Welcome to Travelogue and welcome back to Guizhou! This week, join me for a whirlwind tour down to southern Guizhou to explore the pizzazz of different ethnic groups down there. Specifically, there are Danzhai Miao, Sandu Shui.

If you've been watching our show lately, there should be no excuse of not knowing anything about this hidden treasure from the traveling perspective. Being one of the most diversified places in China, Guizhou never stops attract and amaze visitors with its gorgeous landscape and kaleidoscopic culture.

Today we will follow an unbeaten path down to south Guizhou, meet the extremely hospitable Miao people in Danzhai County, admire their dazzling handmade color paper and wx printing cloth; then visit the largest Shui ethnic community in Sandu County, dance to the beat of bronze drum and learn about the mysterious Shuishu. It's going to be a true journey of discovery.

Danzhai, the crimson fort, is a place as beautiful and passionate as its name suggests. Just look at how the Danzhai people greet their visitors - an all-out party floating with songs, dances, and, the guarantee of a great party-self-brewed rice wine!

Miao is the dominant group in Danzhai County making up three fourth of the total population. The small village we are visiting today is called Shiqiao with couple hundred households nestled in a mountain valley.

The greeting ceremony of Danzhai Miao people is the most elaborate one that I never seen, and most original-now I know how to make the best use of wooden stools.

Wooden Stool Dance is popular in Miao inhabited southwest Guizhou. It's usually performed after couple rounds of rice wine; and there is no limits to the dancing venue, in house, out in the open air, by the river side, on the mountain slope...

Then again, there is also the swaying Lusheng dance, something you are bound to encounter time and again in a Guizhou trip.

The houses of Miao people in this area are all built of wooden logs on the foundation of huge rocks - strong, simple, yet artistic. Once considered one of the four greatest inventions in ancient China, paper-making method now is a big tourist attraction for shiqiao.

The raw material is the bark of a special kind of tree, just like in the old time. From collecting tree bark, to pulling off the dry paper from the baking wall, it altogether takes 14 steps to finish making a piece of paper, all manual.

Following the paper screens lined along the main street, I found the largest paper making mill among the dozen family workshops in the village.

This is where the step of scooping up paper pulp takes place. Paper pulp is first stirred in the big stone tub; then workers use this screen-like tool to shake and stir until a layer of paper pulp is left on the screen, then pile the damp paper layer upon layer.

A skillful worker can make six to seven hundred sheets of paper a day this way.

The owner of this workshop expanded the product line from traditional white paper to colorful paper with customized designs. Innovation, innovation, innovation,it's always the key to a successful business.

The dizzying color, natural texture, original design, every thing about the paper calls for a shopping spree. Even if you are not a compulsive shopper like me, you will end up stuff your suitcase with these darlings.

My next destination in Danzhai county is Paimo, also a picturesque Miao village of distinctive history and culture.

At the entrance of the village, I took a little detour to a small primary school. It's not easy for those kids to go to school in the mountainous Guizhou. Not bad for a first time teacher, and the first-time for these cute kids to learn English. Actually what brings me to this village is the superior wax printing art. Paimo and the neighboring village Paidao are even recognized as the birth place of the wax printing art. Almost every woman, from seventy year old granny to teenage girl, knows how to make exquisite wax printing cloth here.

Starting from weaving cloth, every step involved is handmade. It is said in the past, a girl's happiness could well rely upon her wax printing skill.

And they really enjoy what they are doing. The work is mostly done in an easy breezy way in small groups accompanied by chatting, giggling and singing.

A sneak peek won't make me a great wax printing artist of course, but at least I learned that those incredibly beautiful patterns were actually designed and hand painted by these lovely ladies. Some were purely spontaneous.

Now to retain this wonderful art, wax printing classes are included in the curriculum of some local schools.

Many of the wax printing cloth of superior design and quality from Paimo became private collection items home and abroad. Local people told me, the bird image is a symbol of Paimo wax printing as compared to the cloth from other Guizhou Miao.