Chapter 63
Cave Homes
In May of 2003, the teacher Zhang Liang took three of us foreigners to where he grew up in a cave. This was a short distance outside of Luoyang. His parents still lived there, but none of his four brothers and sisters lived there anymore.
The cave was just a very basic place. There was a bed, stove for cooking and some furniture. The ceiling was brick. They had a few chickens walking around the yard. There were also a couple of small buildings outside in their yard but I don’t know what was in them.
Besides the main cave that they lived in, there were also a couple of other small caves that must have been rooms for other things. They lived in a neighborhood where there were other people that also lived in caves.
Right now as I write this and think about it, I don’t know if I could live like that or not. I am so used to the every day basic things. I wonder if you have to grow up in a cave to live that way. To go from what we have for basic needs and go to live in a cave would be quite difficult I would think. It certainly would be a simpler life and there's nothing wrong with that. I think we all need that. Some cave homes are really beautiful and expensive.
The following article describes cave life:
More than 30 million people in China live underground in caves.
Many attracted to simple, affordable lifestyle
BY RHEANA MURRAY NEW YORK DAILY NEWS; Monday, March 19, 2012
Tens of millions of people in China have gone underground — to live. Over thirty million Chinese make their homes in caves, according to a recent report by the Los Angeles Times. Many live in Shaanxi province, where the region’s porous soil is particularly well-suited for easy digging.
The caves, called yaodong, are usually dug into the side of a mountain. Often rice paper or blankets hang from semicircular entrances to serve as makeshift doors.
Nicer caves have several chambers and are secured with brick masonry. Some even have electricity and running water, the newspaper reported. “Most aren’t so fancy, but I’ve seen some really beautiful caves: high ceilings and spacious with a nice yard out front where you can exercise and sit in the sun,” said Ren Shouhua, who grew up in a cave in Yanan.
Shouhua, 46, told the Times that he moved from the cave into a concrete-block house when he got a job in the city of Xi’an in his 20's, but plans to return to his life as a cave dweller after retirement. “It’s cool in the summer and warm in the winter,” he explained. “When I get old, I’d like to go back to my roots.”
A basic one-bedroom cave without plumbing rents for about $30 a month. A cave with three bedrooms and a bathroom might sell for $46,000, the Times reported.
But according to one local, many people aren’t giving up their spaces.
“A lot of people come here looking to rent our caves, but nobody wants to move out,” said Chen Wei, a 43-year-old Communist Party official who lives in a cave near Yanan. “It’s like living in a villa,” Wei said. “Caves in our village are as comfortable as posh apartments in the city.”
Architects understand why the lifestyle can be attractive. “Its energy efficient,” said Liu Jiaping, director of the Green Architecture Research Center in Xi’an. “The farmers can save their arable land for planting if they build their houses in the slope,” Jiaping said. “It doesn’t take much money or skill to build. “Then again, it doesn’t suit modern complicated lifestyles very well. People want to have a fridge, washing machine, television.” That might not matter to China’s cave dwellers, many of whom revel in a simple, affordable lifestyle.
“Life is easy and comfortable here,” said Ma Liangshui, 76, who lives in a one-room cave south of Yanan. He has a bed, a fire pit for cooking, and electricity to fuel a single light bulb. “I’ve lived all my life in caves, and I can’t imagine anything different.'"
The following article describes cave life:
More than 30 million people in China live underground in caves.
Many attracted to simple, affordable lifestyle
BY RHEANA MURRAY NEW YORK DAILY NEWS; Monday, March 19, 2012
Tens of millions of people in China have gone underground — to live. Over thirty million Chinese make their homes in caves, according to a recent report by the Los Angeles Times. Many live in Shaanxi province, where the region’s porous soil is particularly well-suited for easy digging.
The caves, called yaodong, are usually dug into the side of a mountain. Often rice paper or blankets hang from semicircular entrances to serve as makeshift doors.
Nicer caves have several chambers and are secured with brick masonry. Some even have electricity and running water, the newspaper reported. “Most aren’t so fancy, but I’ve seen some really beautiful caves: high ceilings and spacious with a nice yard out front where you can exercise and sit in the sun,” said Ren Shouhua, who grew up in a cave in Yanan.
Shouhua, 46, told the Times that he moved from the cave into a concrete-block house when he got a job in the city of Xi’an in his 20's, but plans to return to his life as a cave dweller after retirement. “It’s cool in the summer and warm in the winter,” he explained. “When I get old, I’d like to go back to my roots.”
A basic one-bedroom cave without plumbing rents for about $30 a month. A cave with three bedrooms and a bathroom might sell for $46,000, the Times reported.
But according to one local, many people aren’t giving up their spaces.
“A lot of people come here looking to rent our caves, but nobody wants to move out,” said Chen Wei, a 43-year-old Communist Party official who lives in a cave near Yanan. “It’s like living in a villa,” Wei said. “Caves in our village are as comfortable as posh apartments in the city.”
Architects understand why the lifestyle can be attractive. “Its energy efficient,” said Liu Jiaping, director of the Green Architecture Research Center in Xi’an. “The farmers can save their arable land for planting if they build their houses in the slope,” Jiaping said. “It doesn’t take much money or skill to build. “Then again, it doesn’t suit modern complicated lifestyles very well. People want to have a fridge, washing machine, television.” That might not matter to China’s cave dwellers, many of whom revel in a simple, affordable lifestyle.
“Life is easy and comfortable here,” said Ma Liangshui, 76, who lives in a one-room cave south of Yanan. He has a bed, a fire pit for cooking, and electricity to fuel a single light bulb. “I’ve lived all my life in caves, and I can’t imagine anything different.'"
Chapter 64
Life in Caves
The Chinese word for cave is yaodong. Living in a cave in China is common. Over thirty million people live in caves. Caves are usually dug into the side of a mountain. Often rice paper or blankets hang from semicircular entrances to serve as makeshift doors. Some cave homes are modern, really beautiful and expensive. I put some pictures of a modern cave home at the end.
Zhang Liang, Pat, Saidah and Zhang Liang’s father.
Pat enjoying some Chinese hospitality. She and Saidah are from Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The next four pictures are taken from the internet showing a community of caves where many people live.
Cooking in a cave home.
The rest of the pictures show a fancy expensive cave home. They were taken from the WeChat app.
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