Onwards to the Southern parts of Hainan Island, warmer and more pleasant climate this time of the year (December 2016)....



Houhai Bay has a simple village just near the ferries to Wuzhizhou Island. You can relax in one of the simple pubs / bars on the beach, have a drink, listen to the local music or have a jam session at JahBar – a place where plenty of "hipsters" come from mainland China to have a break and an exhibition in a tropical atmosphere. In this southern village of China, there are only about 1500 people and the bay is 2 km long. Sandy beaches and clean warm water are a given. There are also some famous diving spots to visit if you fancy the underwater world. The most famous of the area is Wuzhizhou Island, but it’s now very commercial and crowded. Houhai has seen plenty of development. In fact, many surf houses, surf clubs, diving centers and restaurants have opened in the last two years. China Surf Report, a daily surf publication, is also based there. The village is located exactly in the middle of a promontory. You can enjoy the waves and the ocean on both sides. There is also a nice kitesurfing center in the Haitang Bay side. Its English name is “Perfect Ocean”....
Houhai Bay Surf Report & Forecast = http://magicseaweed.com/Houhai-Bay-Surf-Report/4044/

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Houhai Bay (Hainan Island / China)....





















Houhai Bay Love & Peace Bus ~ could be the starting step of a relaxed hippie island resort, eh?

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Excellent "foodie" weekend as the Ritz-Carlton Sanya, Yalong Bay (Hainan Island / South China) hosted its second 'Nothing Ordinary' Food & Beverage Festival with eight international celebrity chefs presenting an extraordinary epicurean extravaganza for discerning diners and guests on China’s southern tropical island of Hainan from December 8 to 11, 2016.
Star chefs from the United States, France, Australia, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam and Costa Rica converged on the exclusive beachfront resort for one of the highlights of the holiday island’s gastronomic calendar.

The star-studded lineup included French-American chef Hubert Keller, renowned for restaurant Fleur by Hubert Keller in Las Vegas and recognized by Food and Wine magazine as one of the Ten Best Chefs in America; Charles Phan, the inventor of modern Vietnamese cuisine in America and owner of San Francisco’s Slanted Door family of restaurants; South Korean celebrity chef and ‘Cooking King Korea’ judge Edward Kwon; dessert artist Andres Lara, a veteran of two of the World’s Best Restaurants, El Bulli in Spain and Noma in Denmark; and multi-award winning Peter Van Es, a protégé of 3 Michelin-starred Michael Roux at the UK’s top restaurant, the world famous Waterside Inn, Bray.

Celebrated Ritz-Carlton chefs joined the cook-out, including Andrew Yeo, Executive Chef of The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island; Xavier Salomon, Executive Chef at The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay, San Francisco; and Andrés Jiménez, Executive Chef at The Ritz-Carlton Sanya, Yalong Bay.

The guest chefs began their adventure haggling for premium seafood, local ingredients and fresh fruit and vegetables for their recipes at Sanya #1 Market – and guests were able to register and join the tour to learn the tricks of selecting and bartering like a professional.
Highlights of the fine dining fiesta include a sizzling beachfront barbeque, complete with live DJ; a decadent afternoon tea paired with dessert and port wines by world famous dessert master Andres Lara; and wine-paired Tasting Dinners at both Italian restaurant Sofia and beachfront restaurant Sand.

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Excellent "foodie" weekend as the Ritz-Carlton Sanya, Yalong Bay (Hainan Island / South China) hosted its second 'Nothing Ordinary' Food & Beverage Festival

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Excellent "foodie" weekend as the Ritz-Carlton Sanya, Yalong Bay (Hainan Island / South China) hosted its second 'Nothing Ordinary' Food & Beverage Festival

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Wanning district, hanging out for a relaxed Xmas BBQ and some "barrel of fun" beach riding along Shimei Bay and Riyue Bay with a quick visit to the "Ghost Hotel" atop the hill dividing the beach sections....
Sun and Moon Bay, also known as Riyue Bay, is located approximately 25 km south of Wanning, Hainan, China. It is around 4km long, and as been the site of numerous surfing events.

