A Journey Into the Heart of Hainan

By Nicki Johnson / HICN / Updated: 15:50,29-July-2021

Recently I had the immense honor of joining a group of reporters and photographers from across China on the 2021 Media Tour of Hainan. We journeyed together across the tropical island province, spending a week walking rainforest trails, devouring fresh-caught seafood dinners, touring gleaming business exhibition centers, and kicking off our shoes and plunging our feet into the cool, refreshing waves of the South China Sea.

Along the way, I got to try on a traditional Li outfit, complete with a stunning silver necklace!

Although I’ve been living in Hainan since 2005, on this trip I was thrilled to be able to visit places I hadn’t seen in years, such as Sanya’s Tianya Haijiao, which now offers so many more activities than it did when last I went, and even places I had never been, including a Noni fruit factory, the Bo’ao Lecheng Medical Pilot Zone, a tea plantation in Wuzhishan, the Sanya Paddy Field National Park, and more. They were all fascinating in their own different ways! The most intriguing for me personally, though, were the Li and Miao minority villages and museums showcasing the art and culture of these Hainan minority peoples.

A mask on display at Baisha River Cultural valley, a treasure trove of traditional Li culture and history (Photo by Nicki Johnson)

We were fortunate enough to spend the night in remote Zahan Village, in Qiongzhong, where we were welcomed with a beautiful song.

The Zahan Village welcoming committee

Later, we were given a tour of the winding village streets, which overlook lush green rice paddies and are lined with picturesque homes and small shops, many lovingly painted to show murals of local life, such as a plow being pulled by a water buffalo, women dressed in colorful traditional Li and Miao clothing working together to pound rice, or produce being gracefully carried on shoulder poles through the lush rainforest vegetation.

Overlooking Zahan Village

Even more exciting for me to see were the Li Brocade symbols scattered around Zahan. Since last year, when I attended Hainan’s Brocade and Embroidery World Culture Week, I’ve been a bit obsessed with learning more about the meanings of each of these symbols, which traditionally appear stitched lovingly into the intricate, colorful patterns of the Li Brocades and appear on skirts, scarves, and even magnificent tapestries which once were so prized that they were sent as tribute to the emperor in faraway Beijing. In Zahan, these symbols were everywhere - red and yellow stylized people parading across a fence, the God of Strength etched on a power pole, a flock of vibrantly colored birds flying across the front of a shop.


Colorful Li Brocade bird symbols fly across a storefront in Zahan Village, Qiongzhong (Photo by Nicki Johnson)

As each new symbol caught my eye, I became more and more determined to delve deeper into the rich cultural traditions found in Zahan, in Qiongzhong, and all across the island of Hainan. There’s so much to see, to experience, and to learn, that I’ll need to spend at least another 16 years visiting places like these to even begin to understand the depth and breadth of what this amazing province has to offer. What a joy it will be to see how Hainan takes the next steps in her development as a Free Trade Port while still honoring her past, and seeing how her people continue to create a bright, joyful new life imbued with the spirit of the ancestors who came before.

A Li bamboo dance performance in Zahan Village, Qiongzhong

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