Meet Yourself 去有风的地方 [2023]

[ktcjdrama]

I finished it!! Truly a drama gem to keep  Just like Go Ahead, but even better, because there is no angst. There are many life lessons within. I might do a rewatch to note those down. Some might not enjoy the drama because of the slower pace and seemingly "no drama" drama, you know what I mean? Haha... Personally, I enjoy every minute of it. What a heartwarming and healing drama. I do have a little bit of "complaint" about the ending, but it's nothing heavy/serious, and not about the story nor about the way it is wrapped up. The ending was great. I love the way it's wrapped up. I will share more about my "complaint" when you all have caught up. 

 

1 hour ago, Tofu said:

This will probably be a slower watch for me,

No worries. I believe this drama should be watched on leisure. Savour the moments. I'm just too impatient to finish it, haha...  

 

1 hour ago, Tofu said:

I noticed it was shot in the same place as Rattan too. I want to go see this place now. It's so beautiful!

It's definitely on my bucket list already. Been wanting to visit since Rattan, now I am more determined to go. Haha... Gonna save up for it. Here's a link for more information on how to get there. 

Spoiler

https://www.chinadiscovery.com/dali-tours/transportation.html

 

[ktcjdrama]

OST - Wind (sung by the actor of Hu You Yu)

 

 

[themarchioness]

4 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

I do have a little bit of "complaint" about the ending, but it's nothing heavy/serious, and not about the story nor about the way it is wrapped up. The ending was great. I love the way it's wrapped up. I will share more about my "complaint" when you all have caught up. 

 

You can share your complaints with me - under a spoiler cut, of course!  ;)  

 

I'm caught up to subs on Viki (or will be tonight, when I watch 26) but I've basically skimmed all the raws through to the end so you will not be spoiling me!  Curious to know your thoughts!

[ktcjdrama]

@themarchioness a little personal rant below

Spoiler

I am not sure I like how crowded the village has become one year later. I know the whole point of Yao’s effort is to attract people, but we all know when a place is full of visitors, often times the site will be “damaged”. It’s almost impossible to preserve the natural condition. It’s good to portray their success with lots of visitors, but I think the crowd is a bit too overflowing.

 

Then I am also disappointed with the reveal of Dou’s guesthouse. It’s too modern, too high-class, too 5-star for a 民宿 (literally means local lodging). Wonder what will be the room rate then, you know what I mean? I guess I was expecting something like Youfeng Yard, but an improved/professional version.

 

[themarchioness]

@ktcjdrama thanks for sharing your thoughts!  

 

Spoiler

3 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

I am not sure I like how crowded the village has become one year later. I know the whole point of Yao’s effort is to attract people, but we all know when a place is full of visitors, often times the site will be “damaged”. It’s almost impossible to preserve the natural condition. It’s good to portray their success with lots of visitors, but I think the crowd is a bit too overflowing.

 

Then I am also disappointed with the reveal of Dou’s guesthouse. It’s too modern, too high-class, too 5-star for a 民宿 (literally means local lodging). Wonder what will be the room rate then, you know what I mean? I guess I was expecting something like Youfeng Yard, but an improved/professional version.

 

Regarding the downside of bringing visitors to the village, I actually thought the drama did a good job of addressing this in small, subtle ways.  The reality is, any time you open one place up, you invite questionable elements in, but staying closed off isn't a viable option either because all you're doing then is limiting yourself -- really, if you think about it, this is true of just about anything.  Think macro level, globally, with countries.  And then think micro level, like our village here in Yunnan.  Whether it's a country or the village, it's all the same concerns and requires the same careful weighing and balancing, just to scale.  So, I think your personal rant is valid, but it must also be recognized that this is the price to be paid if you want to bring progress to that area.  And as was emphasized over and over again, not bring progress to Yu Miao Village wasn't a good way forward for the community either.

 

But like I said, I do think the drama addressed that concern in little ways... like when the bookstore raised questions about whether the existing roads would be wide enough for traffic they anticipated.  And IIRC, when the one grandfather objected, much of his concern was over how things would change by bringing tourism/more traffic to the village.  Probably the biggest one for me where this rant of yours was highlighted was when they had that weekend where all those tourists descended upon them all at once -- first, there was all that trash that Xin Xin kept having to dump out.  And then after all the tourists left, the villagers had to get to work scrubbing down the cobble roads and scraping off the gum!!!  I tell you, that image of the gum scraping really brought to mind the same thing you were ranting about.  I also thought then, "Ugh, the downside of bringing in outside visitors."

