Two Nights In Boao
During our short visit to Hainan we were able to get out a couple of nights and mingle with the Boao locals as we scoured about looking for dinner. We were usualy welcomed with big grins with an occasional curious stare now and then. As I mentioned yesterday, this place is friendly. The sidewalks were full of diners, even as late as 9, which is VERY unusual for the mainland. As you can see, the fresh fruit was plentiful and it was tasty. I’ve never had better coconut or pineapple anywhere. Shopkeepers and restaurants were still doing a brisk business well into the night. Boao is a town in transition, moving at warp speed toward prosperity and a better standard of living for most her residents. I guess you could say the same about most of China but the change is even more noticeable here, as is the wide gap between the nouveau riche and the still very poor. It will be interesting to go back from time to time and see how some of the folks we met during our trip fare over time.
People here still sleep with open doors and it seemed everyone was related, so there is a real sense of community that I haven’t witnessed elsewhere in China.
Here is a collection from two nights in Boao…
So long from Boao. In the next post we’ll show you a glimpse of daily life from a remote Li minority village. It was simultaneously heartbreaking and inspiring.
Until then…
Qingdao and Yanjing beer are very great!
Michael, these are great, especially the lone man on his scooter. What lens did you use for this series?
I used a couple of lenses on these, either the 85 mm f/1.2 L or the 50mm f/1.2 L. I had my 135 mm f/2.0 L in the bag but these folks never seemed to mind me getting close.
Love the pics Michael, especially the one with the ladies where one of them and the child are flashing the peace sign. I’ve got to get me one of those carts.
Not sure about you Randy… but the little sidecars listed a bit with me!
Great images as always Mike…
You still planning on coming to L.A.?
Ron
I’ll send you a note Ron…
Excellent pics like usual and a very nice place indeed. Got to go there instead of Sanya.
Yeah it was nice Alex, a lot of construction going on in some areas but still much quieter that Sanya.
Hi Michael,
It was great having you and Lily stay with us. Wonderful photos!
Next time needs to be longer Elizabeth. I’m still having breakfast withdrawals!
That second shot is money. In fact most of these are. Which lens/f-stop/ISO are you shooting at usually for these? I’m gonna guess 50mm f/1.4 at about ISO 3200? Or perhaps the 24-70L at f/2.8 of course…
Thanks Jesse, except for the dog, these were all shot with the 50mm f/1.2 @ 1.6 or the 85mm f/1.2 @ 1.4 or 1.6 at an ISO of 1250 or 1600. The little dog was shot with the 24 – 70mmL @ 2.8 and 1600 ISO.