STORY: Retired Dutchman enjoys idyllic life in Chinese village
SHOOTING TIME: May 27, 2024
DATELINE: June 1, 2024
LENGTH: 00:02:40
LOCATION: XUANCHENG, China
CATEGORY: CULTURE

SHOTLIST:
1. various of a tranquil village in east China's Anhui Province
2. SOUNDBITE (English): WIM KOELMAN, Dutch expat in China

STORYLINE:

After working and living in many places around the world, 73-year-old Dutchman Wim Koelman chose to live an idyllic life in a tranquil village in east China's Anhui Province.

SOUNDBITE (English): WIM KOELMAN, Dutch expat in China
"My name is Wim Koelman. Today, 73 years old. After an interesting life in the oil business, I left the company when I was in Australia and decided to study Chinese. After two years, I started work again for a few years, and then a Dutch company sent me to China, to Nanjing.
We lived happily in Nanjing for a while. We bought a house there. My wife likes to grow vegetables, but then after a while, the 120 square meters was not enough. So I started looking around for a bigger, better place. So in our neighborhood, there was a painter. He said I know the place you want. That's how we came to Zhaji, nice and quiet. So we found this place here. 
This is Xihulu, courgette. There are potatoes. There's nothing yet, waiting. When I dig up the garden, I first dig a trench and put all the weeds, then put a layer of chicken manure on top of it, and then dig the next trench to fill up. It's very, very calming. From little, I didn't like big cities. I like the natural environment. Because you eat your own food, everything is Kung Fu Cai (exquisite cuisine). Of course, you have to put in the work, but that's part of the process. All this, this is my castle."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Xuancheng, China.
(XHTV)