PHOTOGRAPHS BY MENG QINGCHUN (孟慶春)TEXT BY LIU JUE (劉玨)

RIDING THE TIDE

PHOTOGRAPHS BY MENG QINGCHUN (孟慶春)
TEXT BY LIU JUE (劉玨)

A rare glimpse into the danjiaren on land

“水上吉卜賽人”短暫的陸地生活

Under the blue, subtropical sky of Foshan City, Guangdong Province, the annual fi shermen's camp revives a normally deserted dock in Sanshui District by the North River. Dozens of overturned wooden fi shing boats lay stranded on the sandy river bank, with fi shermen busy trimming panels for replacement and wiping lime on their tired boats. Typically sunny and warm, the end of December is the only time the fi shermen spend a few days on dry land—even then only for boat maintenance.

This is a group of devoted “water people” who are born, live, and die on their boats. Small children are usually tied with a rope in the cabin or on the deck for safety while adults catch fi sh and fi nd pearls; it's not uncommon for a single boat to house three generations. Unlike a village on land, the river folk ride the tide and go where it takes them. Having no hometown, they travel rivers, lakes, and coastal waters, stretching from the Pearl River Delta and coastal provinces in the South all the way to the Nansha Islands.

Landlubbers, arrogant as we are, considered the lives of these fi shermen fragile, thus giving them the namedanjiaren(疍家人).Dan(疍) shares the same pronunciation as 蛋(egg), used to describe their shell-like fragility. However, the lifestyle is surprisingly sustainable and has been around for centuries; the fi rst historical account appeared in the South Song Dynasty (1127-1279). Today, the “homeless” river people are encouraged to settle down on shore, and like the once nomadic Mongolians, many of them have abandoned their traditional lifestyle. But, there's still a small group of lifelong fi shermen who fear the land as most fear the sea, trying to save the last threads of their cultural heritage by holding tight to their oars.

PULLING A BOAT TO THE SHORE IS BOTH A SPECTACLE AND A SOCIAL EVENT. NEARBY FISHERMEN COME TOGETHER TO HELP EACH OTHER WITH THE DIFFICULT TASK, A CHORE THAT SOMETIMES INVOLVES BOATS UP TO 20 METERS LONG.

A FISHERMAN TRIMS WOODEN PANELS TO REPLACE THE ROTTEN PIECES ON HIS BOAT (TOP)

THE RUST ON THE BOTTOM OF THE BOAT MUST BE SCRUBBED CLEAN BEFORE APPLYING A LAYER OF LIME. WHEN THE LIME DRIES, TWO LAYERS OF OIL ARE ADDED. DRY WEATHER IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT DURING THIS PROCESS (BOTTOM).

FAMILIES MOVE TO THEIR SHEDS ON SHORE, SPENDING A FEW DAYS OR WEEKS ON LAND DEPENDING ON THEIR LUCK WITH THE WEATHER

AFTER THE BOATS ARE PAINSTAKINGLY REPAIRED, THE BOAT PEOPLE HOLD RITUALS, BURNING INCENSE, LIGHTING FIREWORKS, DISPLAYING A SACRIFICE OF FRUIT AND BISCUITS BOUGHT FROM THE LOCAL STORE, AND PRAYING TO THE RIVER GOD FOR A SAFE AND PROSPEROUS YEAR TO COME

IN A UNITED EFFORT, THE FLOATING COMMUNITY PUSH THEIR NEWLY REPAIRED BOATS BACK INTO THE RIVER ONE BY ONE

LIFE ON THE WATER CARRIES ON AS BEFORE, BUT FEWER AND FEWER ARE CHOOSING TO HOLD ON TO THIS TRADITIONAL LIFESTYLE