It always promised to be a day with a difference but I never knew precisely how different!
The first thing to go wrong was that when I woke up we had a pea-souper of a fog. That wasn’t in the plan. It was also colder than anticipated but I wasn’t letting that get in the way.
Pepsi and I had a chilly ride to the vets where she is now presumably thinking she has been abandoned and then I rode to the station. The fog was so dense when I got to junctions I couldn’t see what colour the traffic lights were so I questioned my wisdom in pressing on regardless.
I made it to the bus station and requested a ticket to Tongling. The station was eerily empty but I assumed it was because everyone else had already travelled. Only one girl was manning the ticket counter and she didn’t speak English but thankfully (or not!) another customer behind me had a smattering. He translated. It was not what I wanted to hear. No buses at all today but I could buy a ticket for tomorrow. I had only two ways of getting to Tongling - a lengthy and cold e-bike ride (and no way could I have made it in one hit without charging) or a taxi.
Outside I agreed an exorbitant price of 300y with the first driver in the queue ad started to get in. this created uproar from other drivers who tried to prevent me. This in turn saw my inner Mr Angry surface. I had agreed a deal, I wasn’t happy at paying fifteen times the price of the bus and so I was sticking to it. Brushing them aside I sat in the cab only for the driver to exit and have an argument with the others. Ultimately he came back and told me to get out and take the second taxi! Patently the rank system doesn’t apply here.
Anyway, we set off and in the fog not only made a few wrong turnings (even I know the way) but also found ourselves driving on the wrong carriageway twice. With many drivers either displaying no lights or just hazard flashers and a driver intent on overtaking at any cost I did find myself worrying if I would live much longer. Halfway into the trip another cab came the other way and flagged us down. This saw me swapping cars and the other passengers hopping in mine! Amazingly, when we got to the outskirts of Tongling and stopped at lights two women jumped in the back and demanded the driver take them somewhere as well. By now this was turning into not only an expensive day but one of the strangest so all I could do was chuckle. This is China!
I was dumped on a corner with no idea of which hotel I was supposed to be staying in - Amy had booked it - because there was one on each corner. Eventually she came with her father and brother to find me, Sod’s Law, standing outside the wrong hotel. Once booked in we walked to their home where I was given drinks and offered snacks, the latter of which I refused because I knew mum would be pushing the boat out this evening and I wanted to at least try to eat a bit of everything. After a couple of hours I took my leave as I had gotten up so early I needed a siesta before the evening.
Dinner was at five and as you will see from my photo there was plenty of food, in fact after I took the picture another three dishes were produced. We had beef, chicken, pig tongue and trotter and other things such as fish soup and meatball soup, all made by Amy’s mum.
After dinner four of us played the landlord and farmer card game at which I lost but only about 10y and then they set their fireworks off earlier than I suspect they had intended, this because Amy told them (in Chinese) that I was a little “boring” (for that read bored) and perhaps I wanted to go to my hotel. I wasn’t bored at all but I had said if they were going to watch the gala on TV I would be because I wouldn’t understand it.
Regardless, I took my laptop specifically to show the parents the video because Amy is in it and they seemed to enjoy it. Dad (much younger than me) was probably tired but for a moment I suspected he was becoming emotional over parts of the film. I did though have a terrific and unique day notwithstanding the early setbacks. Better still, Qing has arrived a day early so I shall definitely see her tomorrow.
It has been like a war zone here all day and of course soon it will be midnight so Armageddon will be here. I will post this and at midnight I am going out to watch Apocalypse Live!
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