Yellow River fishery boosts tourism, economy in Inner Mongolia county

Togtoh, a county located by the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, is rallying new vitality in tourism and consumption, driven by the Yellow River carp, a local specialty.

The freshwater fish, which has become a symbol of regional heritage, not only enriches traditional cuisine but also spurs a comprehensive industry chain from aquaculture and fishing to catering and tourism.

The harvest of the carp, as a path to prosperity, means a lot to Haojiayao villagers.

"From last year to this year, we caught about 5,000 kilograms of fish from each pond, which earned us 30,000 yuan (about 4,356 U.S. dollars) to 40,000 yuan," said Chen Jigui, a fisherman.

The region's signature dish has become famous beyond the county, attracting a steady stream of tourists and food lovers eager to taste the authentic flavors.

This culinary tradition, embodying local fishing, cooking and hospitality, has helped foster a thriving cultural tourism scene, revitalizing the local economy and creating new employment opportunities.

Yellow River fishery boosts tourism, economy in Inner Mongolia county

China's Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceship blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the country's northwest on Sunday, sending three astronauts to its orbiting space station.

The spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, lifted off from the launch site at 23:08 Beijing Time (15:08 GMT).

The crew members consist of mission commander Zhu Yangzhu, and fellow astronauts Zhang Zhiyuan and Lai Ka-ying, who is also the first astronaut from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

In another notable first, one of the crew members is set to undertake a year-long stay aboard the space station, double the usual duration of previous Shenzhou missions.

After entering orbit, the Shenzhou-23 spaceship will perform a fast automated rendezvous and docking with the radial port of the space station core module Tianhe, forming a combination of three modules and three spacecraft.

Shenzhou-23 marks the 40th flight of China's manned spaceflight program and the seventh manned flight mission since the Tiangong space station entered its application and development phase in late 2022.

China launches Shenzhou-23 manned spaceship