‍By CGTN's Laura Schmitt, Zhou Xi

A visit to Mount Jingmai is like traveling back in time. The remote mountain villages here, in the south of Yunnan Province, are so difficult to access, one rarely encounters any tourists.

It is this inaccessibility that has played a part in preserving the local culture. There are 14 villages hidden away along the winding pathways, with only a few hundred inhabitants each. Their houses have been constructed in the traditional Bulang and Dai ethnic styles, which have a history of around 1000 years and are a must-see for any determined culture nut.

But even a place as remote as this is not immune from modernization. The villagers are attempting to make life more convenient, by boarding up their stilt houses, moving around the setup and adding items such as modern locks. However, their efforts are at odds with the desire of the authorities and a group of architects to preserve these traditional buildings.

The latter have therefore been living on Jingmai Mountain in an effort to convince the villagers to not only preserve the original elements of their architecture but even revert those buildings they have modified. The hard part is getting the villagers to agree to spend their own hard-earned cash, as likely only part of the reconstruction costs will be covered by the government.

What’s more, an application has been submitted to grant parts of the area World Cultural heritage status. If approved, this will bring more prestige, more tourism, and more income to the communities of Mount Jingmai. But the cost will be a loss of the current serenity, as commercialization takes hold.