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On November 16, 2022, the Organizing Committee of Huaihua Tourism Development announced that the first Huaihua Tourism Development Conference will be held in Hongjiang District, Huaihua City, from November 26 to 28.
How will Huaihua follow the trend and take advantage of it to promote the high-quality development of cultural tourism industry? The reporter interviewed Xu Zhongjian, Secretary of Huaihua Municipal Party Committee.
“Millennium Mall, Engaging All,” Xu Zhongjian introduced that the first Huaihua Tourism Development Conference, in accordance with the general requirements of Hunan Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government for “benchmarking”, closely focused on the general goal of “building a prosperous city by hosting the conference”, adhering to the concept of “project as the priority”, and further polished the tourism and cultural brand of “Millennium Commercial City” in Hongjiang District through the successful holding of the conference, promoting the high-quality development of the city’s ecological and cultural tourism industry.
The main venue of the opening ceremony of the first Huaihua Tourism Development Conference—Half a Copper Coin Theater in Hongjiang District
The conference consists of eight thematic activities, namely: the opening ceremony and Huaihua Cultural Tourism Promotion Conference, the live performance of the Millennium Hongshang, the night economy observation of the cultural and tourism town of Hongjiang Ancient Shopping Mall, the signing ceremony of the key projects of the ecological and cultural tourism industry of Huaihua City, the business access to the world—2022 Hongjiang Ancient Shopping Mall and the China Commercial Road Culture Summit Forum, the Huaihua Tourism Industry Development Promotion Conference, the observation of the boutique tourist route of “Thousand Miles Yuanjiang Double Ancient Cities”, connecting with the world through commerce—the lectures of the 2022 Hongjiang Ancient Shopping Mall and China Commercial Road Culture Summit Forum, etc. The activities were thoroughly brilliant and engaging.
Anjiang Agricultural School Memorial Park
“Huaihua’s tourism resources are full of ‘pearls’ and ‘stars’.” Xu Zhongjian said that Huaihua has more than 300 scenic spots, including Hongjiang Ancient Shopping Mall, Qianyang Ancient City, Memorial Hall of Troops Transfer in Tongdao, Memorial Hall of Surrender Acceptance in Zhijiang, Xuefeng Mountain National Forest Park, among which the number of national 4A level scenic spots, provincial tourism demonstration areas, and cultural and tourism towns with Hunan characteristics are among the top in Hunan Province, making it China’s “ancient”, red place rich in tourism resources with perfect integration of green. In recent years, Huaihua’s tourism industry has made great progress. However, Huaihua’s tourism has “only seen the stars, but not the moon”, for there is a lack of impressive tourism products in the tourism territory of the whole country and even the whole province.
National 4A level Tourist Attraction—Memorial Hall of Troops Transfer in Tongdao
“There must be a ‘tipping point’ for the development of the overall tourism, and a road for the development of cultural tourism industry with unique characteristics must be taken.” Focusing on how to crack the nut of Huaihua’s tourism industry, Xu Zhongjian said that Huaihua’s biggest brand was the birthplace of hybrid rice. Yuan Longping, the winner of the Republic Medal and the “father of hybrid rice”, has been engaged in teaching and hybrid rice research in Huaihua for 37 years, and has successfully bred hybrid rice in Anjiang Agricultural School. Since then, with “one seed that changes the world”, Huaihua has a good reputation as “the birthplace of hybrid rice”. Carbonized rice grains have been found in the Gaomiao Cultural Site located in Anjiang Town, which traces the history of Chinese civilization back to 7,800 years ago. In this regard, Huaihua will give full play to the core leading role of “the birthplace of hybrid rice”, the world’s only brand, and take “one seed that changes the world” as the biggest tipping point of Huaihua’s tourism, so that the “pearl” scenic spots scattered in the land of Wuxi “string beads into a chain”, forming a development trend of “stars holding the moon”.
Yuan Longping, the father of hybrid rice
“The report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China pointed out that we should adhere to the principle of building tourism with culture and highlighting culture with tourism, and promote an in-depth integration and development of culture and tourism.” Xu Zhongjian said that the Huaihua Municipal Party Committee and the Huaihua Municipal People’s Government focus on cultivating the ecological and cultural tourism industry as one of the characteristic industries, refining the city brand of “one seed that changes the world—Huaihua, China” and the tourism slogan “Huaihua deserves visit and stay”, and strive to build Huaihua into a national famous tourism destination.
It is high time we declared important global agricultural cultural heritage from a high starting point. Taking the history of human rice planting (Gaomiao culture) and the history of the invention and development of hybrid rice as the main line, we will deeply explore the global significance of the birthplace of hybrid rice and the Gaomiao cultural site. While starting to declare important agricultural cultural heritage in China as soon as possible, we will make an overall plan to declare important agricultural cultural heritage in the world, and further polish the gold lettered signboard of “One Seed That Changes the World”.
Xupu Chuanyan Mountain, a national 4A tourist attraction
It is high time we built a high standard hybrid rice national park. Based on the hybrid rice memorial park of Anjiang Agricultural School, we will integrate the Gaomiao Cultural Relics, the National Agricultural Science and Technology Park, build the hybrid rice national park and Yuan Longping academician memorial hall with high standards, and strive to build the hybrid rice national park into a national cultural and tourism integration demonstration area, a national 5A level tourist attraction, and a national research, practice and education base.
It is high time we constructed a high-quality core tourist area of “Hybrid Rice National Park—Hongjiang Ancient Shopping Mall—Qianyang Ancient City”. It is to accelerate the establishment of Hongjiang Ancient Shopping Mall as a national 5A tourist attraction, promote the construction of Huaihong Tourist Express Line, double ancient city water tour and other projects, and develop it into the “Golden Triangle” of cultural tourism with national influence by taking Yuanjiang River as the link.
It is also high time we strengthened the marketing and publicity of the “ancient”, “red” and green—“three virtues of Huaihua” brand, fully supporting the declaration of the world cultural heritage by the Dong ethnic group villages, and enhancing the national influence of classic red scenic spots such as the Troops Transfer in Tongdao and the Surrender Acceptance in Zhijiang, and spare no effort to create national tourist resorts such as Xuefeng Mountain, Wanfo Mountain and Huangyan National Tourist Resort, and strive to make Huaihua’s cultural and tourism industry distinctive, branded and influential. (Originally published in Hunan Daily, November 18, edition 3)
(Translated by Tian Xia)