Holiday with purpose

With a series of poverty-alleviation policies, ranging from relocations to tourism development, the village inhabited by more than 1,800 families increased the average per capita income from 166 yuan ($25.4) in 1984 to nearly 22,700 yuan by 2019.

After viewing the village's history in a museum, Kaichen and the other kids visited a tea factory, founded by the village's first college graduate, who has returned to his hometown to help develop the local economy.

They also learned about white-peony tea, one of China's best-known brews, which has become a mainstream business in Fuding.

Then, the children traveled to Xiapu, a county in northeastern Fujian where more than 4,000 households overcame poverty in 2018. They sailed on two fishing boats in two teams. Kaichen says he struggled with seasickness but was excited to watch fish being caught in nets.

The children also rode a slow-speed train to the Daliang Mountains in Sichuan province, and visited a dairy farm that exemplifies Gansu province's industrialization and a school in Nyingchi city in the Tibet autonomous region.