Opening Rural Villages with a 'Slow' Way of Travel — 'A Cup of Coffee' Links New Scenes and Formats of Agri-Culture-Tourism Integration

At a Glance (China Coffee Network): CCTV.com reports: During this National Day holiday, major popular scenic spots were packed with people, lively and bustling. For friends who prefer to feel the holiday at a slower…

CCTV.com reports: During this National Day holiday, major popular scenic spots were packed with people, lively and bustling. For friends who prefer to feel the holiday at a slower pace, a village trip is also a good choice. In She Village, Jiangning District, Nanjing, although the National Day holiday brought drizzling rain, it could not dampen people’s enthusiasm to find slow time in the countryside.

Watch the mountains, see the fields, drink coffee, empty your mind and relax

On a small street in She Village, Nanjing, people came and went on both sides — all there to experience the slow-paced holiday. Before slowing down, let us first introduce She Village: located in the southeast corner of Nanjing, surrounded by mountains on three sides and clear water in the middle, with dwellings dotted among the landscapes. And now in the rice-ripening season, the large rice paddies have become a rare sight. The reporter noticed on entering the village that many visitors slowed their pace, many brewing a pot of tea or ordering a cup of coffee, sitting in a chair, looking up at the distant mountains, looking down at the rice paddies, listening to the sound of raindrops — the slow holiday time began in this sitting and gazing.

Hundreds of small shops gather, “handcrafted” experience maxed out

If sitting all day feels a bit boring, there are many interactive projects in the village to slow you down. The reporter is now on She Village’s old street, lined with all kinds of small shops, most of which let visitors join in and experience the making process — handicraft stores. For example, you can study a few basic drawing techniques against a photo you just took, turning the photo into a painting.

In She Village, many coffee shops can interact with visitors. In addition, you can learn ramie weaving from a weaving master, learn pottery from a ceramics master, or even spot that pizza shop in the distance? You can try making your own kiln-baked pizza. She Village has over 150 assorted small shops, letting people slowly enjoy the fun of “handcrafting.”

Encounter adorable wall paintings, take a photo with the “cats”

Beyond “handcrafting,” another major feature of She Village is its wall paintings. She Village has many people, and many cats. You can see quite a few cats during the live broadcast; the cute kittens have also become a source of inspiration for artists. There is a wall-painting studio in She Village that regularly creates on the village’s houses using the walls as paper, with cats as the theme. Including this holiday, they haven’t rested, continuing to create in different parts of the village, and taking a photo with the various wall paintings has become a beloved reason for people to love She Village — especially favored by many tourists.

Hand-drawn maps, shared parking spaces improve convenience

During the National Day holiday, She Village welcomed over 20,000 visitor trips. To improve the experience, the village’s shop-concentrated roads provide free hand-drawn maps, letting visitors explore the whole of She Village and check in at different small shops along the map’s routes; visitors typically stay over 4 hours. Beyond hand-drawn maps, the village fully tapped available space inside and outside the village to open shared parking lots, with guide signs for visitors’ convenience.

Free tourist shuttle buses opened, follow the bus to enjoy suburban fun

During the National Day holiday, a tourist shuttle bus was also opened here. Divided by the characteristics of different villages into 5 routes such as the village-café line and the shallow-beach line, visitors can reserve free rides, boarding from places like Nanjing South Railway Station to follow the bus and play. Linking village resources “like beads on a string” through the free shuttle bus lets more visitors come to the countryside to enjoy “slow tourism.”

Source: CCTV.com

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