Friday, January 22, 2010

Shenzhen to Hainan Island


Sanya beach: four World Beauty Pageants were held here

From Shenzhen I decided to travel to Hainan Island but was undecided whether to fly or to take the train and bus.

By train I'd have to go to Guangzhou and from there continue by bus or train. In the end I decided that the hassles were not worth it so I decided to fly.

After all flying was cheap (about SGD $80) and it took only an hour compared to the whole day by train or bus.

Thirty years ago I took my first domestic flight in China, and it was an experience filled with anxiety because in those days China's aircraft were mostly Russian with a poor safety record. But now they use modern jets like the A320.

The funny thing I noticed were the seats.  They were so thin unlike the luxurious ones I've been used to. Inflight refreshements were a small packet of dried fruit and a small bottle of drinking water. As far as the refreshments were concerned, clearly not much has changed in 30 years.

As for inflight entertainment, I noticed some of the Chinese amusing themselves with movies and games on their notebooks.

Me? Well, I amused myself playing hockey, bowling and flying a warplane.

On my iPhone.

In an hour, Shenzhen Airways landed in Haikou, the capital of Hainan.

I had finally arrived in the land of my ancestors, and the favourite spot for banishing officials who fell into disfavour with the Emperor.

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