A Spontaneous Trip to Islands and Harbor Cities

One day, a good friend sent an invitation to go to an island together, to participate in the Sea Cucumber Harvest Festival, enjoy a seafood feast, and experience the seaside atmosphere... The inviting trip made me immediately book a flight, pack my bags, and start a new journey.

In the early morning, I went from Suzhou to Shanghai Pudong Airport and took a flight to Dalian.

After arriving in Dalian, I drove north for nearly two hours to reach Pikou Port, then took a ferry to Yuanyang Port on Dachangshan Island.

Although it was freezing cold with waves rolling, the ferry was moving farther and farther away from the shore, but many seagulls gathered behind the ferry. Feeding the seagulls on the ferry was a wonderful experience!

Then I took a bus to the villa area in the eastern part of Dachangshan Island.

Even though the tourist season was over, the long beach was still very beautiful.

In the evening, I began to taste northeastern stews and seafood.

Dachangshan Island is located in the middle of the Changshan Islands and is the seat of Changhai County government. It is named for its length and numerous hills. The coastline is winding with many bays, and it boasts clear waters, fine sandy beaches, and a unique island atmosphere.

At noon, I enjoyed a sumptuous seafood feast, including conch, scallops, abalone, oysters, swimming crabs, prawns... and finally a large sea cucumber.

In the afternoon, I took a car across the cross-sea bridge,

arriving at the eastern end of Xiaochangshan Island,

and from there went to a marine ranch to watch sea cucumber harvesting.

In the evening, I tasted the cold sea cucumber salad made from what was harvested that afternoon.

Due to the arrival of cold air, I hurried to the dock in the morning to cross the sea back to the mainland as soon as possible.

Numerous seagulls followed behind the ferry, as if reluctant to part.

On the road to Dalian, strong wind and heavy rain had begun.

Haven't been to Dalian for over a decade, I wanted to take this opportunity to visit. Due to the cold wind, heavy rain, and low temperature, I arranged to stay near Zhongshan Square in the city center.

Zhongshan Square is circular and radial, surrounded by buildings built at the beginning of the 20th century, featuring Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, and eclectic styles. Full of European flavor, it was interesting to appreciate it in the rain.

I came to the Russian Style Street as it is famous. The old Russian-style buildings on both sides of this street were built over a hundred years ago and are still well preserved. Walking along the street from the entrance feels like being in a European city street. Unfortunately, in this season and weather, the entire street was deserted.

We found a café, sipped aromatic coffee while experiencing portraits of Pushkin and Russian culture.

We took a taxi to Xinghai Square, a landmark of the city. Although it has beautiful sea views and charming night scenes, the strong wind and heavy rain only allowed us a quick glance.

We quickly went to a nearby Russian restaurant to savor exotic flavors in a warm environment.

In the evening, the hotel also offered free midnight snacks.

After a windy night, the temperature was near zero (at that time, the highest temperature in Suzhou was nearly 30°C), plus heavy rain, so I waited until noon to take a taxi out.

First stop—Venice Water City. Dalian's Venice Water City, based on Italy's Venice, has built an exotic water park. Unfortunately, few people were around in this weather, and the "gondolas" could only be crowded along the water's edge.

Then I took a taxi to Bangchuidao.

Upon entering Bangchuidao scenic area, green grass and lush trees greeted me. There were few visitors, but the scenery was pleasant. The isolated Bangchuidao island in the sea, the long Bangchuidao beach, and the intermittent villa area in the woods all lived up to its reputation as a famous leisure destination.

In the north, it gets dark around 4 pm in winter. After returning to the hotel to rest, I went to Dalian Bay New Port to take a ship to Yantai.

On the fifth day, I arrived in Yantai at 6 am.

I first went to a seaside hotel I had booked. After checking in, showering, organizing, and resting, a robot delivery guy brought the breakfast I ordered from the hotel to my room door.

Today's itinerary was the Penglai Pavilion Scenic Area.

Penglai Pavilion Scenic Area is one of the first batch of 5A-level tourist attractions in China. It is as famous as the Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan, Yueyang Tower in Hunan, and Tengwang Pavilion in Jiangxi, and is known as one of the four great ancient towers in China. It is renowned both at home and abroad for the legend of the "Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea" and the mirage spectacle.

While admiring the view on the hillside of Penglai Pavilion, I also enjoyed the mackerel dumplings I had been longing for.

Returning to Yantai city, it was almost evening. I went to Suochengli, enjoying the scenery and food at the same time.

Suochengli has a history of over 600 years, built in the Ming Dynasty as a Qianhu defense post, and is also one of the symbols of old Yantai. Today, outside the city walls are high-rise buildings and heavy traffic, while inside, there are green bricks and black tiles, an antique flavor, and every courtyard and brick exudes a strong blend of local life and ancient charm, a "slow living" atmosphere.

Back at the hotel, I continued to take a walk inside and outside, enjoying the scenery.

Woken from sleep by a ray of morning light outside the window, I quickly got up to watch the sunrise on the platform.

After a hearty breakfast, I went to Yantai Mountain Park behind the hotel.

Yantai Mountain is a landmark scenic area of Yantai, a national AAAA-level tourist attraction. It is 42.5 meters high and covers an area of 45 hectares, and is the origin of the city's name. Surrounded by sea on three sides, the environment is beautiful, the scenery charming, and it has a vast sea area. Yantai Mountain is the largest existing modern consulate building complex in Asia. The buildings have various architectural styles, strong historical atmosphere, and are well preserved. There are the earliest existing British "veranda-style" buildings in its colonies, as well as classical, Sino-Western eclectic, and early British apartment-style buildings, making it a treasure trove of modern architecture.

We took the sightseeing car up the mountain, listening to introductions and admiring the buildings along the way. We took the elevator to the 11th floor of the lighthouse to overlook Yantai city and the vast sea.

Since my train was after 4 pm, I continued to wander around the seaside and historical and cultural areas near the hotel.

Finally, I strolled down Chaoyang Street. Chaoyang Street was a bustling commercial street in modern Yantai, where famous foreign firms and shops of old Yantai gathered. Chinese and English signs of factories, shops, banks, and entertainment venues were everywhere. In 1880, a German merchant opened the Onse Foreign Firm on the east side of the north section of the street, then the largest peanut exporter in Yantai.

Thereafter, buildings on this street sprang up like bamboo shoots after rain. The Shunchang Commercial House on the east side of the north end had a unique design that was refreshing; its opposite, the Clinton Hotel, became famous because Dr. Sun Yat-sen stayed there in 1912.

Strolling along the street, the ornate decorations of Western-style buildings and the faint foreign letters on the walls evoked many thoughts.

In a small shop on the street, I slowly enjoyed wontons as lunch, savoring the deep charm of the century-old street.

In just six days, I experienced wind and rain (strong winds, huge waves, heavy rain, low temperature), saw the world (fed seagulls, watched sea cucumber harvesting), and enjoyed delicious food (seafood feast, exotic Western cuisine) – a truly rewarding trip.