【Stay at a Homestay on Tuesdays】LaPalette Dreamweaving Gallery, a dream of rainbow colors in the fields

What is happiness? It’s intangible and untouchable. The challenge of incorporating elements of happiness into the design of the homestay—so that every guest could leave with a joyful heart after just one night—was presented by La Palette Dreamweaving Gallery owner Cao Huizhen to designer Li Yuqi. He thought of the happy expressions on children’s faces when they see a rainbow, and thus decided to create a dreamlike design homestay themed around different colors.

 

The La Palette Dreamweaving Gallery is located in a rural area not far from downtown Luodong, with the entire community situated beside expansive fields. There are no high-rises nearby, and in June, you can see vast stretches of golden rice paddies. Even in winter, more than ten species of birds fly about the area. Little egrets, white-breasted waterhens, herons, and sparrows are regular visitors. On the day of our visit, we stood by the second-floor window and watched herons strolling leisurely through the fields. Here, it’s far from the hustle and bustle, yet close to the tranquility your heart desires.

Because the house has a square shape, like a gift full of surprises, its façade is adorned with vertical stripes of colorful mosaic tiles. From afar, you can easily spot the location of the La Palette homestay. Cao Huizhen said that when she visited the designer’s own home, she noticed how he made great use of floor-to-ceiling windows, with soft light blending harmoniously with the surrounding natural landscape—that was exactly the style she wanted for the homestay.

The entire homestay has three floors. The first and third floors feature rooms named after colors—for example, the yellow room represents hope, and the sky-blue room represents flight. After guests receive a room key matching the color of their assigned room, they walk up an iron, lattice-work staircase inlaid with clovers. Looking up, they’ll see stone lotuses scattered across the transparent veranda. Even a gentle breeze makes it easy to see the ripples created by the swaying leaves, while the fields reflected on the green panels outside the homestay are divided into sections by the iron railings—a delightful sight.

 

On the second floor is the open kitchen and the dining area for guests. La Palette Dreamweaving Gallery serves a rich breakfast and afternoon tea. Since Cao Huizhen’s partner is a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, the homestay incorporates TCM-inspired elements into its meals. Chef Adrian prepares hot Western-style breakfasts ten minutes before guests come downstairs. Upon closer inspection, the presentation of the dishes follows the five elements of TCM, using ingredients of various colors. The breakfast I tried that day included black mushrooms, green broccoli, yellow fried eggs, red sweet potatoes, and a specially made multigrain porridge, all reflecting the thoughtful effort of the homestay owners.

 

In addition to breakfast, the homestay also offers afternoon tea served on a traditional English three-tier stand. Treats such as Kumquat Mochi from Yilan’s Orange Village, a special white fungus-red date-lotus seed soup cooked by the chef, and generous sandwiches give the afternoon a warm and cozy start.

On sunny days, you can see colorful marbles on the terrace, their dancing light refracting onto the indoor floor. Cao Huizhen said that the terrace was originally intended to be filled with water to raise ornamental fish, but considering the possibility of birds trying to catch the fish, they opted to fill it with marbles instead—an equally playful touch.