Living in a concrete world of a metropolis has its ups and downs. The upside is you work and shop easily. Friends are always close too. The downside is you have no fresh air and seldom see a starry night.
The other day I visited my friend at his new home in downtown Shanghai - a magnificent apartment indeed. But when I looked out from the 23rd floor, the skyline was filled with row after row of buildings.
Maybe we are commercial creatures so ensconced in daily routines that we have taken our confined living space for granted. We have long given up our innate craving for a pasturable life as if it's mission impossible.
But nothing is impossible. Thanks to government efforts, people in the city will see the rise of large plots of "leisure agricultural zones" soon. At a time when many other regions bulldoze green space to build highrises, Shanghai has decided to preserve or even enlarge agricultural areas in its suburbs.
Qingpu district plans to invite tourists to visit or even participate in the agricultural production process.
Exercise in farm fields may indeed be welcome to white collar types who sit in front of flashing computer screens everyday.
Qingpu district officials say they hope 35 percent of its households, about 20,000, will participate in the tourism program within five years. This surely will increase income of farmers, but it means more to city dwellers long deprived of nature.
Shanghainese now often go to neighboring cities like Hangzhou and Suzhou for a taste of nature. But it often requires an overnight stay that many people have no time for. Building "leisure agricultural zones," which are within one hour's drive from downtown Shanghai, makes the city more livable. We will all be able to breathe a little easier.