China 2019 Photography Tour 2

After leaving Guilin from our previous tour and arriving at Fuzhou Airport we were picked up by the hotel pickup service to the hotel. We were surprise to find the hotel entrance was more like a storeroom than a reception area. However, the rooms were nice. We were quite tired from our previous tour and had a quick rest, dinner then headed to bed early.

The next morning I got an early morning knock on the door. It was the hotel lady. Instead of calling Callie, our guide, she called me instead as though I was the guide. As I opened the door I saw an Aussie man and two Russian ladies. They couldn’t understand what the hotel lady said. I found out then that they were my tour mates Donovan, Irina and Olga. And it seemed that the two Russian ladies, arrived at midnight, didn’t have their dinner the night before and were eager to get back to the airport for breakfast. And the hotel lady had only a small van and needed to do two runs to the airport. So I went with them.

Once the rest of the team arrived at the airport we were picked up and headed for Xiapu. It is a very popular location for Chinese photographers. It is because of the farming villages that make the photos look like paintings. The first location we went was the Nan Wan Fishing Cages. These cages are used to trap crabs and lobsters. The different colours of the nets and the water coming in from the sea and receding back making this place a great photographic location.

The second day were packed with 5 locations. Our first stop was at the Piao Wang Yellow Sail. When we arrived there were no wind which the sail depended on. As we were about to leave the wind changed direction and we quickly went back to get what we came for. The next location was at Yangjiaxi where the buffalo man walked under a beautiful tree as the sun rays penetrated through its branches and leaves creating a theatrical-like scene. The funny thing about this place was that there was a lady who wanted to be part of the play as the buffalo man’s wife. In the afternoon we went to Bachimen Fishing Cages. The fishing cages here were much larger in size than the ones in Nan Wan. We had quick stop at a Fish sauce Fermentation factory then finished the day at Shan Sa beach. The driver took us to a spot that happened to be someone’s balcony. But the owner was kind to let us take the pictures.

On the third day we began with Beidou beach looking for sunrise but ended up with many monochrome or high-key photos. Then the Shajiang “S” bend where many of the photos look more like sketches than photos. This is due to the bamboo poles coated with the black colour of the seaweed. And it was the first time Donovan nervously flew his drone. And we finished the day on the Xia Xing Shan bridge where we had the sunset for the first and last time while we were in Xiapu.

On the last day we visited a ethnic minority granny at Huazhu village. Here we took mainly portraits of her. Most of my photos ended up as low-key pictures. The last location for me and the Russian ladies, Erina and Olga, was the beach around the Mantou Hill area. Here my photos ended up almost monochrome and look more like colour pencil drawings than photos. Afterward we said Goodbye to Callie, Hilda and Donovan who decided to stay for an extra day. Thank you Callie for the great tours. I did enjoy them both and also met nice people that would not be possible without your tours. Erina and Olga, you ladies really know how to have fun. We had lots of laughter at the expense of Google Translation from Russian to English.

The photo tours were full on so I decided to finish with a more relaxing tour of Shanghai for a few days before returning home. In Shanghai, I paid a visit to Yuyuan Garden then to Zhujiajiao Water Village (also known as the Venice of Shanghai).

Photos of this tour