Saturday 29th October, 2016                    1930

Well I think we all knew that the I’m All Right Jack wasn’t going to last long, didn’t we? On Friday morning I too was bereft of internet access.

As it happens, I had made hay whilst the sun shone and actually have a goodly amount of BBC programmes stored up for just such an eventuality, having learnt my lesson the last time. When I am connected I watch ITV, YouTube and other sites I can’t download from. It doesn’t make the situation any less annoying but it does make the evening a bit more tolerable.

These days of course, having no internet is miffing for everyone but what it does is completely isolate me. I can hardly go for a chinwag and a pint down the local, I’m a foreigner and one who is completely segregated from my birds of a feather - even my students are an hour away. So yes, isolated. The school may well have advised me that the overcrowded bus problem was “normal” (for them at least, not for me and a typical cop-out for them) but this prolonged nonsense with the internet cannot possibly be considered “normal” unless China has suddenly rejoined the ranks of the word’s poorest nations.

Yesterday I had a first. The voluntary class didn’t want me to show them part of a film! Instead they wanted to communicate. I nearly passed out. Fine by me and as a reward I played Family Fortunes with them. There were only seven in class this time (doubtless the cold and snow deterred others) and they enjoyed it. I suspect Fridays will now involve activities. If only the Cyprus class were the same.

It was interesting to note that whilst my building has had the heating on for a few days now, the classrooms haven’t and neither have the student dormitories, at least not on east campus.

This morning I sent Brenda a text to say that I hadn’t had internet (by then) for 36 hours and I assumed it would be days before anything was done, did she know of an internet café nearby I could take my computer to? I need to take my own because otherwise I can’t access my email, Google not being in favour with Beijing. This time I deliberately avoided complaining because they surely must think my middle name is “moan” by now. I don’t think I will send her any more messages at weekends because she never replies until Monday.

Annoyingly I had to go shopping; although with a little patience and by judiciously waiting until I could see two buses about to arrive at once (both ways) and then hanging back for the second, I bagged a seat out and back. Apart from thinking what on earth I could eat for my dinners, on the journey my mind was churning wondering how I was at least going to get an hour online. Eventually I plumped for stuffed peppers tonight and probably a roast chicken dinner for tomorrow. There is an internet café above the supermarket but I didn’t fancy going back on the bus in the evening because the last time I was in that neck of the woods at night it was impossible to even think about squeezing on a bus, let alone toting a laptop bag to boot. On that occasion I gave up and took a taxi but I have to conserve money.

Back near base I had a thought. Thirty yards away is a small hotel where a couple of times I went and drank a beer in the lobby not long after I came here. I wondered if they had internet so popped in to ask. Just my luck for there to be nobody who spoke English there today. I came home, dumped the shopping and lugged the laptop to the hotel on spec. The Chinese think nothing of going there, using their mobiles to access the free wifi and drinking free green tea but I couldn’t do that so I had to buy a beer. And yes, their internet is working so I spent two hours (and 10y on two small cans so as not to feel guilty) but managed to deal with everything. I even managed to partially download some iPlayer shows but I wasn’t going to sit there all night waiting. Not with plenty to watch when I got home.

At least now I have a relatively simple way to check in online at some point each day, for surely it will be the same tomorrow. I can post this while I am at it and take some disguised jing jo in an iced tea bottle so I can make one can of beer last forever and for show!

Sunday 30th                                      1520

Late last night I had what I thought was a brainwave. As I live so close to the hotel and now knew the name of it (their internet is also so-named) which is Shijai, I wondered if I could get a signal at home. My heart leapt for joy when I saw I had three bars on the signal indicator! Surely I could simply connect from home?

My happiness was short-lived, I have no idea why it won’t connect because the signal strength should be enough, however I was foiled. I am now about to go over there after doing a mini shop, at which time I hope I can download enough to watch tonight. Tomorrow I WILL be moaning, I think weekdays are fair game for complaints, especially after four days without internet when there’s access just yards away?

The roast dinner will have to wait. I washed the dishes just now and then cleaned my oven. Well, sort of. I hate cleaning ovens. You can’t! well at least I can’t - the best I can do is clean the grid and the drip tray. The bulkheads are impossible. I had a Neff once in the UK that was allegedly self-cleaning. It wasn’t.