2022 CITM: Rural tourism thrives in Va village of Simora

July 9 saw residents in Simora wearing traditional Va costume and performing bamboo dance to entertain tourists. “They’re so warm. My little grandson and I are very happy to be here,” said lady Liu, a visitor from Sichuan province.

Simora, or Simola, means “a happy place” in the Va ethnic language, and it is a Va village in southwest Yunnan’s Tengchong county. “Mainly inhabited by Va people, the village is full of happiness,” said Zhao Jiaqing, deputy head of the Qingshui township, where Simora is located.

The village is surrounded by forest, and ecology has thus become the first point when Zhao introducing Simora to visitors each time. “These banyan trees were planted by our ancestors over 500 years ago when they first migrated here. Now we take care of them together,” Zhao said with pride.

Nature protection is important for the Simora villagers. “I hope each visitor could experience the simple life of countryside in Simora,” resident Zhao Xinren said. Several years ago, Zhao returned home and opened a store selling agro-products.

With the development of rural tourism, most of villagers are willing to do tourism-related business in hometown. “Visitors home and abroad are welcome to our village,” added Zhao, who was quite optimistic about rural tourism in Simora.

Source: Yunnan Daily; Trans-editing by Wang Qing