Architecture on the Road
EXPLORING GUIZHOU ETHNIC MINORITIES: GETOU MIAO VILLAGE
The third stop along my journey through Leishan county in Guizhou Provinc to visit some remote authentic Miao villages brought me to Getou (格头村 – Gé tóu cūn). . The village is nested between the slopes of the Leigong Mountain at a height of 1030 m above sea level.
The village develops at the side of a small stream and shows the traditional Miao type of dwellings, the Diaojiao Lou. These traditional type of dwelling is made entirely of wood and held together only with joint. No nails are used during the construction, which allows the building to be disassembled, allowing the recycle of some of its parts. Usually the houses have 3 floors: the first is for livestock, the second floor is where people live, and the third floor is usually used for storage.
Because of its history and cultural value, Getou Miao village together with the Miao villages of the Southeast Guizhou was inscribed in the Unesco World Heritage Tentative List in 2008.
Of all the Miao villages visited during this excursion on Leigong Mountain, Getou seemed the liveliest. In fact, here we have met the highest number of local inhabitants, gatering and chatting in the public spaces of the village, curious to see foreigners there.
I reached Getou village by private car. This was in fact, the third stop of a 1 day excursion to some remote Miao villages. Departing from Xijiang, I visited Datang, Queniao, Getou and Wudong in the same day.
The village is quite remote and the drive to reach it took almost 1h through tight mountain bends.
The village is free to visit and no entrance ticket is required (2019).
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