Yancun Village in Sikou Town, Wuyuan County, Jiangxi Province

Edward Gawne, from the United Kingdom, and Liao Minxin, from Nanchang, capital of East China's Jiangxi Province, are a couple. They previously lived and worked in Shanghai, but, in 2015, when they visited Wuyuan County, in Jiangxi Province, they were deeply attracted by the pastoral beauty. They were so impressed that they decided to settle down in the area. Now, Gawne and Liao run two homestays in Yan, a village in Wuyuan.

Wuyuan is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful rural areas in China. There are many historical sites and ancient buildings from the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing dynasties (1616-1911), and many of the ancient buildings feature the exquisite Huizhou style of architecture.

"There are trees, bridges and flowing water, and the old Huizhou-style houses are very beautiful. It is exactly how I imagined traditional Chinese culture would look," Gawne says.

Gawne became the first foreigner to purchase a building in Wuyuan. The 600-square-meter compound in Yan, which he and Liao bought in 2015, was built about 300 years ago. They have since breathed new life into the centuries-old house, which was in disrepair, by restoring it and turning it into a Chinese-English-style homestay, which they have named Skywells (Tianjingsha, in Chinese).

Home away from Home

Gawne and Liao employed an international design team to renovate the ancient house. They also invited Yu Youhong, an expert in restoration of ancient, Huizhou-style houses, to help restore the wooden structure and carvings of the building. In 2017, after nearly two years of renovations, Skywells, with 14 guest rooms, opened for business.

It was Gawne's idea to name the building Skywells. Tianjing (Chinese pinyin), a courtyard enclosed by rooms on the four sides, is typical in Huizhou-style dwellings. Tian literally means sky, and jing means well. So, Gawne came up with the name, Skywells. The homestay's Chinese name, Tianjingsha, is derived from Tianjingsha • Qiusi (Sunny Sand • Autumn Thoughts), a famous tune created by Ma Zhiyuan, a dramatist during the Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368).

Gawne and Liao were married, during a traditional, Chinese-style wedding ceremony, at Skywells on May 5, 2017, before they officially started their homestay business. Their wedding ceremony was broadcast on a video website and several television stations, and the ceremony attracted millions of viewers.

The couple's love story, wedding ceremony and their story of restoring the ancient house were also highlighted on Bond with China, an intercultural documentary produced by China Central Television (CCTV)'s International Channel. The episode about the couple was titled Edward's Wedding Ceremony in Ancient House.

Edward Gawne and Liao Minxin's wedding ceremony in ancient house

The various designers and architects involved with the Skywells project have received many awards, including the Red Dot Design Award, ABB Leaf Award, Iconic Award and the Travel and Hospitality Award, for their unique design of the building.

Skywells is a spectacular display of Chinese heritage restored through the magic of contemporary designs. Many of the building's original features — the clay brick walls, the flagstone floors, decorative wooden interiors and timber frame — were kept intact, but were supplemented by tasteful modern touches.

Although the exterior of the homestay has been carefully restored, to ensure it blends with the surrounding village, its interiors are modern and sleek. The rectangular restaurant is enclosed in glass, and the English-style bar features contemporary furnishings. The rooms and suites are painted largely in neutral tones.

In keeping with the Huizhou style of building, all of the guest rooms face inward, toward the central courtyard. The designers did an excellent job striking a balance between the compound's rich Chinese roots and the modern luxuries, which travelers have come to expect.

"We restored the ancient building and decorated the rooms with modern elements, to make it comfortable. Skywells is our home, and we hope our guests will also feel at home here. Many of the guests have become our good friends," Liao says.

Photo of Skywells

Window into Rural China

In recent years, Wuyuan's government has adopted many measures to strengthen management of the bed and breakfast industry, and the government has allocated special funding to boost the sector's development.

The construction of railways and roads has made it easier to access Wuyuan, and has helped the area increase its fame — far and wide. At present, Wuyuan has more than 800 family inns, and more than 80,000 of its residents work in the tourism industry.  

Skywells has received great reviews. One international tourist once wrote on a tourism website, "We very much enjoyed our two nights at Skywells. We arrived by train at the nearby Wuyuan Railway Station, and the owners kindly arranged pick-up for us, which made the transfer very easy … Our room was very comfortable, and the common areas have an inviting atmosphere … We enjoyed having after-dinner drinks in the bar, as well as relaxing up on the third floor, enjoying the view across the roofs. The owners are lovely hosts, and they gave us many tips on local activities. We spent half a day hiking through fields, villages and bamboo forests. A visit to an umbrella factory was a highlight."

Gawne and Liao's new homestay, Victoria House, named after their eldest daughter, Victoria, opened in May. The house is surrounded by mountains and rivers, on which bamboo rafts sometimes float by. Flowers bloom in a neat front lawn, while dragonflies flit about in the tea garden.

"We posted information about our homestays and our idyllic life on Facebook, and many of our friends said they wanted to come to China as a group. My English friends get jealous of the feeling of living in rural China. There are also many netizens who have sent messages to me, saying that they wanted to visit Wuyuan," Gawne says.

"Many of our guests from overseas had never heard of Jiangxi Province … However, thanks to Skywells, more and more people now know about the place called Wuyuan, and have gotten to know more about Jiangxi. Skywells has become a window for foreign tourists to learn about rural China," Liao says.

"More than 90 percent of our guests have been foreigners. We are proud that people from all over the world can learn more about the mountains, water, culture and folk customs of Wuyuan, and that they appreciate the new look of the China's countryside," Liao says.

A family photo

Photos Supplied by Liao Minxin 

(Women of China English Monthly August 2021 issue)