Homing in on the great outdoors

Cooler summers

Since retiring, Yang and his wife have traveled around the country by RV. In past summers, they had driven to Longmenshan town in Pengzhou city near Chengdu to escape the heat, but while the area was cooler, there were many rainy days, leaving them feeling consistently damp.

"Longde has many sunny days in the summer, it's not humid, the air is good, and the temperature is perfect — around 22 C. Last summer, I drove the RV to stay in Xinhe village for nearly three months. This year, I plan to stay longer as I suffer from asthma, but I feel much better here."

In July, Yang and his wife parked their RV in a campsite with pavilions named after the country's 56 ethnic groups. Their neighbors come from across China, including Ningxia, Jiangsu, Guangdong and Fujian provinces. The oldest camper is 83 from Jiaozuo city of Henan province who was driven by her son.

Yang says: "Xinhe village is picturesque. The RV campsite has water, electricity and charging stations. The surroundings are flat and, if it rains, it doesn't get muddy. There are bathrooms and a shared kitchen and the village also built a fish pond. There is a bus that can take us to town and the county seat for shopping, so we are happy living here."