brother in law came from this place. Most of the village is actually quite modern, with paved streets and houses with modern amenities. There are also a lot of homes where nobody actually lives, like the place we had our dinner. The families have moved to the city, but still return for holidays and to maybe get a little peace and quiet.

Farmers in this part of China are more prosperous than in the rest of the country. There are three distinct growing seasons and many have turned to aquaculture. This region is said to be the top shrimp producer in the world. Many shrimp farmers are quite wealthy.

However, farming is hard work, many villages are primitive, and city life has its attractions. This article in China Daily discusses how farm and village life are changing. Many villages are populated by mostly old folks as the young people head to the coastal cities to work in factories. Some younger people are leasing the fallow fields and employing more modern farming techniques. They are finding success and are able to do much better than they ever would in a factory job.