NANJING, June 15, 2002 — It was at Zhu Jifeng's suggestion that I came to explore Jiang Xin Zhou island in the middle of the Yangtze River.

Jiang Xin Zhou island is reached by a much smaller ferry than the one that crosses to the far shore of the Yangtze. The boat carries about fifty people with a few bicycles and motorcycles. It appears unburdened with life jackets, yet is old and rusty enough to warrant them. The trip takes only ten minutes and makes a landing near the center of a little town where open-air vans await the tourists.

For 80 yuan ($9.60), we were driven around the whole perimeter of the island, much of the time on concrete roads under bowers of conifers, the roads extending mostly in straight lines for one or two miles. The island seems a paradise of fruits and vegetables, neatly plotted in attractive arrays: rice, corn, and eggplant; daisies and lilies (yes, the Chinese eat very delicious daisies and lilies; not the flowers, but the leaves of daisies and the stems of lilies); tomatoes, beans, and squash; orchards of apples, figs and peaches. Most impressive were the vines of green grapes, which covered many acres. There are also numerous fish ponds but few animals—a few young goats and cows along with geese and hens.