Kaiping Diaolou, China
While in China, I had the opportunity to visit Kaiping - a small city about two hours drive from Guangzhou. The primary attraction there are the Kaiping Diaolou. These are stunning buildings primarily built in the 1920s and 1930s.
A couple examples of the multi-storey structures found in the village.
These buildings are an incredible mix of European and Asian styles. My guide explained that at the beginning of the 20th century, many Chinese emigrated to Western Europe, and when they returned, they built these buildings in the architectural style they saw in the west.
There’s an opportunity to go inside several of these buildings, as well as seeing nearby Kaiping City.
One of the more unique experiences was lunch. Many of the homes in the village open up and prepare local food. You won't get more of a local and authentic meal than this!
Our guide took us to one of these homes, and they made us fish. They literally killed the fish in front of us. Here you can see the local person washing and preparing vegetables.
Local Kaiping resident preparing lunch
Walkway between houses in Kaiping Diaolou, China
I would highly recommend this as a stop for anyone visiting Guangzhou, with a sightseeing day to spare.