Sunday 10^th December, 2017 1640

Oh boy, Saturday was a complete write-off!

I just couldn't stir myself to do the monthly cigar run. Instead I stayed in the warm and defrosted a couple of enchiladas for my dinner. Later I dozed off watching “La Amistad” (a film about slaves which is three hours long) for half an hour which was death for an early night for me.

At 0230 I called it a day and still couldn't lose consciousness. Having arranged for Alice to come here at 1100 this morning I had to be up by 1000 but Sod's law stated that I woke far too early (before eight) and no chance of further slumber.

Having promised Alice a lunch (she is one of three very helpful students) it gave me the impetus to travel downtown for the smokes and not, as would probably otherwise have been the case, defer it to Tuesday or Thursday.

Sunday traffic in China is often equally as bad as a Monday morning rush hour and that was the case today. A 40 minute bus ride took 50% longer. There were enough cigars for this month but I would only have left them 200 in stock so I cleaned them out and bought 700 in total. I also found out they “may” get more in January. Luckily I have just about enough at home now to last until February, current stock being 930. I really don't want to have to start traipsing all over the city visiting every China Tobacco shop searching for a hundred here and a hundred there again! I think in a year the closest store to east campus has had the sum total of 100 – six days worth.

It was a fair hike to the chosen lunch venue, which is at the end of the road and the cold was biting. Colder than the UK but without the heavy snow I have been reading of.

I had wondered if, it being Sunday lunch, the Lanzhou Legend Hotel might have an all you can eat mixed western/Chinese buffet but I had never been there, simply passing it on various buses two or three times a week. We would find out but I was certain we would be able to get both types of food, it being a 5 star place.

No buffet but an a la carte restaurant with both disciplines, although the western offerings were all steaks. We ordered two set meals comprising fruit salad (with tomatoes in it – the Chinese way!), coffee, soup and garlic bread, rounded off with a sizzling steak, onions, egg, broccoli (ugh) and a choice of rice or spaghetti. What is wrong with chips or a jacket potato??

The soup had me excited for a minute, it looked as though it could be home made tomato, carrot and lentil or, please no – pumpkin. My excitement evaporated quicker than my salary. Pumpkin (or punkin to any American readers) soup is far too sweet for me.

But

At least the steak was beef and not a plastic frozen supermarket one. Allegedly they do a mixed buffet breakfast for almost 100y which is expensive but nevertheless I may get up early one morning in the holidays and try it.

A costly day today but my cravings will be fed for now. And our two dinners weren't that hideously priced at 220y in all including two Tsingtaos for me. Not only that, we got nice and warmed up after the Arctic blast outside.

Back to the grind tomorrow.