 

And yet, it's those outside visitors who bring money to the area and allow a tourism industry to grow and thrive in that village.... Ultimately, it's a necessary evil, so I think their best way forward is to figure out how to create a symbiotic relationship so that each side can experience the best out of each other -- if that makes sense.

 

As for Hong Dou's minsu (which can also mean B&B, and those can sometimes be high-end), I actually really liked it!  Haha.  It's classy like her.  I was just telling a friend tonight... Liu Yi Fei wears all this LV, high fashion brand, etc., in this simple, very basic village (where even their rice isn't served in ceramic bowls or plastic tubs, but wooden containers!), but somehow, she makes it all work.  It never looks out of place at all.  I was especially struck by that thought in that one scene where she was hanging out with Xie Zhi Yao in his family's courtyard while he was handing out wages from that weekend of tourism...  Did you notice what she was wearing in that scene?  Go back and look, if not.  She's squatted on a wooden stool, at a well-loved family table, and when she gets up she's wearing a pink, silk wrap-around dress that's ruffled around the edges... and yet, she looks right at home.  Like she totally belongs.  

 

And that's kind of how I think her guesthouse will be.  She brings her Beijing, high-class experience to this area.... and in that way, she is also helping to grow the tourism industry.  After all, to travel, you have to have the funds to do so.  Remember her sister's experiences when she visited and stayed at the best the village had to offer at that time.  Apparently the best was not comfortable for someone used to a certain level of quality.  Therefore, while I can't speak to how much Hong Dou will be able to charge, I can say that she's at least created a space that will make people want to visit and stay there when they're researching accomodations for their trip.  At least, that's how I'd like to think of how things will be!  

 

I think you had great observations about the drama, though, so don't think of them as complaints.  I think you're being thoughtful about the drama, which is exactly what "Meet Yourself" would want, as it is a thought-provoking piece in many ways.

 

Actually, I also have an observation to make about this drama.  And it's definitely not a complaint as it is, more than anything, a source of amusement for me... but one of the things I really enjoyed about this drama was how it portrayed life and made things real, because the characters and their experiences felt so genuine... and yet there's one thing that did not escape my notice!  Hahaha.  Yu Miao Village is supposed to be in this remote place.  But in the second half, did you notice how easy it was for people to fly in and out of that area???  I mean, we won't even talk about Mr. Ma who kept dropping by in and around his tea travels.  But think about when Da Mai returned in a rush to be by Nana's side when she was going through that thing.  Or how quickly Hong Dou was able to catch a flight to Beijing when the pipes in her apartment burst.  My usual experience is, the father away you live from an urban area, the longer one will have to travel to find an airport.  And even then, depending on where your airport is, if it's not a big, well-traveled city, you might also have to have connecting flights!  Yet, in the drama, it all seemed very easy, flying in and out of that area.  Haha.  

 

 

[40somethingahjumma]

Oh... Joseph Zeng made an appearance. Wow. I've never heard his voice before. Not what I expected at all. I've only ever seen him play teenage boys but his voice is very mature.

 

The beauty and magic of this show really is the way the writer fleshes out these characters. After a while, you get attached to them and wish them the best. Ma ye, Da Mai and Lao Hu. I'm so glad that Aunty Gui and Aunty Feng have patched things up between them.

 

I'm now at the point of the narrative where the leads are dancing around the elephant in the room. He's really sweet and considerate but he should at least say something so she can give due consideration.

 

It's very very addictive. 

[ktcjdrama]

@themarchioness thanks for sharing your perspectives in detail  

Spoiler

I do agree that developing the village is the way to go, for various reasons mentioned in the drama as well as in your post above. I guess I was hoping not to see such crowd at the end, like maybe tone it down a bit... haha... I can relate well with Grandpa Yang who didn't want the crowd. Tbh, the (any) village loses its appeal if there are so many people I have to weave my way through. 

