Following China’s decision to curtail individual tourist travel to Taiwan, one man decided that rather than bother with bureaucratic red tape or group tours, it would be easiest to just swim over for a vacation.

At around 6:45 am on Tuesday morning, Taiwanese coast guard spotted an unusual man on the beach of Lesser Kinmen island with three kids’ swim rings beside him on the sand.

Upon investigation, the man had an ID card which showed him to be a 27-year-old Chinese citizen from Shandong province surnamed Chang. He also had 1,381 in Chinese renminbi, an extra set of clothes and a pair of sneakers that had become soaked, and a bag of chili peppers.

In a heavy Shandong accent, Chang explained to police that he had taken a train from his home province to the coastal Fujian city of Xiamen, spent 90 yuan on swimming rings, and then swam over to Kinmen during the night. The trip took him seven hours. During the journey, he ate the peppers to keep warm.

The Taiwanese-controlled Kinmen Islands are located only about two kilometers from Xiamen.

Chang said that he wanted to travel to Taiwan but found Chinese government regulations too complicated and restrictive.

On August 1, China stopped issuing individual tourist travel permits to Taiwan, meaning that the only way that mainland tourists can now visit Taiwan is on a group tour.

It’s not clear how much of Taiwan that Chang will get to see. He has been arrested for violating Taiwan’s entry/exit laws.