Hainan Province: Tropical Paradise!

Authentic Wenchang Chicken (Wenchang Ji) is raised in Wenchang city. Chickens are kept in cages for about one month, and fed daily on banyan seed, sweet potatoes, coconut shreds, rice or peanut biscuits. On this diet the birds grow plump quickly, but are not fatty. The chicken is boiled and chopped into segments, resulting in meat which is tender with crisp skin and soft bones. Served with a dipping sauce of tea oil, ginger paste, salt, garlic and other spices, it is suitable to consume with a fine white wine and other dishes.


Dongshan Mutton (Dongshan Yang) is mutton steamed, stewed, roasted or braised in coconut milk. Dongshan sheep are raised on the slopes of Dongshan Mountain in Wanning City. The mountain's tender Zhegu tea-leaves are the favourite food of the sheep. Their meat is aromatic and non-greasy. It tastes delicious alone or can be made into a rich soup. The meat, prepared in the Hainan style, is cooked with individual seasoning and ingredients, and is pleasantly red in colour with a savoury taste.


Hele Crab (Hele Xie) is produced in Lezhen Town of Wanning County. It is famous for its tough shell and fresh, tender meat. It is cooked by steaming, roasting, boiling, stir-frying, soaking in alcohol or pickling in salt. Steaming Hele crab is probably the best method as it releases the full flavour and retains the shape of the crab as well as its' firm texture. It is full of essential protein, iron, and carbohydrates so, it's not only delicious to eat, but is a healthy culinary option.


The Jiaji Duck (Jiaji Ya) is found in Jiaji Town of Qionghai City. This variety of duck was introduced into Hainan Province from Malaysia around 300 years ago. The duck was first farmed in Jiaji Town, then spread throughout the province. Initially, the newborn ducklings are fed with fresh water fish fingerlings and tiny shrimp, or earthworms. After about two months when the ducklings are about to grow feathers, they enclose them in small cages. The ducks are then fed with cereal, pollard and bean cake mixed together and formed into dumplings. Within a period of 20 days, the ducklings grow into fat, meaty ducks. There are a variety of cooking methods, but the most famous one is steamed, sliced duck, which maintains the original taste and flavour of the bird. Roast duck is flavoursome, but it is not the authentic taste of the duck.

Construction on this railway link began in 2007, and the line is expected to be operational by 2012. It will be 302 kilometres long and have fourteen (14) stops at a total cost of 18.19 billion Yuan RMB, funded equally by the Hainan Provincial Government and the Ministry of Railways.

By 2020, it is expected that 18 million passengers each year will use this service, from Haikou to Sanya. The travelling time between these two cities will be cut from around 3-1/2 hours (by bus) to 80 minutes using the new, very fast train. Haikou, the capital city of Hainan Province, is located in the north part of the island, and serves as the first stop for most travellers. Sanya, a scenic tropical tourism city located in the south of Hainan, attracts more than 3.6 million tourists every year. Linking these two cities by rail should prove to be a great boost to Hainan's tourism industry!

Image, by jason.kaechler, used under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic Licence.

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