Gem of Jilin offers a taste of its unique traditions

At the foot of Changbai Mountain in Jilin province lies Jinjiang village, surrounded by forest and grassland and one of the few places with traditional Manchu wooden houses.

The rare houses, known as mukeleng, are built of logs coated with mud. They're warm during the winter, cool in summer and bring a unique flavor to the village in Fusong county.

Jinjiang dates back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It was listed among the province's key cultural relics protection units in 2012 and was added to the Traditional Chinese Villages Catalog in 2013.

Chi Yuxi, Party secretary of the village, said most of the existing 50 Manchu houses were built in the 1930s.

Once remote, the village attracts tourists nowadays. "They come to see the unusual residences and enjoy farmhouse meals," he said.

Since the creation of a village cooperative focusing on folk cultural tourism in 2015, the industry has been booming. In the spring of 2015, the county government launched a restoration project, completing renovation work on all the Manchu wooden houses by autumn 2018, according to Chi.

At the same time, with government support, the village spent around 20 million yuan ($2.95 million) to change its appearance. That included renovating roads, adding parking lots and a green area of 1,200 square meters that complements the natural surroundings, he said.

Yu Yanxia, owner of a homestay accommodation in the village, said tourists from southern provinces, such as Guangdong, turn the little village into a hot spot in summer and winter. "They really enjoy the Manchu ethnic flavor and the northeast cuisine," she said.

Yu, 60, and her husband started their business with the help of their son and daughter-in-law in 2013.

Before that, the family made a living by planting a half-hectare of land and picking mushrooms and wild vegetables in the mountains. Their annual income was less than 20,000 yuan.

These days, their homestay attracts more than 10,000 travelers a year, bringing the family a net profit of around 100,000 yuan.

There are 13 similar homestays in the village.

Under the guidance of the cooperative, some residents demonstrate the traditional techniques of the Manchu people to visitors in their houses, such as making tofu, baking pancakes and decocting herbal soups. It's a taste of local life from at least 100 years ago.

Jinjiang received more than 30,000 tourist visits last year, bringing in revenue of around 1.2 million yuan, data from the local government showed.