The next morning. The Wandelgek slept a bit longer and had a quick shower and breakfast to start the day, before Tao arrived at about 10 o’clock with a cab for the next part of the journey.

This time the plan was to stay in the region and we first drove back to Guilin and passed it via its outskirts. Then the ride went on deep into the karst hills.

 

Somewhere at a small family run shop we stopped. The Wandelgek had repacked his luggage the previous evening to get everything he didn’t need for the next couple of days in his large backpack and everything neccesary (like cameras, walking sticks, money and ID documents and a few clothes) in his smaller backpack, camera bag and waist gird. The large backpack was left behind and given into deposit at the store for a small fee. This was because next we would go up again in the hills and this was done on foot. The area we were going was a protected area (Longji Terraces Scenic Area) and cars were not allowed to enter.

But before that we drove to a beautiful traditional village in the valley where the famous long hair women live.

Huanglou: village of the Long Hair Women

Hidden in the lush karst hills outside Guilin, not far from the terraced slopes of Ping’an, lies Huangluo Village — home of the Red Yao people, often called “the village of the Long Hair Women.” This quiet riverside settlement stands as a living museum of Yao culture, where tradition, craftsmanship, and daily rhythm merge seamlessly with spectacular landscape.

Red Yao

The Red Yao people are a branch of the wider Yao ethnic group, known for their hospitality, colorful festivals, and tight-knit community life.

The Red Yao people of Huangluo Village trace their origins to migrations from neighboring provinces like Hunan and Guizhou, arriving in the Longji region around the mid-19th century—specifically during the 1840s–1860s amid the Taiping Rebellion (1850–1864).

Migration History

Fleeing war, famine, and imperial conflicts, Yao clans sought refuge in Guangxi’s remote karst hills, where fertile terraces could be carved for rice farming.

By the late 1800s, Huangluo was established as a stable settlement along the Jinjiang River, about 2 km from Ping’an.

Settlement Timeline

• Pre-1840s: Nomadic Yao groups in southern China practiced long-hair traditions tied to animist beliefs in vitality and fertility.
• 1850s–1880s: Core migration wave; families built diaojiaolou houses amid terraces first developed in the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368) but expanded by Yao settlers.
• Early 1900s: Village formalized with ~60 households, preserving customs despite Han Chinese influence.

This history underscores their resilience, with traditions like long hair (documented in folklore since the 1600s) intact as cultural markers today.

Traditional houses

Their houses, called diaojiaolou, are traditional wooden dwellings raised on stilts along the hillside.

The upper floors serve as living areas, …

while the lower level shelters livestock and tools …

— a practical adaptation to both the steep terrain and the humid southern climate.

Villagers still farm rice and vegetables on painstakingly carved terraces, sustaining themselves much as their ancestors did centuries ago.

 

The long hair women

What makes Huangluo world-famous, however, is the women’s extraordinary hair tradition. Every woman in the village keeps her hair long — often more than two meters in length — and cuts it only once, when she turns eighteen. The cut portion is kept and later woven back into the daily hairstyle, symbolizing continuity and connection between a woman’s past and present. Hair is washed not with commercial shampoo but with a natural rinse made from fermented rice water, which gives it its distinctive luster.

While core elements like red tops remain consistent, hairstyles clearly distinguish status: unmarried young women cover hair with a black headscarf; …

… married women without children wrap it around the head (sometimes in braids); and those with children add a front bun using preserved cut hair, plus symbolic hairpins.

Dress color and style show minor variations by age but less so by marriage, with hairstyles providing the primary visual cues.

Today, these customs persist — though often demonstrated proudly to visitors during lively dance performances on the village square, accompanied by traditional songs and rhythmic bamboo instruments.

Equally striking are the Red Yao women’s traditional clothes — deeply indigo-dyed cotton tunics trimmed with crimson embroidery and belts, echoing the hues of the surrounding hills at sunrise.

Every garment is handwoven and handstitched, reflecting both artistic skill and communal pride.

