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How a U.S. architect renovated houses beneath the Great Wall in China

CGTN

Jim Spear works on a project. /CGTN
Jim Spear works on a project. /CGTN

Jim Spear works on a project. /CGTN

Jim Spear's house in Mutianyu Village, Beijing. /Jim Spear
Jim Spear's house in Mutianyu Village, Beijing. /Jim Spear

Jim Spear's house in Mutianyu Village, Beijing. /Jim Spear

An indoor view of one of the hotels designed by Jim Spear. /Jim Spear
An indoor view of one of the hotels designed by Jim Spear. /Jim Spear

An indoor view of one of the hotels designed by Jim Spear. /Jim Spear

View of the Brickyard Retreat Hotel founded by Jim Spear and his wife in Beigou Village, Beijing. /Jim Spear
View of the Brickyard Retreat Hotel founded by Jim Spear and his wife in Beigou Village, Beijing. /Jim Spear

View of the Brickyard Retreat Hotel founded by Jim Spear and his wife in Beigou Village, Beijing. /Jim Spear

An indoor view of one of the hotels designed by Jim Spear. /Jim Spear
An indoor view of one of the hotels designed by Jim Spear. /Jim Spear

An indoor view of one of the hotels designed by Jim Spear. /Jim Spear

Jim Spear, a designer and an architect from the United States, says he dreamed of one day owning a house beneath the Great Wall in China. That dream came true in 1994, when he acquired a house in Beijing's Mutianyu Village. He has been living there ever since.

After moving in, he started a renovation program, turning an abandoned primary school into a restaurant, an art glass shop and a gallery. Furthermore, he renovated a disused glaze tile factory in Beigou Village into a hotel in 2006. These repurposed buildings have attracted crowds of visitors. The villages have also become must-visit places for tourists visiting the Great Wall. 

For more:

CGTN Documentary: Echoes of Life

Friends from Afar: Dreams built beneath the Great Wall

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