Clothing woven in the mountains

What kind of animal is this? Dog. That is fascinating. The Clothes Drying Festival is an important tradition for the Red Yao people. Families hang their handmade garments out under the sun to keep them dry and protect them from moisture and insects. During this time, every street and corner is filled with these vibrant traditional costumes and the entire village is transformed into an open-air exhibition. Although we're not here during the festival, we meet a traditional Red Yao textile artisan to learn more about this intricate craft and the traditions behind it. Hi, teacher. Hello. I was wondering if people of different ages or life stages wear the same clothing? Yes. The girls here wear red. The one I'm making is for girls. The one I'm wearing is for middle-aged women. It's a mix of silver and gold. The other one is for the elderly. It's black. It's all hand-made? Yes, it's all hand-made. I really like the patterns you're making. Including the beautiful patterns you're wearing. What's the inspiration behind this? Our Yao people live in the mountains. We embroider all the animals and things we use in our daily lives on our clothes. Look at this. This is a doll. This is an animal. This is a cat. What animal is this? This is a dog. Take a guess, Eliza. What kind of animal is this? Dog. You heard it. Yes. She just said it. What about this one? It's a cat. So far, so good. Okay, what about this one? A goat. Is it a goat? Is it a sheep? No, it's a cow. Oh, a cow. I have a question for you, Eliza. What makes Yao embroidery different from other traditional embroidery? Yao embroidery is a bit complicated. For example, this set of clothes I'm wearing, it takes me a year to finish it. There are sides, sides, sides, sides, sides, sides, I made this one. This is what the girl wears. And this one. I embroidered this one just now. Take a look. It's a reverse embroidery. Oh, this is a reverse embroidery. I embroidered these animals, all kinds of things. This is what I wear. This is what I embroider. I see. And there's a belt. Take a look. This is weaving. It's weaving and weaving. Oh, this is so beautiful. Look at my dress. It's a hot-and-cold dress. It's hot and cold. So it's a bit complicated. What about for you, Eliza, back home in the Philippines? Do you guys also have the similar embroidery traditions? Yes. We also have the same tradition in the Philippines. And actually, you can know where they came from just by looking at the textiles. How do you tell? It depends on the structure, the color, and the type of weave that they do. That is fascinating. Yes. Actually, in the Philippines, this was a requirement before in school. You should learn how to stitch, learn how to embroider. There'd be very few people in school then. No, it's required. Everyone has to learn it. So, Eliza, how do you find a bonfire? I love it. It's a new beginning. How do you find a bonfire? You go here. When you see a crowd, a rowdy crowd like this, the answer is right behind us. And on the stage right now, there's a performance right here as you can see on this side. This is sort of leading up to the bonfire tonight. It's sort of warming up to the bonfire tonight. Listen to that. Isn't that incredible? And we were supposed to be in costumes too, right? Yes. But we couldn't really decide on one because there are so many different ethnic groups. There are a lot of options. So many different ones. You have the drum people, you have the dong, and the yow. It's a melting pot, just like the bonfire here. In Longsheng, different communities have their own customs, languages, and cultures. Yet among these terraced mountains, their paths converge and intertwine. Distinct ways of life are carefully preserved even as they share the same sky above and the same community below. It's a night of celebration where difference does not divide but gently weaves into a shared collective rhythm.