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Before the real discussion even began, the
atmosphere was already rock-and-roll.
When the first official question
—“
Keywords for
Wanrong
” —
appeared on the screen, the room
finally fell quiet as everyone bent over their papers. In
motion or stillness, these mountain people revealed
the lively portrait of Wanrong: mountains, rivers,
rituals, culture, and identity.
Because the mountains are always close, a forest
road quickly becomes a hunting ground. Hunting
and weaving are not merely skills
—
they are proofs
of becoming human. Some wrote of Mgay Bari
(thanksgiving) and pig-slaughter rituals; others wrote
of an enduring concern that shapes their homeland:
the transformations and consequences of land use.
Hot springs were frequently mentioned, bubbling up
in the north, center, and south. Nature here is never
static
—
landslides are part of how they witness the
earth
’
s unrest.
“
During Typhoon Toraji, I watched a jeep float past
me,
”
said a representative from Jianqing Village
with a wry smile.
“
Next time you come, I
’
ll give you
a free tour of the disaster area.
”
The stickiness of banana rice and bamboo-tube
rice symbolizes how tightly people here are bound
together. This is what sets
“
Let
’
s Talk Wanrong
”
apart from other gatherings: it begins by eating
well
—
because what is being eaten is relationship, is
affection.
From the very start, Wanrong
’
s people ignited the
room. During the warm-up question
—“
What do
you go to each village for?
”—
when it came to Xilin
Village, one in three answers mentioned Apyang,
the founder of Akay Play Life.
“
Go find him.
”
“
Go find Akay
’
s team.
”
“
Because of him, I feel more like an Indigenous
person.
”
“
Akay made Xilin no longer just a place you pass
through. It became beautiful.
”
The praise came so fast that Apyang finally protested
shyly,
“
That
’
s enough already! I didn
’
t even get a
red envelope. Did you?
”
“
Red envelopes over here!
”
someone shot back.
“
ATM
’
s over there, thanks!
”
Mu-Hua waved off the resistance.
“
From this
moment on, finding Akay is officially open to all!
”
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