Xihe Town Community

Where the canal flows, there the people flourish.

Conversion with the local

My mentor Mr. Zhang, who speaks the local dialect "Jiang–Huai Mandarin“ and I interviewed the local residents to learn about its history.

Excerpt from the interview with Granny Chen:

Interviewer: I've heard in the past many merchants conducted business near the dock.

Granny Chen: Yes, there used to be a huge lake. Merchants would travel in groupls, piloting their rafts to trade all kinds of goods or grains.

Interviewer: Rafts?

Granny Chen: Bamboo rafts woven from bamboo strips. All the way from Jin Town. They inserts rows directly into water as an achor to secure the boats in place.

Interviewer: So, what kinds of business or trade shops were there in the town?

Granny Chen: All kinds. The house over there used to be a weaving workshop. That family had a bakery shop, making "Tuan Fan" (a local cuisine)

Interviewer: When was the house built?

Granny Chen: The bank over there was bulilt in 20th year of the Republic of China (1931). And this whole row of house was built on top.

Interviewer: I've noticed here(the house's interior floor) is much lower than the road surface. Is there a particular reason for it?

Granny Chen: Flood. In the past, whenever a flood occured, the government built up the embarkment. Now it's about 1.5 meters higher.