Feeling Different Beauty of Hainan in Spring

Zhang Haiyan

Hainan， a tropical island at the southern tip of China and a world-class tourist destination， lures tourists with more than warm climate， sunshine and beaches. Here， you can enjoy beautiful sceneries， folk customs and cultural activities as well. You will get different experiences in different seasons. If you think sunshine， beaches， and seafood cannot satisfy you since they are common throughout the year， you could make a tour of the island for folk customs， cultural activities and natural sceneries that you can enjoy only in specific season. In this spring， lets dig up some special beauties of Hainan！

The March 3rd Festival：

A carnival of Li and Miao nationalities

March 3rd Festival， the traditional festival of Li and Miao nationalities in Hainan， the most specific and typical performance of Hainan traditional cultures， and the most distinctive cultural festival in Hainan， takes place on March 3rd by the lunar calendar， and has been listed to the first batch of national intangible cultural heritages in 2006. This festival can be traced all the way back to ancient times. The record about Sanyuesan Festival is found on a historical book of the Song Dynasty （960-1279）. Several versions about the origin of this festival are recorded， one of which is that Li nationality celebrates this festival to memorize their ancestors and wish for happiness， good luck and prosperity.

On March 3rd in lunar calendar every year， youths of Li nationality from neighbor villages gather on the Wuzhi Mountain （Five Fingers Mountain）， bringing Shanlan rice wines and bamboo rice， to sing， dance and date from day to night， until dawn. On this special day， women put on handmade costumes bearing delicate embroidery to attend the outdoor dance ceremony， which is described by locals as the “oldest catwalks”.

Like Li nationality， Miao people also dress up to celebrate this festival. All families cook “five-colored rice”， which is a kind of traditional and distinctive food of Miao. Miao people dye rice in black， red， green and yellow with plant leaves， and cook with white ones.

Along with the change of the times， the March 3rd Festival has become the most characteristic cultural festival in Hainan， and every year， grand celebration activities will be launched in areas of Li and Miao ethnic groups. One city will be selected every year as the main venue for celebrating activities， while other ethnic sections will hold series of events as parallel venues. During the festival， various activities are carried out， including large-scale themed cultural shows， displays of nationalitys intangible cultural heritages， folk customs and food exhibition， ethnic regions tourist resource exhibitions as well as traditional sports games of minority groups.

Moreover， Hainan Island， which is also known as coconut island， celebrates Hainan International Coconut Festival in late March or early April （during the period of March 3rd Festival） every year. The festival is a large-scale international comprehensive commerce and cultural festival that is open to all people， featuring in Hainan coconut culture and the March 3rd Festival custom of the Li and Miao people. Tourists can enjoy coconut lantern show in Haikou， taste coconut in Wenchang， experience the March 3rd Festival in ethnic regions and watch International Dragon Boat Race and Folk Wushu Competition in Sanya.

Natural sceneries：

Hainans unmissable moments in spring

You may be tired after experiencing those folk customs and cultural activities. Now you can relax yourself with a tour of nature. In spring， you cannot miss the following gifts of nature in Hainan Island.

Cherry blossom in Wanning： Flowers are blooming in spring， but the showiest one is cherry blossom. March is the best time to enjoy cherry blossom. Over twenty hundreds cherry trees are planted in Wanning. You can lose yourself in a sea of flowers without going to Japan or Wuhan.

Kapok flower in Wanning： In spring days， Wanning is sunny and warm. Without leaves， Kapok blossoms are as red as fire， and are so spectacular that no fancy words can describe their beauty. Wanning is one of the best places to enjoy kapok flowers in Hainan， where is surrounded by green mountains and clean rivers， and featurs terraced fields and Li customs. Layers of terraced fields are climbing to mountains， and kapok flowers are like red ripples winding round terraces. Rice seedlings are green， highlighting the red Kapok flowers on ridges. The most concentrated areas of Kapok flowers are Jiangchang Li Nationality Autonomous County and Baisha Li Autonomous County. You will regret if you miss Kapok flowers in Hainan in early March.

Haitang Bay Paddy Field National Park： Haitang Bay Paddy Field National Park owns fertile farmland for Yuan Longping National Paddy Base. There the rice is waving， fragrance of rice is drafting over the field， frogs are croaking and egrets are flying. A paddy field theater is built amid the idyllic scenery. This theater is in no way splendid and gaudy， but only provides scenes， stage growing with paddy field， and amazing “paddy fields” style views. As the first performance themed with farming culture in China， “Merry Rural Lives” shows food and work， sunshine and land， as well as life and dream. After the show， audiences can interact with performers and learn the Bamboo Dance.

Yanfeng mangrove forest greenway： With fresh air and luring scenes， the greenway surrounded by mangrove forest in Yanfeng town， Haikou is a favorite place in Hainan for cyclists. The scenery here is more wonderful in springtime. The greenway is like a ribbon drifting among mountains and seas. Thousands of hectares mangrove forests along the greenway， green and vigorous， rise above the sea. People on the greenway are companied by various rare animals. It is a best choice for people like watching birds to enjoy egrets flying from treetop and skittering over the sea surface. Five themed stations， including Changningtou， Taoyuan， Xinghui， Yanhai and Linshi， offer places for tourists to rest or take a yacht on dock. Tourists can take an original tropical tour across the bay， and have special fun in Hainan in the wonderful springtime.