More than 20 winners of the second Sanmao Prose Prize visit Dinghai district in Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang province on April 19 to draw inspiration for their literary creations. [Photo/zsdinghai.com] 

More than 20 winners of the second Sanmao Prose Prize visited Dinghai district in Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang province on April 19, a day before the award ceremony, to draw inspiration for their literary creations. 

The prize is named after contemporary Chinese writer Sanmao, or Echo Chan, who is originally from Dinghai district but moved to Taiwan with her family at the age of six. 

The writers got to experience the district's beautiful scenery and rich culture through visits to Nandong Yigu scenic area, Sanmao's ancestral house, Dapukou container port and Mao'ao Museum.

Writers visit Sanmao's ancestral house to learn more about her life experiences. [Photo/zsdinghai.com]

"This is my second trip to Zhoushan. As I flew in I was really impressed by the views of the islands all connected by bridges," said a writer named Fu Fei.

Writer Tang Chaohui was moved to tears while watching the video of Sanmao's return to Dinghai. According to Tang, Sanmao is one of his favorite female writers, so the trip to Sanmao's ancestral house means a lot to him. 

"Sanmao was deeply influenced by the marine culture. Her influence can be seen around the world," said writer Geng Li. Geng revealed a plan to promote Zhoushan's marine culture by writing about his trip to Sanmao's ancestral house.

"By organizing this trip, we hope that writers will draw inspiration from Zhoushan's scenery and culture and promote Zhoushan to more places around the world," said an official from the publicity department of Dinghai district.