Friday 11th January, 2012                        1230

Slight change of plan, we are not taking the bus at one, instead her, Dad and a driver will collect me at three. I am happy because the bus takes two hours and by car it will take 45 minutes.

Unfortunately I am a little weary today. I had to get up earlier than planned because Cinny was bring Daisy (this one is the niece of our dept’s vice dean)  to practise her English. She is going to Berkely uni in San Francisco soon and wants to ensure she uses English as much as she can. I am happy to do anything I can for Cinny because she is terrific as my assistant. In fact both Kevin and I think she would make the perfect foreign affairs officer.

This morning Anita chatted with me on Skype messenger. Possibly as early as the coming week she is starting a new job here in Chizhou. She will live with me - quite where we will conjure up storage space for her clothes is at present unknown, but I am looking forward to it immensely.

Saturday 12th    1900

Well what a wonderful time I had!

I was duly collected by an SUV containing Anita, her father and two other policemen and taken to Tongling. She checked me into an hotel and insisted she pay for it along with a bottle of Changyu wine, then we briefly went to mum’s home. Her parents are divorced but mum has another chap now - I like them all. The idea was to wait until we were collected for dinner but I suggested as we had a little time to kill we could go and get a set of keys cut for Anita so she can come and go as she pleases in/out of what I am now pleased to call “our” home.

Then we went for dinner. It transpired that mum works there (see photo of her in the red/burgundy jacket) and would not join us, instead she would be one of our fuyans. It was obvious that immense thought had been put into what to order because for once I liked more than half the dishes. There were prawns, sweet(ish) pork, celery, egg and tomato, beef and peppers plus a dish of finely shredded pork which you put into a noodle based sheet with spring onions and folded up to eat. Now I am not much of a fish lover (except British fish and chips) - shellfish yes, but last night there was also a whole fish which intrigued me. You can see it at the far end of the table with “lumpy” flanks. It was swimming in a gelatinous red sauce much like the sweet and sour sauce in the UK.

I had to try it. I thought I had died and gone to heaven! It was simply the most divine fish I have ever eaten in my life in any country and the sauce WAS the same as sweet and sour. I couldn’t leave it alone. The company was great even though only she and I could speak any English - dad had even bought me some cigars and dad number two was at the meal. a memorable evening.

After we finished Anita took me back to my hotel, where every Friday the expat teachers hold an “English salon” where Chinese people can come to practise speaking. Sadly we arrived quite late, so after an hour everyone was kicked out bar me. I went to my room to continue with my wine and use the free computer and internet provided. A little problematic seeing as everything was in Chinese but I managed to see my emails and news sites. When I turned in shortly after one, I had to leave my phone switched on because Anita was to text me to let me know when she was coming this morning. I was rudely awoken by a text at 0930 and, thinking it was from her, checked it. A bloody Chinese advert! Grrr!

For lunch I was taken by dad and an uncle to an aunt’s restaurant - I have yet to meet anyone who doesn’t have a relative who owns one - and this one was a spit’n’sawdust one. But, although the food was different it was also good, my favourite being a very eggy pancake wrapped around spicy sauce and spring onions. I even tried “smelly tofu”. well just a little because it does stink and it was coated in chilli sauce which took my breath away. At both restaurants four of us played the landlord and farmer card game before the meal. When I had suggested it on Friday night everyone was stunned that I could play - today they suggested mah jong but I had to own up to not having a clue about that.

Coming back the plan had been for me to take my first train ride in China (apart from the Shanghai Maglev) but no, uncle drove us plus dad back. We were dropped in town because I needed meat for the animals and I had rather hoped we had been paid on time but we weren’t so it will be Monday before I am flush again.

At the moment she is with her ex classmates but will return a little later. Going on the trip was most fortuitous (not just because I only spent a total of 30y) because the city was carrying out maintenance on the school electricity station and there was no power or water from 0830 to 1730, an hour after we got back.

Tomorrow Kevin will pick us up at lunch time and we will go to a wine tasting together with Cassandra, afterwards we will all go for a hotpot. On Monday Anita will return to Tongling to tie up loose ends and probably come back here on Wednesday with her wardrobe. I think I will have a houseguest for a few months at least.

In closing I must say I cannot speak highly enough of the hospitality and generosity her family showed me and I look forward greatly to seeing them again. Enjoy the photos - her real father is wearing the police sweatshirt, stepfather is in a photo with him and wearing a leather jacket. The aunt who owns the little restaurant is pictured outside waving goodbye.