As per yesterday I didn’t think I would be blogging today either. And to use an Americanism, I am plum tuckered out.
Sitting in my home this morning (and having dreamt up an activity for this week’s classes) I simply thought to myself that whilst the day was cool it was nevertheless sunny and it was just too good not to do something. So at almost noon I resolved to take a shower, get dressed and take Pepsi exploring. Yes, after more than three years here I went and took the ferry across the mighty Yangtse River.
I knew how to get there as it is halfway to Meilong, where I have been a few times when Kiki was doing summer school teaching, however I had no idea of cost, whether I could take the bike or in fact Pepsi. It took twenty minutes to get to the bend in the road where you go right to Meilong or, as I had hitherto thought (thanks Google maps), branching left and visiting a small village. The village is indeed small even by UK standards with the shops entirely clustered around a triangular “roundabout” but carry on and after about a mile you are at the ferry boarding point.
Being a foreigner I simply stopped behind the queueing four wheeled traffic and waited. Until another e-bike arrived and completely bypassed the queue. Ok, I was on an e-bike and I am a dotty laowei so I did likewise. Cars, trucks and buses have to wait behind a barrier until incoming traffic is cleared because otherwise it would be gridlock due to the narrow approach road but e-bikes and motorbikes are encouraged to get aboard first. Riding one has its advantages!
Once the ramp was lowered and the ferry was cleared I bagged a spot right at the front, other bikes lining abreast in short order. Pepsi was petrified - no surprise there - but at one thirty we cast off and set sail. A chap came and extracted 6y (60p) from me for what turned out to be a return ticket. Naturally, I became a focus, not just for the other riders but also car and bus passengers who came to chat with me in vain in mandarin. I did take my camera and although the sunshine was hazy on the river I took some photos. I was struck, considering how far inland we are, by the sheer volume of marine traffic there is on the river. From small boats to barges to proper small ships, there was an unending stream of them.
As we approached the northern side of the Yangtse I watched (sitting on my bike of course) water buffalo wallowing free on the riverbank. It is a measure of the speed of the current that outbound the trip took half an hour but the return later just fifteen minutes. When we “docked” (ramp down on the hard standing, no moorings and engines keeping the vessel in place) off I set into the unknown.
I rode for as long as I dared, bearing in mind if I ran out of power it would take at least an hour to get some juice into the bike providing I could find someone to let me plug in. No I never took any pictures, simply because all I saw were identical small villages no different to those closer to home. One thing did annoy me though. Here I was less than 15 miles away from home and yet whenever I stopped to ask for a bin pijou (cold beer) nobody understood what I was saying! And people ask me why I don’t learn Chinese??
When I thought I had pushed my luck with the batteries far enough I backtracked. The road had been hairy as it was, what with being only just wide enough for two way traffic let alone bloody great trucks hurtling past me inches away. I tried again to get a cold beer but obvious restaurants were in short supply so eventually I simply went back to the return boarding place. At least there I was able to get a room temperature pijou whilst waiting for the ferry to arrive, after which I again jumped the queue for boarding.
All things considered the trip was probably a waste of time but having said that, at least I can say I have done it, all it cost me was 10y for the fare and the beer and I did have some good interaction with the locals who were crossing with me even if none of us could understand the other!
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