Hainan - Haikou

Hainan (meaning South Sea) is the smallest province of the People's Republic of China. It is also, I think, the only province of the country with a tropical climate.

I went to Hainan a couple of weeks back with 2 other girlfriends - G and R. It's been more than 10 years since I've travelled with both of them.

We went to Haikou for 4 days.. and actually, if you were to ask me, I wouldn't really recommend Haikou as a travel destination for Singaporeans. It is 4 hours away by flight but there isn't really anything terribly interesting or different about Haikou because a lot of the sights are really familiar to those of us living in a tropical climate - mangroves and lush greenery.

And for all the good Hainanese food we have in Singapore, you would think that Hainanese food in Hainan would be fantastic. However, I think I had the worst Hainanese chicken rice in my life in Haikou.. and the Hainanese noodles were so awful, we couldn't eat much of it at all.

But it was overall a nice getaway from everyday work and I enjoyed spending time with my 2 friends very much.

Hainan is supposedly one of the places with the best climate in the whole of China and with the least pollution. I would agree that it is much less polluted compared to the other major cities I've been to... but the noise pollution is just as bad and if not worse. Cars in Haikou drive using their horns, not signal lights.

At a volcano crater (It looks very dormant.. thankfully!)

A nice view of the surroundings.. and a pretty nice weather!

 

Hainan food - the big disappointment - very bad chicken rice 

(best in town according to our driver and a few others) and odd tasting noodles

A boat ride through a mangrove swamp

A big park in the city. We actually took a ride in those swan boats!

Our last meal at Haikou is.... KFC! I like KFC in China - this is the Peking roll. 

A bit like Peking duck but it has fried chicken fillet instead of duck

The Duty Free shop at the airport - I like the vintage look!

The Pursuit for More

A few quite unrelated things I came across recently prompted this post.

I'm not at liberty to share those stories here, since they are not my stories. But I'd just say that a few people I know live apart from their spouse and children in the name of their careers.

I can relate to having work take one apart from one's family, of course.. because I spend a fair bit of time at work - much longer than I like really..

Sometimes though, I just wonder... All these for what?

I feel that very often, we have more than what we need. Or at least, I think I do.

When I say "I'm starving", it isn't because I haven't had food for the last few days. Most likely, it's because I've skip 1 meal or because I'm eating a couple of hours later than I'm used to.

When I say "I've got nothing to wear", it isn't because I haven got enough clothes to keep me warm but because I cannot think of what to pull out from my overcrowded wardrobe to put on for the day.

When I say "I've no money", it isn't because I literally don't have it. Most likely it is because I don't have enough to buy something I don't need but want... or don't want to spend that much on something..

Most people that I know are in a similar situation. We have what we need. But there are always things that we want - a new and bigger house, a fancier car, another handbag, a more comfortable retirement life.. or simply, a fatter bank account.

But I really do wonder at times if the price we pay for our pursuit of more is worth what we get at the end of the day.

Bean Curd Tarts

Le Cafe Confectionery & Pastry is a small, unassuming shop situated along Middle Road.

We sometimes go by that area to go to a Korean supermarket for some Korean groceries.

I can't remember what made me first step into this small pastry shop - I didn't know it was a pretty famous place back then. But I'm so glad I did, because I found these bean curd tarts. They are like egg tarts except that the egg custard is a little firmer and there is a hint of soya bean taste in the custard.

Yummy. Buy some to try if you happen to be in the area. The only downside is.. you'd have to buy a whole box of 8 tarts because they don't sell them individually.

Le Cafe Confectionery & Pastry
Add: 264 Middle Road Singapore 188990
Tel: +65-6337-2417
Website: http://www.lecafe.com.sg/say.htm