June 16, 2017
(AFP) - After school, a dozen children strap on life jackets under their backpacks before boarding a flat-bottomed boat in southwest China.
A 60-year-old man then sinks a pole into the green waters of the Xiangshuitan reservoir to push the punt in the daily, half-hour-long trip between the primary school and the pupils' village.
He is none other than the school principal.
Li drew on his own savings to purchase the boats. The school is on its fifth boat, after Li bought the first more than 20 years ago.
In addition to his duties as a ferryman and school principal, Li also teaches one of the five classes the small school offers each day in Dazu district, in the sprawling municipality of Chongqing.
The crossing takes about half an hour compared to the two hours it would take the children to walk one way.
But since Li lives at the school, he must first pick up his pupils in the morning, then return alone in the evening, spending a total of two hours each day propelling the boat.
