Dananpu Songs and Rice: A Rural Farming-and-Reading Practice on July 15, 2012
[Sharing the Joy of the Harvest]
Dananpu sits in the long, narrow valley of the Zhonggang River in the northern inland hills of Miaoli. The small houses here, carrying traces of the Japanese colonial era, are merely ornaments to the scenery; what this place offers more of is tranquil pastoral scenery -- our Dananpu Rural Office was founded in the late summer of 2011. Through visits and interviews we learn local knowledge from old farmers; with our bodies, and through wind, frost, rain and dew, we pay our respects to the farmers and the land. We practice how to put community-supported agriculture into local practice, and try out the possibilities of contract farming.
Recently, the rice grown by Dananpu Rural Workshop in Nanfu Village using natural farming methods is about to be harvested on July 15 of the Gregorian calendar. To thank the valley shareholders for their support over the past season and our community friends for their concern, a harvest event will be held so we can share together the joy of this harvest.
[Event Schedule]
1300-1500 Hand rice harvesting, small farmer vendors
1500-1530 Break, chatting at the edge of the field
1530-1700 Hand rice harvesting, small farmer vendors, straw hand-blade weaving activity
1700-1820 Rural circle dinner
1820-1900 Dananpu community tour
1900-2000 Rice field concert: Miaoli youth, African performance, Nanfu Community mountain song class, Wen Misha (invitation pending)
Background -- About Dananpu and the Farmland
Text / Xiao Yihan
Dananpu sits in the long, narrow valley of the Zhonggang River in the northern inland hills of Miaoli. The small houses here, carrying traces of the Japanese colonial era, are merely ornaments to the scenery; what this place offers more of is tranquil pastoral scenery -- more than 60% of Dananpu's land is agricultural and pastoral land; when a car passes through Sanwan and has just turned toward Nanzhuang, fields of waving rice and fine farmland stretch out before the traveler's eyes, making people stop. Dananpu's paddy fields were reclaimed during the Tongzhi reign of the Qing dynasty, but this small village, long known as the granary of Nanzhuang, just like other rural villages in Taiwan, China, has followed the trajectory of Taiwan, China's economic development and likewise faces the problems of an aging rural population and stagnant agriculture.
The outflow of young and able workers, elderly farmers reducing their farming, and the fallow land policy for rural land have further deprived fertile farmland of the chance to produce good food for local people. Acre after acre of fields no longer produce food and are overgrown with weeds; even when they are covered with green manure flowers, it seems like a mockery. Because we are losing our connection to the land, step by step.
[Transportation]
1) Driving yourself: From the Toufen Interchange, head toward Nanzhuang, follow County Road 124 to Sanwan town, continue straight across the Sanwan Bridge, turn left immediately after the bridge, and after two hundred meters, when you see a road sign saying to turn right toward Nanpu, follow it and turn right; five minutes later, when you see a police station on your right-hand side, you have arrived.
2) Public transportation: Take the train to [Zhunan] Station -- transfer to the Miaoli Bus in front of the West Station (2 buses per hour, please take the 11:50 one at the latest) -- get off at [Dananpu] Station [Fee] Promotion fee 300 yuan per person (same for adults and children) [Includes afternoon tea, dinner, concert, activity fees]
[Other]
Organizer: Dananpu Rural Workshop http://dananpu.blogspot.tw/
Co-organizers: Jurassic Hometown Camp Construction Association, Nanfu Village Community Development Association
Sponsor: Honghui Education Foundation