On a misty June morning, a family from across the Pacific arrived in Dongguan for something far sweeter: the season's first bite of fresh lychee.
In a locallychee orchard tucked between misty trees, laughter echoed. Ricky Meachum, a grandfather from the U.S., stood smiling as his grandchildren darted between the branches, eyes wide with wonder, baskets in hand.
"I've never seen anything like this,"said Yosef, standing in awe beneath branches heavy with bright red fruit. "They're right here! You can just reach up and grab them." Together with Nathan, a friend from Ohio, the family tried their hand at harvesting. It was their first time in a lychee orchard. The kidswere captivated by the clusters of deep red fruit hanging within reach. "There were just so many!"said Kadyah. "It was amazing to see how they grow and changeas they ripen. I've never seen anything like it."
At first, everyone wore raincoats, careful not to get soaked. But that didn't last long. "They were getting in our way!"laughed Yosef, as he and his siblings eagerly pulled them off and raced between the trees.
Some lychees hung low, waiting like candy on a tree. Others, tucked higher in the canopy, required a ladder. Madison, all smiles, climbed up to reach the ripest ones at the top, where the fruit seemed to shine even brighter. "They hurt my hands a little,"she laughed, "but they're so worth it!"
"They're so sweet!"Yosef gave a thumbs-up after his first bite. Before long, they were all nibbling freshly picked lychees, juice running down their fingers. "You just can't stop at one,"said Michael, grinning with both hands full.
"We've been eating lychees every day since we arrived," Ricky said."It's a fruit like no other. It's its own flavor, sweet, floral, a little wild. You can't compare it to anything. It stands on its own."
Anorchard worker showed Ricky a clevertrick, "Squeeze the bottom, and it pops right open!"he said. Ricky tried, amazed at the ease. "It's like opening a treasure." Despite the wet leaves and muddy paths, every moment felt magical. Even Ricky, camera in hand and shoes damp from the orchard floor, couldn't stop smiling. "This red fruit is a surprise. That tree was a surprise. The whole morning,"he said, "has been a beautiful surprise."
Later that morning, they followed the trail of the lychees to the orchard's sorting and packagingcenter, watching crates of the morning's harvest arrive by cart. Workers showed them how to gently twist off stems, separate perfect fruits, and hand-pack them into neat white boxes bound for the world. "These will reach Singapore in 24 hours,"one staff member said. "North America in 48."
The kids jumped in to help with sorting. "This one could go to Canada," someone joked. "Or maybe Ohio!" Nathan laughed, imagining their own picked fruit arriving back home. "We'll tell our friends we helped harvest it."
"It's hard to believe that the lychees we picked this morning might be in someone's hands across the ocean tomorrow," said Madison, "They're so fresh, so sweet, it's like sending little pieces of summer across the ocean."
Dongguan is one of China's biggest lychee-growing regions, with thousands of acres of fruit-laden trees and a growing export industry. In recent years, more and more of its famed lychees have made their way overseas, bringing the sweet taste of Lingnan summer to the world.
"This is something I'll never forget,"said Ricky, watching his grandchildren laugh as they helped close boxes. "Lychees in America are rare, and here we are, in a place where they grow so freely, so beautifully. Dongguan people are truly lucky."
For the families, the happinesswasn't just in the fruit or the process, it was in the people. "Everywhere we've been in Dongguan, we've been treated with warmth. People smiled, waved, showed us how things are done. They didn't just welcome us, they let us be part of it.The people here, their kindness, that's what makes this city so special."
