Dunhuang in Gansu province boasts new multi-functional cultural venues including the Dunhuang Book Center and Dunhuang Press. [Photo provided to China Daily]

"I learned about this book center on social media, and was recommended it by friends, so I've wanted to come for some time. But my son was too little, and I worried he might disrupt the other readers. Now that he has entered primary school, I thought it was an appropriate time to bring him here," Ouyang says.

They initially came for the books, but her son was immediately taken by the painting workshop.

They spent an hour copying the famous mural of a nine-colored deer. Afterward, they bought a book about Dunhuang, and her son gladly made use of the center's stamps to mark their journey.

"I thought I'd need to help him with the painting, but the instructor was very patient, and he did it mostly by himself," she says.

"After this visit, I feel that there's another highlight in Dunhuang. Whenever we have friends visiting from outside Gansu, we always bring them to see the caves and the dunes. Now, I have another place to show them. Especially when the weather's unpleasant, it's nice to stay here to read or paint," she adds.