Life in Hainan, China (Second Post)

For this second post, I wanted to show some more images of the city of Sanya and it's local people. On one side of the river which runs through the city, there is a nice and shady walk which will lead you to the walking bridge that runs across the river. There were many local seniors who enjoyed this tree lined path.

Sanya, Hainan resident enjoys a stroll along the river walk



Here is another shot of a grandfather and grandchild sitting on a park bench on the river walk. As you might be able to see in the first photo, there are some dried vines which hang down from the the trees and it was common to see a few local people gently picking and gathering these vines. I imagine that they are used in some type of natural arts and crafts. 

Sanya, Hainan Grandfather with Grandchild on the river walk



Here is one view from the river walk side, looking across the walking bridge at the other side of Sanya. The walking bridge is a bit bigger and longer than it appears in this shot (due to the perspective).

Walking bridge view from the river walk side of Sanya



Here is another perspective of the bridge, looking back from the opposite side of the photo above. It will show you how winding the bridge is.

Sanya, Hainan walking bridge from the main city side



As we move forward through town, there is a large mall which I visited in an attempt to find some more summer clothes. This mail housed many famous and common shops such as Addidas, Nike and the typical stores you see in the U.S. As I explained before though, the sizes tend to be created smaller for the Asian market.

Mall in Sanya, Hainan



Here is another shot of a local man sitting outside of his shop, taking a break. As with many cities overseas, people tend to me much more relaxed than they are in the U.S. I think this is a great thing since their stress levels are probably quite less than what Americans put on themselves in the working environment.

Sanya, Hainan shop worker taking a break



As I continued to walk through the city, I saw some kids having fun with their martial arts practice on this duffle bag. In many Asian countries, there are two school sessions rather than just one. The children either attend the morning session or the afternoon session, thus leaving free time during the day. I think the purpose was due to the other crowding.

Sanya, Hainan kids practicing martial arts on someone's duffle bag



I'm not sure why, but I tend to be fascinated by ordinary things, such as a barber shop and locals getting a cut. Usually in travel photos, people just take photos of themselves in front of statues etc, but I like to capture local life.

Sanya, Hainan barber gives a haircut to a local



This is a typical side street with many of the shops and cafes. Many of the streets were tree-lined and the shade helped with the high heat and humidity. Most of the shops have large and colorful signs with red being a predominant color for the Chinese people.

Sanya, Hainan common side street



Another local riding her bike through the market area. Most of the crowd were women doing the shopping for the day.

Local lady riding her bike through one of the market areas



Here is a local character taking a smoking break while on his cell phone. I just had to capture this one and share it. He reminds me of some of our U.S. cowboy types.

Sanya, Hainan local taking a break on the phone



This shot was tiny bit blurry, but it shows an example of another local cafe setup. These places are very reasonable for tourists and the food is often quite good. English is not widely spoken here though, so sometimes you have to be creative in trying to describe what you are wanting to eat.

Sanya, Hainan local cafe and drink stop



As I explained in my first post about Hainan, many people carry umbrellas for sun protection in Asian countries. Pretty smart if you ask me.

Sanya,Hainan local carrying an umbrella to block the sun



The kids are always so fascinated with foreign visitors and will often gather around and stare out of curiosity, or ask questions.  Kids are interesting in the fact that they don't generally carry the regular prejudice that we are often foolishly taught as adults. The expression on this kid's face was priceless and the teacher politely told him to stop bothering the tourist as she gave me a polite wave.

Sanya,Hainan local and curios school kid with class and teacher



Anyway, that is all on Hainan for now. There are quite a few more photos in my Flickr gallery than can be accessed HERE if you'd like.