Home of butterfly lovers fails to fly with tourists
Source: Xinhua |
August 30, 2012, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
VISITORS to Runan County, branded the hometown of the "butterfly lovers," China's answer to Romeo and Juliet, find a scene of desolation.
A lone archway stands in front of a run-down village. Dying trees flank an empty promenade leading to two ramshackle gravestones, whose fading epitaphs suggest they belong to Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, figures portrayed in classic Chinese folklore as having turned into butterflies after society rejected their union.
Most structures are new, hinting at the place's great ambitions not so long ago, but now the scene tells a story of how a Chinese town eager to dig up its cultural gold in the rush toward prosperity has ground to an embarrassing halt.
The story began years ago, when many Chinese localities zealously contended to be recognized as the hometowns or resting places of historical celebrities or mythological figures, hoping such fame could bring in tourists and investment.
In 2005, Runan County in central China's Henan Province was recognized as the hometown of Liang and Zhu by the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Society. At the time, six Chinese cities argued the couple belonged to them.
Knowing the impoverished farming town could not fund the project, officials in Runan reached out for investors. One entrepreneur promised 200 million yuan (US$31.5 million) in investment.
The government then leased land from villagers to plant trees befitting scenic spots. They built a promenade and in 2011 unveiled an archway bearing the inscription "Hometown of Liang and Zhu."
But the tourists stayed away and the businessman suddenly withdrew due to "economic problems."
A lone archway stands in front of a run-down village. Dying trees flank an empty promenade leading to two ramshackle gravestones, whose fading epitaphs suggest they belong to Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, figures portrayed in classic Chinese folklore as having turned into butterflies after society rejected their union.
Most structures are new, hinting at the place's great ambitions not so long ago, but now the scene tells a story of how a Chinese town eager to dig up its cultural gold in the rush toward prosperity has ground to an embarrassing halt.
The story began years ago, when many Chinese localities zealously contended to be recognized as the hometowns or resting places of historical celebrities or mythological figures, hoping such fame could bring in tourists and investment.
In 2005, Runan County in central China's Henan Province was recognized as the hometown of Liang and Zhu by the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Society. At the time, six Chinese cities argued the couple belonged to them.
Knowing the impoverished farming town could not fund the project, officials in Runan reached out for investors. One entrepreneur promised 200 million yuan (US$31.5 million) in investment.
The government then leased land from villagers to plant trees befitting scenic spots. They built a promenade and in 2011 unveiled an archway bearing the inscription "Hometown of Liang and Zhu."
But the tourists stayed away and the businessman suddenly withdrew due to "economic problems."
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