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Kaiping Diaolou, Beyond Space
Early in the morning, after having a cup of tea, 79-year-old Guan Runlin goes
to the kindred library to compile the family document as usual. Over 30 folks of
his family are now in America and Canada.
In Kaiping City, halfway between Guangzhou,
the provincial capital of Guangdong
Province, and the border with Macao
, such families are commonplace. Behind each closed door there is a story and
each story is beyond borders. Diaolou, or literally fortified watchtower or
blockhouse, has witnessed the ups and downs of these families, and held together
overseas Chinese people's rustic homesickness and traditions.
 ˇˇSweet home steady as rock
Since the 14th century, Kaiping has traditionally been a region of major
emigration abroad, and a melting pot of ideas and trends brought back by
overseas Chinese.
Diaolou in Kaiping were first constructed in the early Qing
Dynasty (1644-1911). Initially they were constructed to guard against
floods. During the waning years of the Qing reign and the early years of the
Republic (1911-1949), overseas Chinese and local people from Kaiping built more
castles to guard against continuing wars and rampant banditry and rapacious
robbers. Diaolou reached its peak in the 1920s and 1930s when there were
estimated to be more than 3,000 of these structures.
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Diaolou can be divided into three basic types: genglou, zhonglou, and julou.
Genglou were strong plain structures built near a village to provide communal
defense, and the villagers contributed money collectively and each family would
be entitled to a room. Zhonglou, the epitome of the dual Diaolou function, were
built in the open country, by the riverside, or along the main drag. Julou, were
high and spacious with exquisite sculpted details and offered tasteful,
comfortable living quarters. Individual familes usually sponsored them.
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