The funny thing is that Chinese think exactly the opposite. For them, the fake touristy stuff are the old buildings and traditional Chinese architecture. It reminds me of people who visit Canada and want to see the real Canada: the remote farms, igloos and virgin forests. For us Canadians, it's a bit ridiculous.
But if you look at the adobe housing in Kashgar that is getting torn down for garish apartment blocks, its very depressing (tip: go see Kashgar now before its too late!).
My favorite is when they tear down the old and rebuild a "new old town" like in Lijiang or Fenghuang, or even when the "renovate" sections of the great wall. You can tell its fake, and it feels like Disney Land. But there is still a lot of old architecture left, people in China still "live like that;" e.g. its not totally ridiculous to expect real hutongs in Beijing.
Perhaps they'll build a "Canada town" in Inner Mongolia, complete with virgin forests, igloos, and totem poles.