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

The "Ghost Hotel" atop the hill (18.628075 - 110.229762) dividing the beach sections (Shimei Bay / Riyue Bay)....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Might bore you but no Hainan stay without a few visits to famous Riyue Bay "Surfers Paradise" and some mor info about Hainan Island surfing = http://magicseaweed.com/Hainan-Surfing/319/
2016 World Surf League (WSL) Jeep World Longboard Championships (WLC) Wanning Hainan Province Dec 02 – 12 (2016)
World Surf League: http://www.worldsurfleague.com at Riyue Bay Surf Club = http://www.surfinghainan.com but unfortunately lots of changes in Riyue Bay (Wanning) as they started developing the area and this being China at it's best all over again brings major remodelling and construction.....



























Riyue Bay Surf Club = http://www.surfinghainan.com new location across the road from the sandy beach....



















Quite a few new basic hostels and guest houses opened up at Riyue Bay....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Located in Xinglong town, about one and a half hour's drive from Sanya in Hainan Province, Xinglong Tropical Botanical Garden was built in 1957.
Covering an area of 400,000 square meters, it boasts approx. 1,200 tropical plants. The botanical garden is one of the most popular tourist attractions on Hainan Island was told a few times by island natives ~ not a single soul around the whole day we went riding. Guess all them tourists hang out in the Haitang Bay Duty Free Mall (largest in the world) or up the road at Capital Outlet Mall near Shenzhou Peninsula....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Xinglong Tropical Botanical Garden....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Regular KTM450EXC service (oil & filter change / air-filter change) and some additional preventive maintenance.
As usual, the right proper tools & parts at hand and lets not forget the six important P's: Proper Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance.....
As there is way too much talk about the KTM-EXC maintenance, click the web-link and read all about the service & maintenance work = KTM450EXC OWNERS MANUAL


















Found a rusty souvenir in the rear tyre....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Yinggehai Salt Fields now sort of a "official tourist destination" with the brown road / tourists signs leading the way and a designated G98 Expressway exit. Exploring Hainan is not fully complete unless one visits at least one of the two ancient salt fields: Yangpu Ancient Salt Field and Yinggehai Ancient Salt Field, which provide travelers with a rare view of China from another time. Hainan is ideal for salt farms, particularly along the curved coastline stretching from Sanya to Danzhou. These were the best-preserved salt fields in China to my knowledge....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Yinggehai Salt Fields....

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Further up the coast line, YANGPU Ancient Salt Field, has been a few years since my last visit = 19.740353 109.213715
The entire area around the salt field is developing and the ancient salt stones keep disappearing, we have been offered to take some ancient slate salt stones away for a small fee during our short visit...

The Yangpu Ancient Salt Field is (was) an archeological heritage site in Yantian village, on the Yangpu Peninsula in Hainan, China. The site is (was) an example of salt's various roles in Chinese history. The area comprises (had) more than 1,000 stones, cut flat on top, which are used to evaporate seawater to produce salt. The stones have a thin rim around the edge to contain the water. During high tide, the surface of the stones becomes filled with seawater. During low tide, this evaporates, leaving the salt, which is then collected.

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Qizi Bay, located near Changhua Town (Changjiang County / Hainan Island / China), extends for approx. 20k's from east to west. It is to the west of the Changhualing Mountain range and to the North of Changhua fishing port = 19.375151 108.689043

The bay has a wonderfully mild climate all year round that makes it an ideal remote and quite bathing resort along the western coast of Hainan till today, who knows in future years. There are many oddly shaped stones and reefs scattered along the shores and many craggy rocks protruding from the sea water. The local legend of the bay's origin is as follows as told by some natives: long, long ago, two immortals came down from the heavens and played a game of chess (Chinese chess, of course). They were so engaged in their game that they forgot to have lunch. The local villagers, after seeing this, brought out delicious foods to offer them. After they finished the game and the food, they attempted to thank the villagers in person, but the villagers were nowhere to be found. To show their gratitude, they threw all their chess pieces into the sea, which turned into reefs and stones thereby forever sheltering the village from winds and waves of the sea. Ever since then, the village has prospered and is famous for its scenic charm....

We could have taken our bikes for rides on the long sandy and rocky beach stretches but decided against it was just peaceful and stunning letting it all slowly sink in while enjoying our afternoon snack break, pictures don't do the bay justice in our opinion...

__________________
Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR