Apricots bloom in rural Shanxi

Villagers dressed in traditional Chinese costumes walk along a road lined with apricot trees in Fenshuiling town, Wuxiang county, Shanxi province, April 15. The town has been taking advantage of its unique geography and climate, with an altitude of over 1,400 meters and an average annual temperature of 7 degrees Celsius, to develop rural tourism. [Photo/Shanxi Daily]

A woman plays a guzheng, a Chinese string instrument with 16 strings and movable bridges, amidst a forest of apricot blossoms in Zhaozhuang village, Fanshi county, Shanxi province, April 13. Stark temperature differences between day and night, as well as long sunlight hours, make the village an ideal place for fruit planting. Fanshi county now has around 1,530 hectares of land reserved for apricot-planting after two decades of expansion. The county's apricots are extremely popular in Datong, Beijing, Hebei province, and Shaanxi province. [Photo/Shanxi Daily]