PEOPLE . PLACES

Rapunzel Town

45' (GER, FRE, ENG subs)

Follow us to the village of Huang Luo in China’s Guangxi Region, whose female residents are famous for their Rapunzelhair.

In the south of China, about 700 km northwest of Hong Kong, lie the famous rice terraces created by indigenous minorities, such as the Yao, Miao and Dong. They still try to live in harmony with nature and save their old customs and traditions into the 21st century. In the "Rapunzeltown" Huang Luo it is the Yao women who have succeeded in inspiring tourists for their simple village life. The ancient settlement is known across China as the “Long Hair Village” and is even recognised by the Guinness world book of records as the “world’s longest hair village”. The women grow their hair up to 2.1 meters (6.8 feet) long.

As legend has it, thousands of years ago a girl from the local Yao tribe literally whipped an unwelcome suitor with her hair, and to this day many of the Yao women cut their hair only once in their lifetime. With the help of a state tourism promotion programme, a huge leap in development is now to take place. The centuries-old customs are adapted for tourists and are intended to catapult the region economically forward. Folklore as asset - curse or blessing for the Chinese minorities?