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From a wasteland where exiled officials are thrown, Hainan is now rising from the ranks as a Special Economic Zone, a growing hub for many hotels and beach resorts, and a booming destination for studying Shaolin kung fu. Even though it is China's smallest province, Hainan is big in natural, historical and cultural surprises, making it a favorite holiday escape for many Chinese tourists, mostly Mandarin-fluent academics.
Trains regularly run from Beijing and Guangzhou to Haikou and Sanya, Hainan's prime tourist spots. Haikou is the laidback provincial capital, famous for its beaches (Holiday Beach and Xixiu Beach), water sports, mangrove forest (Harbor Mangrove Natural Reserve), and cave and volcano complex (Haikou Shishan Crater Cluster National Geological Park). Sanya, on the other hand, is notable for its Sanya Wan (Sanya Beach), "where the water meets the sky." It is the landscape rendered in China's Two Yuan bill. Sanya's resort area, Yalong Bay, is sprinkled with high-end resorts and hotels.
Boating, a hilly city south of Hainan, is home to the Li and Miao minorities, known for their multicolored woven clothing, giant headdresses, and bamboo windpipe music (kouxiao). The tribesmen themselves serve as the guides in trekking the valleys, waterfalls, and flower baskets of Yanoda Rainforest. In Wenchang, the Hainanese people are also the ones manning the tourism in Gu Song Cun, an ancient village where tourists may stay in traditional houses and enjoy isolated beaches and climbing tours to Tong Gu Mountain.
The largest Buddha in the world is under construction at Nan Shan (South Mountain), an expansive Shaolin Buddhist temple complex that includes a vegetarian restaurant. It is here where Shaolin monks display their martial arts skills daily. The popular Chinese saying, "May your life be as long as the South Mountain" also refers to this place.
As the origin of the renowned Hainanese rice (pandan-flavored rice), anywhere in Hainan is the best place to try the province's best-selling Hainan Chicken Rice, or chicken in coconut milk soup spiced with chili and ginger.
Hainan Landmarks:
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