Chinese authorities destroy villager’s ramshackle 10-storey Studio Ghibli-esque home

The home in the village of Xingyi in Guizhou province had become a tourist attraction, but officials said it lacked the necessary building permits

A ramshackle 10-storey home that had become an offbeat tourist attraction in south-western China has been torn down, ending a years-long battle between the structure’s owner and local authorities.

Chen Tianming said local authorities took just hours to return the stone bungalow – which had been transformed into a pyramid-shaped structure of plywood rooms stacked upon one another – back down to its original single storey.