Home sweet home by South China Sea

When my friend HM heard that I was planning a trip to Hainan Island, she casually mentioned that I could stay in her "romantic holiday apartment." My jaw dropped.

Like many young Chinese, HM's imagination had been captured by a line penned by the poet Haizi: "I only face the sea, as flowers blossom in warm spring."

"Where is Haizi?" I once joked.