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China Elevator Stories
Photos from the Countryside in Northeast China
In this post, I share pictures of the countryside in Northeast China.
28/10/2025
Ruth Silbermayr
Author
Today, I’m sharing a few pictures of the countryside in Northeast China. The scenery is beautiful, though I wouldn’t want to live there.
Often, homes lack the modern conveniences we’re used to in city apartments—they usually have outhouses, kangs (heated stone or brick platforms used for sleeping and heating), and very simple kitchens heated by fire rather than electricity.
Many people in the countryside live more natural lives, which is certainly an advantage and may contribute to longer lifespans.
People tend to work hard, usually in the fields during the warmer months, and in winter, they gather to play Majiang (麻将) and drink strong Chinese schnapps (白酒).
The houses are usually long, one-story structures, and in many cases, two families have adjoining homes. Typically, the older generation (grandparents) lives next to the younger generation (parents and children). Sometimes, these houses function as a single shared home with two entrances.
One house I visited many years ago, which looked similar to the ones in the photos, had a corridor, a living room with a kang (炕) that was turned into a bedroom at night, and a small kitchen. The toilet was an outhouse a few metres away, and people had to go there even during the coldest months of winter, when temperatures could drop to around –30 °C (–22 °F).
Sometimes, wind turbines can also be seen scattered across the fields, as a lot of energy is needed to keep China’s cities up and running.
I took these pictures a few weeks ago. It’s common for the fields to look yellowish, and the skies are often incredibly blue in Northeast China. Almost all the houses I’ve seen in the countryside there look like the ones in the pictures I shared in this post—they’re all remarkably similar. It’s already getting cold here now; temperatures are in the low negatives (°C), and I’m sure it won’t be long before it gets truly cold.
Have you ever visited the countryside in Northeast China?