At the southernmost edge of China, where the land softens into turquoise waters and the horizon blurs between sky and sea, a different kind of China begins. Here, in the palm-fringed shores of Hainan and the sun-drenched coastlines of Guangdong and Fujian, life moves to the rhythm of the tides — gentle yet unstoppable. Island and Ocean is an ode to this region of warmth, light, and abundance, where food reflects the meeting of elements: the salt of the sea, the sweetness of coconut, the fragrance of herbs carried on a humid breeze.
This cuisine is both ancient and alive — a mosaic born from trade winds and human journeys. For centuries, the South China Sea has been a liquid bridge linking China with the rest of Asia. From these ports sailed explorers and merchants who carried silk, porcelain, and stories; from afar returned spices, ingredients, and beliefs that would enrich local kitchens forever. Malay, Vietnamese, and even Indian influences whisper through the dishes of these shores, yet their soul remains unmistakably Chinese — grounded in balance, respect, and the pursuit of harmony.
In Hainan, rice is steamed with the calm confidence of the tropics, seafood is kissed by the flame, and soups bloom with the perfume of lemongrass and ginger. Coconut milk, tamarind, garlic, and chili weave into flavors that are delicate yet bold, soothing yet daring. Every meal here feels like a homecoming — a celebration of simplicity and generosity, of flavors shaped by sea winds and sunlight.
The southern coastlines of China are more than geography; they are memory and metaphor. They remind us that the Great Wall was never a barrier, but a beginning — a thread connecting worlds. In Island and Ocean, the journey that began in the frozen steppes of the north and the deserts of the west arrives here, where land dissolves into water and flavor becomes freedom.
As the final volume of Beyond the Great Wall: Flavors of China's Many Worlds, this book is a farewell to earth and an embrace of horizon — to the sea that has carried people, faiths, and cuisines across centuries, and to the endless exchange that defines what it means to be human.