What is a civilized city?

Over the past year, the city of Hikou has initiated a “civilized city” campaign to improve its citizens’ overall standard of living.

Looking back on one year of the campaign, it is obvious that many improvements have been made in Haikou.

From public toilets to clean and unobstructed sidewalks, there are numerous metrics by which one can gauge the improvements.

This is not to say that everything is better. In a developing country, street vendors, casual shops, outdoor displays, temporary stalls and pushcarts are viewed as backwards. In an already developed country, the same street vendors, casual shops, outdoor displays, temporary stalls and pushcarts are viewed as an ideal.

Neither approach is wrong. The old messy way of doing things has to be cleaned away before a newer, more orderly way of doing the same things can be achieved.

Brightly lit with standardized scales, I don’t think there is anyone in Haikou who wouldn’t say that the markets are far better than they ever dreamed they could be.

At the same time, if you ask anyone who has lived here for a long time, they are certain to mention how they miss being able to buy very fresh very local fruit from the grannies with baskets at all hours of the day and night.

But, much as I may miss the former state of aff airs, I have no choice but to admit that the current state of aff airs is a vast improvement.

Stalls have moved into buildings. Shopkeepers have refrigerators. There are licenses clearly posted to let me know the health department says this place is clean.

And if I can’t get my coconut milk dessert on the street corner any more, I can now get it during the day. I can eat it for lunch if I want. I can get it when it’s raining.

While there was something quaintly charming about a metal bowl wrapped in a single-use plastic bag because the stall-owner had no place to do dishes, I ultimately prefer a kitchen with hot soapy water.

I’ve personally lost many conveniences that I once enjoyed, but now I enjoy many more conveniences that I didn’t have before.

Motorcycles and threewheeled motorized tuktuks have been replaced with safe transportation suitable for a modern city. Using ride-hailing apps like Uber, prices are standardized for locals and visitors. Furthermore, traffic moves a lot faster when nobody runs red lights or drives the wrong direction on the road.

Haikou is changing into something new. It’s becoming a modern city. It’s clean and bright and welcoming.

It may not be a tourist mecca like Sanya, but it is no longer the sort of place that people are uncertain about visiting. “Clean and bright and beautiful” have become more than just a slogan. They’ve become the reality of Haikou.

QILOU, or arcade houses, were built from the 19th century and now form Haikou’s most exotic landscapes. Qilou streets remain Haikou’s business centers while giving visitors a taste of traditional local life. WU ZHEKUN / FOR CHINA DAILY