 

It's true that the BnB reflects very much her personal style. I still will go for a more traditional lodging like Youfeng Yard though when I decide to go visit this kind of places. I guess I would be less thrown off if they don't keep using the term 民宿. It certainly didn't turn out any close to what I expected, lol...

 

As for the flight, I think it's not that easy too. They still have to drive quite a bit to the airport, shown many times along the lake. Anyway, there is a Dali airport to the south of the Erhai lake. Btw, that stable shooting site is actually located very far away from the villagers "residence" shooting site.

 

This vlogger managed to visit the shooting site. Quite envious, but not of the rainy days they encountered, lol...

It's all in Chinese though, no English subs.

 

[themarchioness]

9 hours ago, 40somethingahjumma said:

Oh... Joseph Zeng made an appearance. Wow. I've never heard his voice before. Not what I expected at all. I've only ever seen him play teenage boys but his voice is very mature.

 

I loved his cameo -- it was a perfect add considering his "Hi, Venus," finished right before this drama and both dramas are written by the same screenwriter.  I'm only sad they couldn't make his cameo connect with his character in "Hi, Venus!"  Hehe.

 

7 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

 thanks for sharing your perspectives in detail

 

You mean my long ramble?  Haha, sorry if my thoughts were not fully collected.  I was rushing to get to Episode 26 subbed.  ;) 

 

But I've been thinking more about your comments and wanted to add...

 

Spoiler

 

7 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

I do agree that developing the village is the way to go, for various reasons mentioned in the drama as well as in your post above. I guess I was hoping not to see such crowd at the end, like maybe tone it down a bit... haha... I can relate well with Grandpa Yang who didn't want the crowd. Tbh, the (any) village loses its appeal if there are so many people I have to weave my way through. 

 

I totally agree and I get it, I do.  That's the hardest part about wanting to bring development to any area.  It's a good thing, but it also brings with it the negatives: traffic, crowds, crime, the list goes on.  I think about that on a daily basis regarding a shopping area near where I live... I used to enjoy dining at restaurants there, but now it's so built up, parking is a pain, too many pedestrians and cars battling against each other, it's kind of a nightmare and so I mostly stay away until I have to go these days.  It would definitely be sad to think about Yu Miao Village becoming like that, but I have faith in people like XZY and Huang Xin Xin who have vision, but also know what matters in the heart.  If you think about it, Yu Miao Village couldn't have two better hands to place its future in.  Imagine if it was some big-city developer who came, only saw potential, but not the history, the culture and traditions, or the community, and just wanted to tear everything down in that process.  That truly would be tragic!  

 

But anyway, to bring my rambles back to a point, I wanted to say that I really appreciate how "Meet Yourself" is constantly teaching us that to do anything, and be successful at it, one must have a firm and steady base.  It's like Xia Xia at the beginning of the drama.  All he was focused on was spreading his wings to fly, earning money, and though his heart was mostly in the right place about that, he was so focused on the ten steps away from him that he couldn't see the ones directly in front of him -- the ones that still needed to be crossed before he could get to the other end of his path.  That reminder that he needed to instead focus on learning and honing his craft and skills was a hard, but necessary lesson -- and if you think about it, a recurring theme throughout the drama.  

 

Even Nana and her sad story is, if you think about it, akin to the village opening itself to outsiders.  As an online singing host, she started out small and then her popularity grew, and whenever that happens, we all know that just invites antis, attacks, and whatnot.  The base, I would argue, that she needed to grow in order to succeed in that career is courage and a thick skin.  

 

And, of course, there's the village and the villagers themselves.  I loved XZY's one comment after that weekend where all the tourists visited in one drove.  It was something along the lines of how it'd been the weekend they'd all hoped for -- one filled with a lot of visitors and paying customers -- but once it happened, it also served as a good reminder that before they went big-time, they had to make sure they had infrastructure in place to handle that kind of traffic.  After all, XZY knows that the worst thing that could happen to them is the visitors come, but then they receive poor service due to the village being understaffed/underdeveloped, and then people don't want to return and/or leave poor reviews, impacting other people's decisions to visit.  

