A Much-Needed Respite
You guys, living in China can be so hard sometimes. And by sometimes, I mean almost all of the time. The things we’ve seen in China are incredible and often are life-changing. We’ve crossed off so many bucket list items while here, and we are going to have enough stories to last us a lifetime. Still, living here is a challenge. The food is different. The culture is different. The infrastructure is different. Have we gotten used to many of these differences? Absolutely. But sometimes, we just need a break.
Honestly, the management of our school is one of the hardest parts. It is draining and often so frustrating. To be honest, before I came, I had a lot of goals for myself while in China. I wanted to post a blog every week. I wanted to continue writing my book. I wanted to get out and explore. And frankly, because we’re so tired and stressed every day, it has been hard to do those things. I have been blogging, but not as often as I wanted. I have been reading, but not as much as I would have liked. And I haven’t picked up the novel I was writing since September.
Our vacations have been our biggest respite, and are a major source of joy for us. Last week’s trip to Yangshuo was incredible. It was exactly what we needed after a difficult semester. We probably could have just ended our vacations there, since we go home so soon, but Jordan and I decided that we needed one more private getaway before the end of the semester. And for that reason, we decided to book a trip to Sanya, the Hawaii of China for a short weekend getaway.
The Flight and the Hostel Situation
After finishing our classes on Friday, we rushed to Guangzhou and boarded our flight to Sanya. It was a late flight with an even later arrival. Despite our town of Zhongshan being on the southern edge of China, it has gotten bitterly cold lately. Fun fact: the Chinese people don’t install heaters in their homes in southern China since it “doesn’t get as cold there as it does in northern China.” So, when we landed in Sanya, and it was warm and humid, it was a welcomed relief.
We took a taxi from the airport to our hostel and were pleased to see how short the drive was. Now, remember what I said earlier, we arrived in Sanya at a pretty late hour. Prior to departing Zhongshan, I let the hostel owners know that we would be checking in after midnight, and they agreed, saying that wouldn’t be a problem. When we arrived, the hostel was dark and no one was in the lobby. After some searching, we found someone who appeared to be the hostel bartender, who agreed to get us checked in. This man, who was sloppily drunk, tried checking us in, and couldn’t find our reservation. After some time and some work, we figured it out and got checked in. He gave us our room key, and we went upstairs.
When we booked the room, we booked a private room, meaning that no one else should be in there, right? Well, when we arrived in the room, the beds were unmade and there were clothes and someone’s personal belongings scattered through the room. So, we started the arduous process of working with the hostel bartender man to get us a new room. He was so surprised when we told him that we did not want to sleep in the same room as that mysterious person.
Finally, we sorted it out. But, being terrified of having that idiot check our room out to someone else, we stacked a bunch of chairs in front of the door, so no one would be able to enter without us knowing. China, my friends!
A Morning at the Beach
The next morning, the hostel owner approached us in the lobby. Apparently, he had heard about our debacle and wanted to find out what we did wrong to have this happen to us. Notice how I wrote that? That right there is the Chinese mindset. There was a problem checking you in, and it was obviously your fault and not the drunken hostel worker from the previous night. It was a hassle, but eventually, we worked it out.
Our hostel was a short walk away from the beach, so we ventured out first thing to hit the beach. Neither of us really wanted to swim, but we both were desperate to feel the sun on our faces and our toes in the sand. It truly was so idyllic on that beach. The waves were gently crashing on the beach, gentle music was playing, and the people were content. A variety of little food stands dotted the beach, so we visited a crepe stand and ate our crepes on the beach that morning. If ever you find yourself feeling down, just know that eating a crepe on the beach will probably help.
A Surprising Russian Hotspot
Something that immediately struck us at the beach, was that all of the safety announcements were in both Chinese and Russian! Now, for the average traveler, this may not seem like much of an epiphany, but for us, it was huge. We quickly realized that Sanya is a Russian vacation destination, and after having lived in Russia, it was amazing to be surrounded by the Russian people again. Unlike the rest of mainland China, the translations didn’t default to English, they defaulted to Russian! Had we not lived in Russia and had a background in the language, it could have been a struggle while traveling across the city.
