This is the Sanya airport baggage claim. A minute ago, this man was holding a small water bottle for his small son to urinate into. The bathroom is about 20 feet away, and there was no line. The proud family friend was taking photos. Interesting.
I have no clue what this means.
I just like the contrast of the manicured lawn, the abandoned building and the modern hotel in the background. Interesting.
Beach volleyball has caught on in China.
shells and coral
action photo. much more exciting.
a man and his binky.
pearls for sale.
saleslady modeling her wares.
man selling the perfect cat toy. little foam rubber mice with flashing lcd eyes, that run around on strings. $1 US.
no wonder i felt a little sick after eating there! the food's from 2006! :)
OK, there's fruit and blenders. Is it juice?
but she's pouring my juice into that strange contraption.
it's solidifying!
What is this?
Ice cream! Or, frozen blended fresh fruit. YUM!
It turned out that a large was too much for me. Luckily, I found some helpers.
women selling coral and other protected marine objects on the street.
Lovely ensembles. You'll see entire families wearing matching outfits. They're sold in many shops in Sanya.
Bikinis sell for $6 US. I used will power and only bought one.
The beach at Dadonghai.
Russian women sunning. Dadonghai (one of the bays on Sanya) is extremely popular with Russian vacationers. I'd forgotten how much fun Russians are to be around.
man throwing clods of wet sand for his dog to chase.
the speedo is enjoying a resurgence in popularity.
A man complimenting his friend
Really really complimenting his friend
it doesn't get much more relaxed than this.
Durian and other fruit.
The breakfast pastry stand
My hostel. Blue Sky International Youth Hostel. Not the worst.
my favorite of the hostel's wall art.
the main road connecting Dadonghai to Yalonghai, another bay in Sanya. The richer, less dirty bay.
the lovely bike I attempted to ride to Yalong Bay. The chain was stuck on the lowest gear, meaning that I had to pedal as fast as I could to move at all. Great for going uphill, but Sanya is flat.
would you rather have extra tasty cheese, or strong & bitey?
a moon cake. YUM! I meant to photgraph it after one bite, but couldn't put it down without having had two. It's like a cross between pastry and delicious gummy candy. It comes with all different fillings.
getting changed to go scuba diving
you all know about my minor shark phobia, right? surely i wouldn't finally go diving?
strange, that looks like me.
i think it might be me!
they have a shark net up across the bay. this is an assisted dive. the guy goes down with me until i show that i'm not panicking and am breathing and swimming easily.
here we go!
ah one and ah two and away we go.
all gone
can you say amazing? coral and fishies, and an entire school of yellow and black zebra striped fish. i swam with them!!!
exhiliarating.
i did it!
the scooter that i rented from the hostel, that also didn't work.
Nantian hot springs.
The milk pool
the coffee pool. it was seriously just like sitting in a huge cup of nescafe.
a couple enjoying the swings.
the chinese herb pool.
the "fragrant liquor pool" - very interesting.
still at the hot springs. it is a beautiful complex with dozens of pools of varying temperatures.
a not-so-comfy chair.
hmm, what pool is this?
are those leaves in the water?
oh my god! those people are being eaten alive by little fish!
it's the fish therapy pond. the tiny fish come and nibble your dead skin. very soothing for some reason. and a little ticklish.
i stayed in the fish therapy pond for over 30 minutes. quite relaxing.
the infinity pool with the basketball hoop off to the left.
at the children's area of the hot springs. there were no kids playing there, but lots of adults.
that bucket slowly fills, and when it's full, it tips and drenches those beneath.
screams filled the air.
italian restaurant, roma, in sanya. this is in a rooftop rotunda. there are 5 tables with fainting couches on the one side and 2 chairs on the other.
absolutely delicious!
the waitresses were in little satin ensembles.
garbage being burnt in the street.
my plate of mixed vegetables with rice. i'm told that this is four seasons bean and that it is very delicious. i failed to appreciate its positive qualities.
view from the double decker bus out to yalonghai. i finally gave up on two wheeled vehicles.
Typhoon Francisco was just blowing in. It had been raining most of the morning.
market for shells at yalong bay.
anyone need a shellfish bunny?
the south china sea at yalong bay.
the toys have been put away for the typhoon.
site of 2 miss world competitions.
homes of the hotel workers.
more abodes.
it's starting the rain again.
moving toward the restricted military zone.
i was waved away from the restricted zone and started back.
retracing my steps.
camouflage.
warning! though, i love that the huge waves of a typhoon are actually much smaller than those in california normally.
brave souls setting out in a motorboat.
this must be the most popular pattern in beachwear.
at the bus stop in yalong bay.
yes, this is the tropics.
why does the cow cross the road?
to meet up with the rest of his family.
The End of the Earth. This is the Southernmost point of China. Political opponents used to be exiled to Hainan Island, and called this the end of the earth.
coconuts and gardeners.
men bringing in the boat to protect it from the typhoon. the lull in the storm is ending and the wind is starting to pick up again.
the cove at the end of the earth.
they take topiary sculptures to another level.
why should stuffed animals hog all of the googly eyes?
topiary elephants with real tusks!
my room at the hostel. my own balcony that i only shared with a very nice lizard.
the smoking section at the sanya airport. with facilities like this, no wonder so many people still smoke in China.
