(D)  Tulou In Yongding County - Chuxi Tulou Cluster (08 Sept 2010)

The Chuxi cluster consists of buildings of various shapes which includes five large circular Tulous and ten rectangular ones. This Tulou cluster only opened its doors to tourists in 2004 and it is therefore relatively “un-spoilt”. The names of all Tulou share the common word “Qing” (庆) which means “celebration”. Also most of the inhabitants in this cluster have the surname Su.

There is a viewing platform where tourists can access to have an excellent panoramic view of the village’s three main circular Tulou and some square ones.

We visited the three main circular Tulou, namely JiQingLou (集庆楼), YuQingLou (馀庆楼）and GengQingLou (庚 庆 楼). The most significant Tulou here is the JiQingLou which is now a museum and houses numerous exhibits about the unique life, history and culture of the Hakka people.

JiQingLou consists of two concentric rings. The outer ring building is four-storey tall and the second ring is a one story building. It is the oldest Tulou in Yongding with a history of over 600 years. The main structure has 72 stairs which divide the building into 72 independent units. Amazingly, no iron nail has been used in the construction of this Tulou.

The scenery of Chuxi village is very enchanting with Tulou buildings, small bridges, flowing streams, stone walkways integrated with luxuriant vegetation, green mountains, blue sky and white clouds.

(E)  Tulou In Yongding County - Hongkeng Tulou Cluster  (08 Sept 2010)

After our lunch in Chuxi, we left for Honkeng Tulou cluster in Hukeng town. This Tulou cluster is the most concentrated of all Tulou clusters in Fujian. There are about 100 Tulou of various sizes and shapes lying along both sides of a river in this long village. Some of the Tulou designs are unique.

We visited 13 Tulou in this area. Amongst them are Zhengcheng Lou (振 成 搂), Kuiju Lou (奎 聚 搂), Fuyu Lou (福 裕 搂), Guangyu Lou (光 裕 楼 ), Fuxing Lou (福 兴 搂), Rusheng Lou (如 升 搂), Jingyang Lou (景 阳 搂),Yucheng Lou (玉 成 搂), Chaoyang Lou (朝 阳 搂) Yanglin Lou (阳 临 搂), Huanxin Lou (环 兴 搂) and Tianhou Lou (天 后 楼).

The most significant Tulou in this cluster is the Zhengcheng Lou. It was built in 1912 by the descendents of a rich tobacco merchant. It is a double ring Tulou; its outer ring is 4-storey

Some of the Tulou in Hukeng Village

Tulou & scenery in Hukeng Village

(F)  Tulou in Yongding County - Gaobei Tulou Cluster (09 Sept 2010)

The Gaobei Tulou Cluster is located in Gaobei Village, near Gaotou Town. We visited three main Tulou, namely Chengqilou, Wuyunlou and Qiaofulou.

Chenqilou (承 启 楼), nicknamed “the king of tulou”, was built in 1709. It is a massive round Tulou with four concentric rings surrounding an ancestral hall at the centre. The outer ring is over 60m in diameter and four-storey high with 72 rooms in each floor. The second ring is two-storey high with 40 rooms in each floor. The third ring is one-storey high and serves as a community hall and library. The fourth ring is a covered circular corridor surrounding the ancestral hall. It is mainly occupied by Jiang clan.

Qiaofulou (侨 福 楼) stands beside Chegqilou and houses the Yongding Tulou Cultural Museum, exhibiting building designs of historical value and cultural artifacts.

Wuyunlou (五 云 楼) is over 500 years old and is now in dilapidated condition and a major part of its outer wall is supported by a massive scaffolding。

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