Journey with a purpose

She has mailed more than 140 letters, and received 50 replies. Most responses were perfunctory and only three were positive. For example, the Education Bureau of Xingtai, Hebei province, said it was establishing such a system.

Xiao is not alone in her endeavor. Her feminist friends and those who learned about the activity online take turns to join her.

But her sole companion now is 23-year-old Deng Jiawen, who joined Xiao in November and will finish the rest of the excursion with her.

"Most people are pragmatic about life, concerned about buying an automobile or a house. Few people are like Xiao, caring about something more meaningful," says Deng, a senior student from a university in Changchun, Jilin province.

To raise public awareness, Xiao and others deliver speeches to share their concerns and experiences.

When they were in a university in Wuhan, Hubei province, a female student shared her story about an attempt at sexual harassment by her teacher. She fled before he had the opportunity to harm her.

"She is very brave to talk about this in front of acquaintances. In China, people tend to blame the victims rather than the violators. We want to change that," Xiao says.

On the Spring Festival eve, they hiked for about 37 km before arriving in a small hotel in Leiyang, Hunan province, at 9 pm. To celebrate the festival, the two bought some fireworks on their way and lit them.

Most restaurants were closed that evening. While most Chinese were enjoying heartwarming dinner with their families, the hikers had to be content with different flavors of instant noodles, which were the only food available to them for days.

Their journey is sponsored by netizens and kind-hearted strangers they have met on their way. Some netizens even offer accommodation. Since she started her expedition, Xiao only eats simple meals, lives in cheap hotels and updates her expenses online. She also keeps diaries about her bittersweet hikes, posting both texts and cute cartoons online.

"I'm impressed that most people are positive about preventing sexual violation on campus. Their attitude toward feminism is not as critical as those on the Internet. I hope more people will know about feminism and what we're doing."