Yong Ding, China

6 Sept

During our stay in Jiao Ling, we made a day trip to Yong Ding. It is a city in Fu Jian province, at the border with Guangdong province. The most famous attraction of Yong Ding is Hakka Tu Lou (永定客家土楼). There is no public transportation between Jiao Ling and Yong Ding, hence we had to rent a car for RMB450 a day.

The trip from Jiao Ling to Yong Ding took around 3 hours. We set off at 7.30am and reached there around 10am. The entrance ticket to Hakka Tu Lou is RMB90. There is promotion at the moment that free tour guide will be provided. Our tour guide is one of the descendants of the owner of one of the Hakka Tu Lou building there. She explained about the history of each building. Currently the descendants of the original owner are still staying inside Tu Lou and do business there, selling tea leaves, souvenirs, etc.

Hakka Tu Lou is the authentic architecture of Hakka people in China. The unique thing about the architecture is when the weather outside is hot, we will feel cool when we are inside, and vice versa when the weather outside is cold. The wall is so thick and they put soil inside to preserve the temperature inside. There are round Tu Lou and square Tu Lou.

Temple (天后宫）

The Round Tu Lou

Interior of Tu Lou

Square Tu Lou

View Near Tu Lou

Little Stream

Lunch was in the restaurant near the Tu Lou. My cousin helped us to order Hakka Cuisine, it was reasonably priced considering the location, RMB150 for 5 people. On the way back from Hakka Tu Lou, we visited Hu Bao Pagoda (虎豹塔). It was dedicated to the brothers  Hu Wen Hu (胡文虎) and Hu Wen Bao (胡文豹), the founder of Tiger Balm company. 

Hu Bao Pagoda (虎豹塔)

View from the pagoda