 

That's why XZY has worked so hard these past few years to invest in the village and to grow that base.  I thought it was interesting how for the first 3/4 of the drama his contributions to the village were acknowledged and praised by all, but the minute the village had some visitors and the villagers started to get a taste for what life could be, in the last 1/4 of the drama, we saw all those residents visiting HXX and telling her about all the businesses they wanted to start -- example: that one woman who wanted to turn her home into a B&B and when HXX pointed out her home was old and rundown, the woman responded, "I'll use my earnings from the visitors to improve it!" and HXX was like, "No... that's not how any of this works, you're doing things in reverse order."  Worse, you also had that small group of people who, towards the end of the drama, started to accuse XZY of stealing all the business opportunities and preventing others from starting businesses -- which, of course, couldn't have been farther from the truth.  But for all those people, I would describe them as Xia Xia had been at the beginning of the drama.  They're already focused on the end goal, without thinking of all the steps that would need to be taken in between.  XZY, by contrast, and all along, has been taking things one step at a time.

 

Ahh... so many great lessons in this drama!  This is just one of them.  

 

But anyway, to your point, @ktcjdrama, while I understand and share your concerns, I don't think we have to worry about Yu Miao Village given those who are leading the way!  

 

Edited January 24, 2023 by themarchioness

[Mizv]

Peeking because I’m inpatient with  the pace of drama.  I enjoyed watching several episodes. also made me want to visit here.  
 

so did Yao and HuaHong end up together????

[themarchioness]

4 minutes ago, Mizv said:

so did Yao and HuaHong end up together????

 

Do you mean Hong Dou, the FL? Yes, of course. :)

[ktcjdrama]

I think I'm on withdrawal... I keep watching the short clips of the OTP... so sweeeeettt 

Where is the English subs at now? I want to post clips but I don't want to give spoilers also.

 

The confirmation and first kiss 

Spoiler

 

 

[SilverMoonTea]

I must be crazy for crying then laugh at the same time. I can't believe I'm crying because fish bone stuck on his throat, and he didn't get the like from Doudou as he wished. And the next moment that grandma chided him to eat more as he need energy to be sad 

 

Btw I managed to get @LaLa to have a little interest on this drama. She might not continue, but at least I already trying hehe...

[themarchioness]

6 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

Where is the English subs at now? I want to post clips but I don't want to give spoilers also.

 

It's released up to 32 as of today, should be at 34 tomorrow.

[themarchioness]

12 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

The confirmation and first kiss 

 

I just rewatched that scene for I-don't-know-how-many-times-already, but this time with subs, and I can honestly say... it never gets old.   It's still as great as the first time I watched that scene.  Haha!  

[ktcjdrama]

5 hours ago, themarchioness said:

 

I just rewatched that scene for I-don't-know-how-many-times-already, but this time with subs, and I can honestly say... it never gets old.   It's still as great as the first time I watched that scene.  Haha!  

LOL me too! Lost count already how many times I’ve rewatched this clip. Do you understand Chinese? Some of the translation is not as great (sweet) as what is actually conveyed in Chinese. I am planning to translate it later (soon) and post it here. 

[ktcjdrama]

Translation for the clip confirming their relationship and first kiss. Basically the same, but just that there are some lines that I think have not shown the urgency/intensity of their conversation. If you're interested, in the spoiler.

Spoiler

Yao: Xu Hong Dou, what do you think of me?

Dou: Haven’t I been saying you’re not bad?

Yao: I’d like to tell you my basic condition.

Dou: No, no, no. It’s too late. Let’s talk tomorrow. I want to eat the rice noodles tomorrow. Then we can take a walk by the lake and talk about it on the way back.

 

Yao: It (the waiting) won’t do. I must say it now.

Dou: Do you have to say it at night?

Yao: I can’t hold it in.

Dou: Fine, say it then.

Yao: Xu Hong Dou, I have a loan right now. I have around 50000 yuan working capital on my card.

Dou: Pass. I know this part. Skip the finances.

Yao: I live with my Granny. My dad and stepmom are running a flower business in Kunming. I also have a brother in high-school who is still immature. My stepmom is a very nice person.

Dou: I know this too. Pass. Say something about yourself.

Yao: At this age of mine, I haven’t reached success as defined by the world. I don’t own any residence in big cities. But in the village, I have a house from my family and land, as well as a business with an unclear future.

