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    The museum has a wide collection of exhibits displaying the history of the Huang clan and the village.

    “It surprises me that an urban village preserves its history in such a good way. I hope Shenzhen won’t only pursue transformation, but also make more efforts to preserve its own culture,” she said.

    She added that the museum can teach children and adults a lot about Shenzhen’s history. “I will bring my friends and my oldest daughter to Xiasha,” she said.

    The biggest surprise for the expats might have been the last part of the trip, which gave them a rare chance to see how basin dishes are made.

    Basin dishes are known in Hong Kong as poon choi, which literally means “food served in a small basin.”

    Expats watched Xiasha villagers carefully make the dishes in a big kitchen, and even helped fry up some ingredients before sampling the results.

    A basin dish has many layers of different ingredients. They’re often served during religious rituals, festivals, special occasions and wedding banquets in open areas of villages in parts of southern Guangdong. Basin dishes have been prepared and eaten in Xiasha for more than 500 years.

    Yesterday’s outing was part of Futian’s ongoing efforts to increase expats’ knowledge of the district and become a more international urban area.

    District officials have undertaken a series of efforts during the internationalization drive, such as establishing Shenzhen’s first expat volunteer team and organizing expat trips to district facilities, museums and natural resorts.

    The expat volunteer team has more than 100 members from around the world, according to Futian’s foreign affairs office. The district aspires to become a pioneering international urban district featuring intelligent management and a high quality of life through efforts over the next 10 to 20 years.