House of Dong Ethnic
Dong homes, generally made of China Fir, are two to four story dwellings. In most areas, the upper floors serve as living quarters, while the lower floor is kept for domestic animals and storage.
The front central half of the home upstairs, containing an open fireplace, is the center of activity in a Dong house; this room is traditionally open and spacious for family reunions and for daily workspace where the women weave and spin, men make fish nets and baskets, young children play, and where old folks rest and chat.
The elderly are provided with heated bedrooms in the back part of the house, while the rest of the family have bedrooms off the main part of the home. Ten to twelve rooms, according to a family's economic situation, is about average. In other Dong areas, such as Tianzhu and Rongjiang, the family live downstairs, and the second floor is used for storage; animals then live in rooms to the sides of the home.
Family carved wooden porches, covered for protection from sun and rain, are another common feature of Dong homes, used as a center for family activity during warm weather. Looms and spinning wheels generally find their place on the porch. Washed clothing and long lengths of brilliantly dyed cloth are hung from porch rafters. Damp pleated skirts are often affixed to a porch beam, carefully tied to keep the tiny pleats in place after washing.
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