Day 1 - November 13
Arrive at Jiangmen Wuyi University
- Introduction to the Home Villages of the Overseas Chinese in Canada
- Visit the Guangdong Qiaoxiang Reseach Center of Wuyi University. There will be a lecture given by Dr. Selia Tan.
Day 2 - November 14
This day consists of gaining an understanding of the village fabric of a traditional village Chaolian formed in the Ming and Qing Dynasty. Lunch will be provided at the restaurant inside the Yucca Hotel before visiting the Jiangmen Overseas Chinese Museum.
For those of you who have pre-identified your home village in the Siyi (Szeyup) or Zhongshan region, we will arrange for you to visit the village for the day instead.
For those of you who have pre-identified your home village in the Siyi (Szeyup) or Zhongshan region, we will arrange for you to visit the village for the day instead.
Day 3 - November 15
You will have to opportunity to visit the Xinhui Museum (Confucius Temple) and the Jinniushan Cemetery, where the bones of the overseas Chinese were repatriated to home villages. Pending on road conditions, you will either visit Chikan town or the historic Xinchang village of the Zhen (Yan) and Li (Lee) surnames to understand the hometown culture of many overseas Chinese
Day 4 - November 16
You will visit Dihai marketplace and the Grand Yu (Yee) Ancestral Hall in the city of Kaiping, as well as an abandoned village to understand the current state of an overseas Chinese village. To end the day, you will have a local Kaiping-style dinner at the Hotpot Fish restaurant.
Day 5 - November 17
You will travel to Zili Village, a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, and to Tangkou Town, Kaiping, where you will visit the grain silo to understand village architecture and the effects of connections to overseas Chinese. Dr. Tan will provide an afternoon lecture on the history and culture of Kaiping and the Siyi (Szeyup) region.
Day 6 - November 18
You will visit Canada village of the Guan surname and then travel to Baihe Town and visit the pier used to receive the bones of the departed and learn more about local fengshui. After lunch, you will visit the Li Garden showing landscaping with Western and Chinese stylistic influences.
Day 7 - November 19
You will travel to Cangdong Village and learn about the heritage education center and the history of the village. Upon arriving, you will have the opportunity to experience a welcoming lion dance performed by local villagers. You will have lunch at the ancestral hall and view a demonstration of Ai-herbal cake and paper flower making. You will gain hands-on experience of making these local crafts with local villagers.
Day 8 - November 20
In Cangdong, you will learn about the history and architecture of the overseas Chinese by developing an understanding and appreciation of local heritage buildings and their cultural significance. You will view a demonstration of the making of clay chicken, a local traditional craft. After lunch, you will experience traditions about how Chinese scholars cultivated their minds: Qin music, Chinese painting and calligraphy.
Day 9 - November 21
In the morning, you will travel to Taishan and learn more about the area before having lunch. You will pay a visit to the Taishan No.1 Secondary school, which was constructed through the fundraising efforts of the overseas Chinese. Lunch will be served at a private kitchen, followed by a visit to a local village named Wanggang.
Day 10 - November 22
The tour has officially ended. Most of our tour group will depart from Kaiping to Hong Kong.