The whole territory of Xinjiang accounts for about one sixth of the total land area of China. There are deserts, forests, grasslands, basins, mountains and plains in this vast land, so if you are lucky enough to come to Xinjiang, you can enjoy all kinds of natural scenery and experience the magic of nature's creations if time permits.
Here, we might as well take a look at Harmony Village, which is located in Brzin, northern Xinjiang, and is called the first village in China. It is a village inhabited by Mongolian Tuwa people, bordering Mongolia and Russia, 70 kilometers away from Kanas Lake. This is the largest of the three Tuwa villages in China. There are more than 800 villagers/kloc-0, including Tuwa 1400, and the rest are mostly Kazakhs.
Harmony village is named after a harmonious river that flows from east to northwest in the village. The vast grasslands and forests have created unique folk customs here. Tuwa people live on animal husbandry, but they don't migrate, so they rarely see yurts on it, and they are replaced by unique wooden buildings. The walls and top of the house are basically single logs with a diameter of 30-40 cm, which can keep warm and damp-proof. The wooden house is low from a distance, but there is a hole in it.
It turns out that about half of the houses are buried deep underground. The advantage of this is that the house will be stronger and can resist the coldest winter wind in northern Xinjiang. The roof is nailed to the slope of the frame structure with closely arranged wooden boards to form a herringbone canopy. This less dense rain-proof structure can basically cope with the local annual precipitation of several hundred millimeters.
Harmony in Tuwa language originally refers to the two most delicious tender meats on the bear's back, which is extended to a place with plenty of water and grass. The transliteration of Chinese here is also quite vivid. The mountains are high and the forests are dense, which proves that the trees and grasslands are harmonious. Gramineae and weeds are the main vegetation, and grass is also proved. In addition to grass, there are noises, sparse pearl buds, tall fescue and moss. In summer, the height of grass can reach 20-50 cm, and the vegetation coverage rate is over 90%, so the grass enjoys a good reputation.
The average annual temperature in Hemu Village is about 4~9 degrees below zero, which is similar to that in most northern areas. The temperature difference between spring, summer, autumn and winter is large. It can reach 30 degrees at noon and may suddenly drop to around zero at night. Wearing cotton in the morning, wearing yarn in the afternoon and chewing watermelon by the fire are the most authentic portrayal here.
Harmony grassland is surrounded by mountains above 2000 meters above sea level, and Kanas River and Harmony River flow through it, cutting the surrounding mountains into canyons. The sunny side of the mountain is densely forested, and woodchucks, snow chickens and red deer pass through it. On the shady side, the mountains are covered with grass, flowers attract swarms of bees, and green grass becomes delicious for cattle and sheep.
Harmony Village has a snow closure period of half a year, which basically covers winter and spring. At this time, villagers usually just stay at home and feed cattle and sheep with hay stored for half a year. In summer and autumn, due to the smooth roads and rising temperatures, the tourist peak is ushered in. Summer is cool and comfortable, and the air is fresh. Dense forests, green grasslands, blue skies and snow-capped peaks in the distance form a poetic picture here.
In autumn, no matter where tourists look at it, it is golden, the layers of forests are dyed, the golden colors are beautiful, and the wooden houses, rivers, cooking smoke, cattle and sheep are in full view. In addition to the beautiful scenery, there are high-quality antlers and precious white honey here, and even Chinese herbal medicines such as Cordyceps sinensis and Bupleurum that we are familiar with can be bought here. It can be described as a holy land, and we have no regrets.