This trip was the first time since arriving in China that we felt incognito. Everywhere else in China, you are immediately pegged as an American. In Sanya, we were mistaken as Russians, and since we speak a little Russian, we were able to blend in and pretend to not be Americans for a short time. Now, for anyone else, this would seem like a weird novelty, but for us, it was bliss to not stick out as an American. While some people thrive on the weird form of celebrity status that is granted in China by being an American, Jordan and I don’t love that. We like being able to blend.
The Sanya Buddha
After our relaxing morning on the beach, we took a taxi to visit the Guanyin of Nanshan, or in other words, the giant Buddha in Sanya. While driving across the city, we were amazed by the gorgeous scenery. Everything was so green and luscious. It had elements of the tropics with the green fields you would expect in a farming community.
With Sanya being a resort city, there really are only a few things to do in the area- play at the beach, visit the ethically questionable monkey island, or visit the giant Buddha. So, naturally, there are a lot of people at each location.
Upon arriving at the Buddha, we were surprised to see a Disney-esque entrance. And I don’t mean Disney in the way that it is magical, I mean it in the way that it feels like a theme park entrance. We paid a small amount to visit the grounds, and we were so glad we did.
As soon as you enter, you can see the massive, 350-foot Buddha overlooking the sea. Created in 2005, the statue still is a crisp white color. It is believed that the Guanyin Buddha is a protector of Sanya, keeping typhoons from the land. Unfortunately, I’m not sure that it’s doing its job, seeing as there have been two typhoons that rolled over Sanya in the few months that we have lived in China.
Still, mythologies aside, it was incredible. Before getting to the monument, you get to walk through luscious gardens and lovely temples. Spinning bells hum out soothing tones as you walk. To get to the monument, you cross a long pier, where you stand in a line before entering.
While standing in line, we saw how intricate every detail of the monument was. Carvings and ornate filigree cover the base of the Buddha. In a traditional Buddhist fashion, visitors leave monetary offerings on the statue, leaving money dotted along the line.
When we arrived, I assumed that the main attraction was the massive Buddha, but much to my surprise, there was a Buddha inside the other Buddha! When we entered the monument, we were amazed to find yet another statue, with worshippers and visitors within. While the exterior of the monument is crisp white; the interior is colorful and vibrant, with gold and pink everywhere.
Once inside, you can climb the staircase to reach the big Buddha itself, where you can stand on a balcony that sits at the hem of the Buddha’s dress, overlooking the island and its sandy beaches. We spent quite a while up there, taking in the beauty of our private getaway.
An Evening at the Beach
When we had returned to our hostel, after visiting the Guanyin of Nanshan, we weren’t ready to go straight to bed, so we wandered the city. Eventually, our wanderings took us back to the beach, where we walked hand in hand, with our toes in the sand. We reflected on our time in China, the good and the bad, and talked about how different our lives would be once we returned to the US. With the waves crashing against the beach, and the warmth of the island enveloping us, we were content. Eventually, the security guards at the beach kicked everyone out, so they could close it down for the high tide.
Goodbye Sanya
We weren’t ready to go back to Zhongshan, where we knew there were a thousand things waiting for us, but it was inevitable. Before leaving for the airport, we decided to have one more visit to the beach, so we could say goodbye to paradise.
By all accounts, Sanya probably isn’t as nice as many other beaches and resorts we’ve been to in our lives, but it was pure bliss while we were there. It gave us the getaway we desperately needed, and it allowed us to say goodbye to China on our terms. We aren’t looking forward to the freezing temperatures we will be facing in a week and a half when we get back to Utah, but for now, we will make it work.
All our love,
Madison and Jordan
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