The Literary Island Paradise of Shengsi—Huaniao Island

Huaniao Island was made famous by the TV series Ode to Joy 2, starring Liu Tao. As a result, ferry tickets to the island are hard to come by every summer. I wanted to visit, so I chose the off-season during this period of fluctuating temperatures between warm and cold. However, the sea is often foggy in spring, and the ferry service was suspended this morning. Fortunately, I managed to hitch a ride on a fishery administration vessel at Shenjiaqiao Wharf on Xiaoyangshan Island. This special trip allowed me to visit Huaniao Island, located at the northernmost tip of the Shengsi Islands. This marked the beginning of my journey to the northernmost islands of Zhejiang Province. As the steady fishery administration vessel gradually approached the small island, I could make out the outline of the fishing village nestled in the milky white fog, rising up the mountain in layers. As the fog shifted, the blue and white houses looked like celestial pavilions floating in the clouds. The ship docked before the morning mist had cleared. The moment I stepped onto the pier, I felt the dampness of the stone slabs beneath my feet and the salty, grassy scent in the air. Huaniao Island looked like a light ink wash painting on xuan paper. After a sumptuous seafood lunch, the fog dispersed, and the sunlight awakened the colors of the island. I embraced this small island, named for its bird-like shape and abundance of wildflowers. Huaniao Island is adorably small. It takes only 45 minutes to walk from south to north, but the hospitable host still arranged for a scenic electric cart for me. Along the island's only road, "Mata Line," heading northwest, the mountains and sea complement each other, and wildflowers sway in the spring breeze along the cliffs. This renovated scenic highway, adorned with eight viewing platforms with a love theme, offers picturesque views at every turn. At the end of the road stands a striking black and white cylindrical building—the "national treasure," Huaniao Lighthouse, originally built in 1870. Its beam reaches 24 nautical miles and remains an essential navigation marker for ships entering and exiting the Yangtze River estuary. This lighthouse, the largest in the Far East, was built by the British during the Qing Dynasty and is now a national key cultural relic protection site. The black and white tower stands out against the red frame of China National Geographic. As the sun began to set, I strolled to the entrance of Huaniao Village. The blue and white guesthouses are scattered in an orderly fashion, with pink sightseeing buses shuttling between them, resembling a romantic scene from Santorini, Greece. The popular "Village Entrance" cafe is a perfect place to relax. I ordered a latte, sat on the terrace, and gazed at the windmills and the azure sea in the distance. The warm spring sun cast a golden filter over the fishing port. Continuing up the winding path, I rounded a bend and suddenly saw a white piano placed on a water-separated platform at the edge of the cliff, its lid open, facing the vast East China Sea. My companion tried playing a tune, and the sound of the piano blended with the sound of the waves, creating an inexplicably harmonious melody. At this moment, in my eyes, Huaniao Island was a place where one could "face the sea, with spring flowers blossoming." It was a blend of the steadfastness of the century-old lighthouse and the advancements of new technology, the laid-back atmosphere of the fishing village cafe and the vibrancy of art exhibitions, and the romance of the azure waves whispering to the Milky Way. On this exquisite little island, everything exists in perfect harmony, neither ostentatious nor hidden, just like the island itself in the morning mist, looming yet distinct.