Excursion to Huo Shan Dao

Just before the end of the year, after Christmas passed almost unnoticed, and with our our end-of-semester exams looming around the corner, we took off yesterday morning with a group of 25 classmates and our teachers for a day trip to Huo Shan Dao （火山岛）, a group of small volcanic islands just off the coast of Zhangzhou, about 50 km south of Xiamen. At least, that's what I thought we would do, but we ended up just visiting the so-called Ziranshentai Scenic Area on the shore, without ever setting foot on the island seen in the distance, just 2 km off-shore. There are actually three separate volcanic islands nearby, one at 2 km, one at 7 km, and one at 22 km off-shore. The nearest island, visible above, is called Linjinyu.
The reason why we didn't get on a boat to visit the island is still unclear to me. One teacher told me we didn't go because it was too expensive, and the other said today it was because of the low tide. Whatever the reason, I felt a bit ripped off, as I was looking forward to the boat ride and close-up view of the basalt formations on the island. On the other hand, I have seen already quite a lot of that during my trip to Iceland in 2009.

Nevertheless, it was a nice day, not in the least because of the sunny weather and the excellent lunch that was presented at a restaurant on the cliffs with a great view on the island. The lunch served us fish, seaweed soup, sauteed clams, pig's trotters, and various vegetable dishes, all equally good, with the exception maybe of the pig feet, which consisted mostly of bone and a thick rubbery and hairy skin.
We spent some time on the beach, which is full of volcanic rocks, and lots of shells. The park also features several opportunities for overnight stays, either in wooden cabins high on the cliffs, or in luxury American-style campers, parked in a grassy field. It's not cheap, at 1000 RMB a night. Well over the price of a 4-star hotel in the city. Not surprisingly, there where no guests in sight.
The bay is full of what appears to be oyster banks, and inland you can see many basins the size of a football field filled with seawater which are probably farms for either fish or shell food. The volcanic activity which happened here many years ago gives a somewhat out-of-place attraction to the area. I don't know any other location in China with volcanoes, maybe that's why it's so developed as a touristic attraction, it's a rarity.