主题：客家土楼/英语版(Hakka Earth Castle) -- 青稞酒

During the cold war era, US satellites discovered missile silo like structures in southern parts of China. The CIA poured considerable resources into discovering the nature of these structures. A CIA field agent, posing as a reporter, went to southern China, and discovered that these were in fact residential dwellings of the Hakka people. With the missile threat gone, the reporter went to extra length to present these mysteries UFO like houses to the American public, as a gesture of Sino-US friendship ties.

At the Model Exhibition of World Ancient Architectural Elaborate Works in April 1984, Zhencheng Building, an earth building in Yongding County in Fujian, caused a stir and was called "a worldwide unparalleled legendary residential building". In February 2004 UNESCO formally granted Fujian Hakka earth buildings World Cultural Heritage status.

The Hakka people are not an ethnic minority. They settled in Fujian from the Central Plains of China over a long period from the Qin (221-207 BC) to the Song (960-1279) dynasties to escape from war. Self-identified as Hakka, or guest people, these Han immigrants have retained much of their ancestors' lifestyle and culture and have absorbed the best parts of other ethnic groups' cultures. After more than 1,000 years of struggle they formed their own original folk customs including festivals, food, drink, costume, education and religion, and most unique of all - earth buildings.

There are various different shapes and designs of the Earth Castles, mainly in squarish or round shapes. Representing the sky (round) and earth (square) of ancient Chinese beliefs. Other less common shapes can be found, D-shaped, semi-circular or in the shape of horseshoes, umbrellas, windmills, or Ba Gua (an eight-sided diagram derived from the I-Ching - the Chinese book of divination. Each side represents a different aspect of life such as wealth, career, and marriage).

These Hakka houses are built to be defended, with the wall thickness ranging from 3 metres at the bottom, to 1.5 metres at the top. The walls were made of a mixture of earth, sticky rise pasture, raw eggs, reinforced with bamboo strips, much like modern day concrete, only stronger. There are no windows on the ground and first floors, and the windows at the top are especially small. There is only a single door into the building, the door frame is usually carved out of single piece of solid rock. The wooden door is wrapped in copper or iron sheets, with a metal bolt lock that once inserted, it extends all the way into the door frames.

With the door locked, the earth castle becomes an impenetrable fortress.

The building always has its own water supplies, and to prevent the enemy from burning the wooden door, water channels are built on top of the door, water can be poured into these channels to extinguish the fire.

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