Getting Ready for The China Trip 2007

It’s been another while since I posted something, but I was busy organising our trip around China. It’s all sorted out now, which is just as well as it starts tomorrow!!! Mind you, it looked like we were going to be on park benches in Chengdu until last night, but it’s OK, we have a hotel sorted out now.

I was at the Post Office a while ago to send a letter. The stamp was no problem – but the ‘par avion’ sticker was more of a challenge. I needed to glue it on. Fine, there were several pots of glue in the Post Office, all with small paint brushes to use. I got it stuck on, but I’d got myself into a bit of a guddle and my hands were all sticky. I’d come out without my bag, so I’d no wet wipes, and a tissue wasn’t working. I looked up, and in the corner of the Post Office, next to the door – there was a sink, with soap!! Fantastic, I can’t imagine that in Scotland. I was all cleaned up in a jiffy. I doubt I’m not the only person who has problems with the glue.

The Facilities in the Post Office

I was standing waiting on my train the other day, and decided to take a photo of the unofficial taxis waiting for people to come off the metro. The cars are QQ, a Chinese brand, and come only in bright colours. I also took a photo of the outdoors escalator. I can’t remember seeing open-air escalators anywhere else than China. I’m very glad of them, ‘cos it’s quite a climb up to the platform. Oh, they switch them off when it’s raining!

The Unofficial Taxis

I have now got a good system set up with the bloke I buy my DVDs from. I have to walk past him every day, as his spot is between the metro station and my flat. Most days we just exchange ‘ni hao’, but when he gets in new stock (once or twice a week), he shouts me over so I can go and see what he has! I’m sure he has a better idea of what’s in my DVD collection than I do! I think I must be a pretty good customer ‘cos earlier this week he waved me over to give me The Bourne Ultimatum, and wouldn’t take any money for it!!

The Outdoor Escalator

Hopefully at the end of next week I can post some photos of the first leg of The China Trip 2007 – from Lijiang down near the Laos/ Vietnam/ Burma borders, in the foothills of the Himalayas. It’s a World Heritage Site, so should be impressive. Watch this space.

More weather in Shanghai

Sorry to keep going on about the weather here, but it has such an impact on my life. The plum blossom season has finished, so no more days of 32 degrees and 94% humidity. Now it is just hot!! The headlines in the newspaper the other day said that the temperature had reached 39.6 degrees! That equals the hottest day in 63 years and is the second hottest since records began!!! The hottest temperature was 40.2 degrees, seen on July 12, 1934. This year is set to be the hottest summer on record. Oh, joy! It’s cooling to 32 degrees at night, so much against my principles; I’m sleeping with the air conditioner on. I still find it very strange opening the window to find it hotter outside than in. So, because of the heat, I’ve not been doing much – it’s really tiring in the heat – even if I do spend most of the time in air conditioning.

Pavement or bike park?

I try not to go out too much, as the heat makes me tetchy, and my ‘pavement rage’ is worse than usual. Most of the pavements are very wide – but when you add in the bicycle parking; the little stalls selling everything from DVDs to handbags; the people selling fruit from their baskets carried around on a yoke; the recyclers and all the other people just walking along the road, there is very little space from me. I get so frustrated having to walk so slowly that I develop ‘pavement rage’. Just to give you an example of how busy a pavement can be – I live 5 minutes walk from the metro, and most nights on my way home I pass:

• 2 or 3 people wanting you to fill out a survey (they never ask me – one big advantage of being a Westerner living in China!)
• a bloke making wire and bead jewellery to order
• somebody selling handbags and purses
• 2 or 3 people selling fruit from baskets on a yoke
• someone selling cigarettes
• 2 DVD stalls
• English books for sale from a sheet on the pavement
• A girl selling crockery from her bike
• 2 sets of people recycling rubbish (this bit stinks!)

The recycling zone

There are other people who appear occasionally – hot-dog vendors, some blokes weaving grasses into animal shapes…. Not bad for a 5 minute walk.

So, it’s getting near holiday time again!! Yesterday I booked our flight tickets for the trip around China in September. I was a bit worried given the last experience I had booking tickets – but this was really simple. I’d booked the first couple of flights on line, then had a confirmatory text, then an email and finally a phone call. During the phone-call the lass asked if she could book the rest of my flights – no problem, all done. ‘The courier will be round with your e-tickets at 4pm.’ Next stop, the bank. I needed to pay cash, ans the highest denomination here is about £6.60, so I felt like someone from a film walking out of the bank with my big bundles of cash. So, 4 o’clock came, and went…. As did 5 o’clock, 6 o’clock…….. then at 6.30 I got a phone-call, from the courier, I think, but he only spoke Chinese, so all communication failed! At 8.30 the door-bell went, and my tickets arrived!!! In China, e-tickets are real tickets, printed on fan-fold paper, that are just the same as real tickets!!! Anyway, the pile of tickets was bigger than I am!!! It’s going to be fun!!!

The tickets are as big as a door!

I was looking out of my office window the other day, and saw that the company fire engine was parked on the road. I know that the hot weather is causing a shortage of water, but this is just silly!!!

The Fire Engine

At the back of the fire engine!!