Dou: I know about this also, more or less.

Yao: These are my premises. Xu Hong Dou, I’ve met many people over the past few years. Many great girls. But I don’t know why I don’t feel anything. I don’t feel anything with other people. But I feel something with you only. Maybe it’s because you’re that right temperature. You flow to me, becoming a wind. Do you get it?

Dou: I get it a bit, but not very well.

Yao: How can you not get it? When the wind blows, it ruffles a river of spring water. You understand that? Come on, Xu Hung Dou, don’t play dumb with me. You just enjoy hearing me say these kind of things, right?

Dou: Are you done talking?

Yao: Yes. Let’s be together, okay?

Dou: No!

Yao: No? You don’t want to the last time, and this time too? Are you making me to ask you three times?

Dou: I told you we'll talk tomorrow. Tomorrow when we wake, let me put on makeup prettily, dress up a bit. At the lake, you say it, I accept, and we can kiss too. But now? Like this?

Yao: Xu Hong Dou. Go open the door for me now!

Dou: In your dream! You can just continue to hold it in.

Yao: Come on, Xu Hong Dou! Are you scared? Are you afraid you cannot take it?

Dou: Say whatever you want. See you tomorrow.

 

Yao: Make it clear. What is our relationship now?

Dou: Are you nuts? Climbing up in the middle of the night, what if you fall from this height?

Yao: Well, you didn’t open the door for me.

Dou: I will open it. I will go open it now.

Yao: No need. Just do it here. Can we kiss? Don’t laugh. Can we kiss or not?

Dou: You’re so fierce… I told you earlier that we can kiss. It’s so high up here, go down now, I’ll open the door for you.

 so sweet. Love watching them being in love. And there are so many kisses after this. I'm going to go count, hahahaa... LYF and LX are just so natural in their roles...

[themarchioness]

2 hours ago, ktcjdrama said:

Do you understand Chinese?

 

I do, thank goodness! Because yes, often times the translation is lacking.  It's certainly not as descriptive as some of the original words!  

[Tofu]

This drama warms my heart. I love A'Yao's relationship with his grandma so much. 

[themarchioness]

1 hour ago, ktcjdrama said:

LYF and LX are just so natural in their roles...

💯 to this!!! Couldn’t agree more. I feel like I’m not just watching them, but living with them. (Or maybe that’s just wishful thinking on my part 😉)

 

1 minute ago, Tofu said:

I love A'Yao's relationship with his grandma so much.

Granny Xie is definitely my favorite character. She is so awesome!!!

[ktcjdrama]

2 hours ago, themarchioness said:

Granny Xie is definitely my favorite character. She is so awesome!!!

She is! Another favourite character of mine is Huang Xin Xin. I admire her.

[themarchioness]

49 minutes ago, ktcjdrama said:

She is! Another favourite character of mine is Huang Xin Xin. I admire her.

 

Hard not to love all the characters, honestly.  There is something to admire, respect, and appreciate in each of the characters.  

 

Am I ever going to get over this drama?  Thank goodness, for now, I still have the eps to rewatch as they are subbed.  But that cache of eps is fast dwindling... 

 

Oh!  Full album of the OST drops today (1/27).  It's already on iTunes.  

[ktcjdrama]

 I don't have to go count how many kisses we have. 16 kisses!! Some kind soul already made a compilation, complete with various kinds of hugs, massages and other skin-ship    All the sweet and lovely scenes of them.

 

 

Edited January 27, 2023 by ktcjdrama

[ssteph]

On 1/23/2023 at 10:27 PM, ktcjdrama said:

 There are many life lessons within. I might do a rewatch to note those down. 

 

Don't forget to share with us 🤭

 

•••

 

Do you see Meet Yourself's official Weibo? Words they post are beautiful. They also have an account for A Yao and Hong Dou.

[themarchioness]

Viki released the remaining four eps with subs today (2/1)... gonna be hard to say good-bye to this drama. I just keep rewatching scenes and actually, it's been interesting to go back to earlier episodes and be reminded of certain things.  

[Tofu]

All of the episodes with subs are out?! I have to catch up now. I watched a good amount of episodes this past weekend. 

 

The song that played when they got together was an odd choice compared to the other background music they have going on. Haha!