Friday 17^th May, 2019 1830

Monday I made my first ever hotpot. Not the Chinese version, Betty's (although I suspect hers was made with lamb, mine was beef). As per usual these days, I simply sat drinking wine watching the girls eat, I had a gippy tummy, something I reckon I need to live with perhaps for evermore.

I am always wary of Chinese beef, I think they hang it for just an hour before butchering but I did find a dark red piece and by all accounts my cooking turned it into tenderness personified. Maybe one day I will get to taste it!

I also found out on Monday that despite the students telling me they were Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (in 9 years they have always taken place over three days) sports days this year were merely Thursday and Friday. Blast! That meant classes on Wednesday! But I did them and the “bad” class actually came through after a little cajoling.

With not getting home Wednesday night until 2030 and the school coach leaving for the opening ceremony at 0720 the following morning, it was tempting to just say “sod it” and not bother, simply treat it as a holiday like most Chinese teachers.

However I did not. In a way I regret it, for this year was different. Instead of my lot turning up with all the kindergarten teachers with a brat in tow, they were my students. When the time came to enter the arena for the lap of honour past the Good and the Great, I almost had to break into a jog to keep up! At least with the toddlers they went slow!

By the time we did it I was in pain. The new medicine either doesn't work or needs longer to take effect since I stopped the diclofenac. We did though get to go in the stands afterwards to watch the performances, which in previous years were freestyle but this year every individual college carried out their method of dancing to the same music, three groups at a time. No kung fu, no ribbon dancing, all very similar. My lot did however bag second prize although the consensus of opinion among the foreigners was that they were best. First prize was snared by a department that employed a giant Chinese flag to cover the whole troupe at the end, impressing presumably the judges who included the new headmaster. My lot wore yellow tops and white skirts.

And with a new headmaster it seemed there came austerity. Unlike previous years there was no fleet of coaches to take us all back to our home campuses and so Janet and I found ourselves queueing for an intermittent public bus (after which we needed to take yet another to get to east campus) with all the students from our campus.

By now my feet were on fire and my hip was shouting from the rooftops. Bugger this I said, let's take a taxi. I was quite prepared to pay the 50¥, especially as I was meeting Adriana later for a Japanese lunch. We ended up taking two of Janet's favourite students with us and before she decamped early to go home for lunch she paid using that zapper thing they do on their phones here. I would have paid.

The students assured me the east campus opening ceremony would take place at 1430 (normal restart after lunch for classes) and yet when Adriana and I were walking back from lunch we could hear announcements and stirring military march music. She said it had started, I said no, they're just warming up.

They HAD started!

While she went to the toilet I stood at the entrance in time to watch the flag-raising. Janet was panicking and texted me to ask where I was because I wasn't sat with the dignitaries. Bit difficult to send sign language that you are waiting for a guest in the loo!

By 1430 the opening ceremony was over. Adriana needed to leave as her bus home was imminent, I said I would wait and watch a few races. Janet suggested I exercise my tortured legs and do a tour of the race track to give encouragement to our students and so we did. There was a Quasimodo pushing a whitelining machine and I asked what he was doing.

Bear in mind normally the games would have started the day before, whoever was in charge of planning should have been keel-hauled.

They had only relaid sections of the running track the day before and it was still so wet it was shiny! Matey with the machine was only just repainting the lanes!

I am guessing any games that took place were late last night and this morning. I never stayed for any of them. Words failed me, or at least out of decency I was prevented from uttering them!

Today though I had arranged to take Annie and Alice to Metro. The overriding factor was that to get tonic water I had to buy a case of 24 cans. I needed donkeys to help! The carrots were lunch at Burger King and the promise I would buy frozen spring rolls. It was more than enough.

On the hottest day of the year (allegedly 30C but if it was it merely felt pleasant to me) off we went. Now I know I am an old fart but I never even knew there was a “bear” outside the Mall. Even less would I have considered what Alice was desperate to do – take photos with it! We have now named our trio “Grandpa's Gang” although I have no idea who Grandpa is.......

The girls pigged out on a Whopper and a Double Whopper with onion rings, chips, chicken nuggets and sticks, ice cream and flavoured teas, muggins had the smallest cheeseburger on offer and paid for it all!

Then it was time to shop. With no chest freezer I was mindful of how much I could buy and still fit. They really like their spring rolls and I persuaded them to buy two new types in small packets instead of the huge ones I had bought before with 48 of them. I got my case of tonic, a new supply of cheese and had they had bagels I would have splashed out on smoked salmon and cream cheese, but no bloody bagels. Instead, I bought 5kg of ready-made puff pastry! Apple turnovers, cheese and onion slices spring readily to mind, not to mention enhanced sausage rolls.

After almost passing out at the checkout at the size of the bill, I paid, having asked the girls to split the tonic and evenly distribute the weight three ways.

On the way to get a taxi they kept asking if I was ok, as if I was a geriatric. Male pride (and the fact my hip was bearing up today) came to the fore and I was thinking that those girls were really strong because my bag was all but cutting my fingers to the bone.

Just before we got to the taxis I noticed Alice had a decent bagful but Annie was managing hers in the crook of her elbow. Either she was superhuman or I was toting the combined weight of both theirs!

I was.