Hometown Heritage Tour - From Australia

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Hometown Heritage Tour

Do you have a Chinese ancestor but have never been to China? Do you want to know more about your Chinese roots but don’t know where to start? Are you interested in learning more about overseas Chinese culture and heritage?

I’m proposing a Chinese Australian Hometown Heritage Tour to Guangdong, China, to be run in March 2016. The tour would begin in Hong Kong and visit qiaoxiang (overseas Chinese hometown) districts in the Pearl River Delta. It would be an introduction to qiaoxiang history, culture and everyday life, with a focus on Australia.

The tour would be organised in conjunction with a Hong Kong-based travel company who are experienced in leading educational and small group tours in Guangdong. The tour group would be accompanied at all times by an English-speaking guide and by me, Kate Bagnall.

A possible itinerary might include visits to:

‘Australian’ villages in Xinhui, Kaiping, Taishan or Zhongshan
Candong village, a conservation and development project in Kaiping (with historical connections to Australia)
the UNESCO World Heritage-listed diaolou and villages in Kaiping
other heritage sites with overseas connections such as Chikan town (Kaiping), the Moy Family Compound (Meijia Dayuan, in Taishan), or Sunwen Road West (Zhongshan).
museums such as the Wuyi Overseas Chinese Museum and the Zhongshan Museum of Xiangshan Commercial Culture.

Activities might include:

talks about the history, culture, architecture and heritage of the places we visit
an introduction to Cantonese language and the differences between regional dialects
eating (and perhaps preparing) local foods, including countryside specialities
cycling through the countryside to visit heritage sites
interaction with local villagers and experiencing daily life in the countryside
‘roots searching’, if you know the name of your own ancestral village.

The first step in getting the tour off the ground is to gauge your possible interest. Once I know that there are enough people interested I can begin tailoring the tour’s cost, timing and activities to suit.

Please complete the form below if you are interested in the tour and would like to know more.


chineseaustralia.org/hometown-heritage-tour/