A "Gold Rush" for Chinese farmers is taking place as rural dwellers make the most of a spending spree by city residents during the National Day Golden Week.

The increasingly market-oriented farmers are working hard to attract city tourists to their courtyards.

By offering a "country life experience," suburban farmers in Jinan, capital of Shandong Province, promote the peace and quietness, inviting citizens to get away from the hustle and bustle of downtown and enjoy the fresh air.

Zhou Lihe, a farmer in Zhongguan County of Shandong, has painted his house and stocked tons of vegetables, eggs and poultry ahead of the holiday.

"With a small amount of money, I turned my place into a hostel," he said. "I made use of my own room, garden, field and farm produce, and travelers just love it."

Zhou hosted several families from the city of Jinan on the first day of the weeklong holiday.

Tourists stretched their muscles laboring in Zhou's field, and had a feast in the evening with vegetables and fruit they had picked from the garden.

Folk culture amazes city kids who have lived all their life in high-rise buildings. They had great fun eating dinner in the open air, playing with chickens and dogs, drinking water directly from the well and rolling about on the "kang," a heated brick bed used by northerners in rural areas of China.

While some farmers are engaged in backyard businesses, others rush to cities to join in the service sector, which runs short of labor during this season.

(Eastday.com October 4, 2003)