Saturday 26^th September, 2020 1520

Well Wednesday went well, the translation/international dept had clearly got their act together. Thursday was the turn of the English dept. First class was fine. Second class only half turned up initially as they'd only just been informed. The third class never turned up at all!

Somewhat annoyed, I sent a text to the Dean (which she replied to at 2320 hrs!) and at five I thought to hell with it and came home. The reason for the no-show? The freshmen all had to attend a lecture but nobody saw fit to tell me. The really irksome thing is that I had been feeling exhausted and ropey all day and would gladly have welcomed the chance to leave at four-twenty.

Not feeling too bad today although I have been turning in unconscionably early due to fatigue.

Yesterday I went to collect my passport, complete with legal documentation good until next September. I also asked them to get me a green code for Xining and it took four of them scratching their heads to eventually, after half an hour, to get one. Sadly I am completely unable to replicate their feat so when I travel I will try to simply wave a Lanzhou green and hope they don't stop me and if they do, beg for their help! At least I know it is possible and the code wouldn't be red.

But I got to thinking. My current passport expires in August 2022. My initial plan was to break my habit of not travelling far in spring festival and go to Shanghai in January or February of 2022 to apply for a new one. For some years now the Passport Office has ceased the option of UK citizens in China obtaining replacement passports via post, which is how I got this one.

It's a bloody imposition because I will have to go to either Chongqing, Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou, all of which are a two-hour plus flight from here – and by appointment only! There seems to be an option to appoint a proxy to both apply for and a month later collect the new one. No idea what that entails but now I am wondering if I can cajole someone in Shanghai into 1) taking me to the consulate and 2) agreeing to return later to collect the new one if I decide to do it next summer when I will doubtless go to Shanghai anyway.

What with the state of the world right now I have a suspicion that even by next August international travel may still not be viable and even if it is, I would be too scared of getting locked out of China.

As for retirement plans, well therein lies a quandary. What with Joan backing out I can't see myself opening a bar, there's no chance of me having the sort of money needed and a Chinese bank would never give me a loan. Joanna voiced that she would happily run a bar if I opened one but it would still involve finding someone with the financial clout to make it happen.

I won't be able to actually work (other than being mein host) but I am sure I could make a go of it, eventually expanding into food. Alternatively Jody's brother specialises in visas so she could get him to organise me a business visa (and hopefully he can incorporate companies) and maybe it would be possible to open a business which may actually never do business!

I know it is almost two years away but it will pass faster than I expect and I need a plan.