Younger women typically wear bright red tops with black dresses, emphasizing elaborate embroidery to showcase beauty and vitality.

Older women, however, dress mainly in black or subdued tones, possibly for practicality or tradition.

An excellent example of an older but still proud of her self and her appearance lady …

… It did cost a bit of persuasion to talk her into a brief photography session, but in the end she agreed …

During festivals, the women’s bright sashes and long, glossy hair create an unforgettable sight against the shimmering rice terraces.

Daily village life

Life in the Village of the Long Hair Women is a dialogue between ancient patterns and modern curiosity. Tourism has brought prosperity, but the Red Yao continue to preserve their customs — proving that heritage, when lived and not merely displayed, remains as enduring as the mountains that cradle their home.

 

Traditional dance hall

The village has a very beautiful dance hall where traditional dances are performed for tourists. It is a broad timber hall that seems to float above its stone footings. Built in the traditional style of the Yao people, the dance hall rests on sturdy wooden pillars, its floor raised from the damp ground, its roofline slightly upturned at the eaves so that the whole structure feels light, almost winged…

Inside, thick beams run overhead, darkened by time and smoke, and the polished planks of the floor bear the shine of countless bare feet. On festival days, the hall becomes the beating heart of the village, doors thrown wide so music and laughter spill onto the square.The building’s architecture is as practical as it is graceful: the open interior, free of walls, is designed for gatherings, song, and dance, while the elevated platform and deep eaves protect against mist and mountain rains. Simple wooden latticework allows soft daylight to filter in, casting shifting patterns across the dancers as they move. In this hall, weddings are celebrated, harvests are thanked, and guests are welcomed; its history is not written on plaques, but in the stories and steps that the villagers pass down from one generation to the next.

When the performance begins, the “long hair women” of Huangluo enter the hall in a line, their bright red jackets and embroidered skirts flickering against the dark timber backdrop. Each woman’s hair—often more than a meter long—is coiled and wrapped into elaborate shapes, sometimes incorporating hair saved since childhood. Before dancing, they may unroll this great black waterfall for visitors to see, combing and re-plaiting it in slow, ritualized movements that feel halfway between a beauty secret and a blessing. Then the music starts: high, clear singing layered over the steady beat of drums and clapping.

The traditional dances themselves are lively but intimate. The women move in circles and pairs, their steps small and rhythmic, hands linked or raised as they turn, stamping gently in unison on the wooden boards. Some dances imitate everyday life—planting, harvesting, teasing between lovers—while others are more ceremonial, performed to mark festivals or honor ancestors. Guests are often invited to join, learning a few simple steps as the villagers guide them with laughter and encouraging nods. By the time the music fades and the last note hangs in the rafters, the wooden hall has done exactly what it was built to do: gather strangers and locals into a single, shared rhythm, if only for an evening in the mountains.

 

For some reason there were no women at the Hall, probably not enough tourists, and I had no urge to wait for some to appear. Instead I started photographing local women wo were not dressed in their traditional cloths …

This lady was selling delicious juice green plums, which help a lot to quench your thirst on a hot day.

I asked this lady if she could help me to show the difference in length …

Along one side of the river was a long wooden covered gallery. Such galleries are most likely built for protection from rain and sun for villagers during daily tasks like washing or socializing; space for performances and gatherings; or practical elevation above flood-prone waters. They enhance community life while blending with the misty, mountainous landscape, much like the dance hall described earlier. Underneath this roof were some small open air shops where vendors sold food and traditional clothes and fabrics. So it had a purpose as a souvenir shop as well.

It showed the experienced craftsmenship of the villagers in building wooden houses and structures …

The roof structure was amazingly well constructed and looked very sturdy to me. A bit comparable to the dance hall’s roof and to that of China’s rain and wind bridges …

During my upcoming mountain walks in the area I would see a lot more of that …

After leaving the village, we drove back to the entrance of the protected nature and scenery of the Longji Terrace Area.

My next blogpost will show you a bit more of Ping’an and my hotel.