Sanya: The Hawaii of China

Let me tell you, after a month or two of cold and fog, sun is priceless.

Once upon a time, a group of foreigners boarded a plane in Chongqing. With dreams of beaches and sunshine in our heads, we arrived in Sanya. The airport bathroom was crowded with people stripping off layers of long underwear.

I had thought that Chinese tour groups were only something for foreigners in a foreign land.I’m so naïve.

But we are foreigners in a foreign land.
It makes sense.

 From the moment we arrived, I was part of a tour group. Those of you who have traveled with me probably know how I felt about that one. The other foreigners in my group were even less enthusiastic than me. Our poor guide.

Cindy, our guide, was so patient and so kind with our rowdy bunch. 
Herding cats is not extreme enough to explain how difficult it must have been for her.

Cindy took us around Sanya.

She took us to the beach.
Note all the umbrellas.

She took us to Monkey Island.
We saw many things, but no monkeys.

We went scuba diving.

We climbed trees.

Everything was beautiful, but something was off. All of the parks we visited looked like they had been built within the past 10 years. It was like being in Disney Land without the rides. Except one day we were told that we would hike a mountain and the vehicle we rode to the top of the mountain. That was a little like a ride.

Maybe it's because Sanya is a typical tourist destination. Maybe it's because we were part of a tour group. It is going to be a mission of mine in this new year to find real bits of China. 

One evening in Sanya we went for a walk. We drank coconut water at a corner stand and then stumbled upon an outdoor night market. This felt real. Maybe even tourist cities have realness woven in. Maybe reality only comes out at night. Maybe I need to be more observant and take a deeper look at all things. 

Question the madness.
Group upon group was filing through this endless maze, without asking questions.
We were rebels, after the first minute.