How to eat...
watermelon in China
“Lai, chi xigua!” said my friend from Jiangnan the moment we arrived at her home on the doorstep of Jiangnan’s famous water villages. Lai means come, chi xigua means eat watermelon.
Over the next few days, I would see watermelons everywhere we went. By the roadside, by alleyways, on chairs, tucked under the arms of Jiangnan residents and of course, on every dessert plate. It was the height of summer and the juicy fruit was in season.
A welcome despite it was from the 39-degree heat and extremely uncomfortable 90-per-cent humidity. Walking a 100m during the day felt more like wading through thick steam.
Cucumbers being dried for pickling were also a common sight. Although it did not look particularly appetizing, the end product was admittedly rather tasty. Jiangnan literally translates "to south of the river", and the river in reference here is the Yangtze River.
The region comprises major cities such as Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou and Wuxi. The water villages in these pictures are located near Suzhou. Some date back 1,000 years

Hui Min Neo is a correspondence of various international press