Hainan is located at the South China Sea, with a coastline of 1580m and an area of 35,400 sq km. It is the southernmost part of China. Since the place has no winter at all, it is regarded as "Hawaii of the East." The Yuehai Railway commenced service in December 2004, bringing Hainan into China's railway network. The country's first trans-sea railway comprises two railways and a train ferry, running from Zhanjiang to Hai'an in Guangdong, across Qiongzhou Strait and finally along Hainan west to Sanya. It has a total distance of 1157km, bringing passengers to the southernmost part of the country.
Sanya is situated in the southern part of Hainan, the end of the country. It used to be a place where condemned officers were sent to - and they felt like being exiled to the remotest corner of the earth. But the ancestors of the Li gave up their life as boatmen when they reached this beautiful island and settled themselves in Hainan. To look at the island from the sea, Hainan is a paradise, but to look out from the land, it is the end of the earth.
Echa Village has a history of about 1000 years. This living museum of the Li is the largest, oldest and the best preserved village of the ethnic minority in Hainan. There one can see boat-shaped houses and old women with traditional facial tattoos. Knowing that Echa is going to be relocated two or three months later, people from different places have come to this old village to celebrate Shanlan Festival (New Year of Li) and have the last reunion dinner. The bustle and hustle is going to be part of the history.
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