Good bye Yantai
Trip Start
Apr 26, 2006
1
14
Trip End
Sep 09, 2006
Shanghai,
China
Friday, June 30, 2006
After visiting Penglai, a magical eastern but very Chinese city further east of Yantai (que even more staring, pointing and spitting than usual) with an a amazing view of a 'floating island' of 50000 Chinese soldiers who only ever came ashore once every two years... and packing and sending a few things home by post(it cost around 5 USD a kilo) it was time to leave Yantai. I couldn't believe my two months was up. Having had a love hate relationship with China I had decided quite firmly that its good points outweighed its bad, especially at the school I was teaching at. In our last week me and Helen visited a rural Chinese secondary school, which was the most intensive experience of my trip so far. Average class size numbered 70 and me and Helen had to 1st answer questions, 2nd sign about a million pieces of paper as 'autographs' and 3rd sing and teach the children a song. It was quite a surprise test of nerves even by Chinese standards - usually any notice is good notice (we were told from hour to hour what they wanted us to do with the kids). But it wasn't to end there. We also had to sit at the head of a very long, round table and answer questions on teaching methods in the UK for the morning which was nerve racking for me as I wasn't sure what they wanted to hear of me and my 'teaching methods' And it didn't help that two of the teachers continually grogged for the duration of a few of my miniature monologues (Helen got an early reprieve) in a very 'rural Chinese' fashion. The most eye opening section of the day was without a doubt the lunch. We sat round a table that whirled around and presented 'delicaciess' in front of you whenever someone at the opposite side of the table felt like offering them to you. There were around 40 toasts to me and Helen for various different spurious reasons. An incredible amount of alcohol was consumed by all parties other than myself whom I deemed 'too young to drink' (never have I ever said this before)One of our translators had to be excused to go and vomit (to be able to return to the table to continue drinking to the toasts as it is considered rude not to be able to inhale the contents of you glass within a moments notice of 'gam bai' being announced from the top of the table) two of the secrateries got so drunk they told me and Helen they were quite in love with us and by the end all this extra food was covered in beer, cigarette ash and dark Baijo from all the glass clinking in the center ( Baijo-the worst 'local spirit' that you have to try to be polite I have ever come across- it smells and tastes like methanol and strength varies from 53% to 63% yet it is still offered to you as 'wine') and I felt like I was participating in some macabre version of family fortunes.
The time came to say goodbye to my students, some of whom I had also had a love hate relationship with but by the end I was sad to say goodbye, especially to some of the teachers who had been helpful to me. But they do say that you always meet people twice in life. We had one final night out with a few people we had got friendly with that lived in Yantai and the other volunteers. I then stepped up into the limelight for my 1st ever Kareoke performance, a rendition not to be missed of Stings Roxxane Red Light. A sight for sore eyes let me tell you all. Then all of a sudden me and Helen were off on the night bus to Shanghai. And this is where my 1st bad travel experience in China comes in, during the night the driver decided that it would be a good idea to sell off the spaces in between the beds (whats an extra 10 people in China) and I got lumped with a fat middle aged Chinese man next to me. The next 8 hours proceeded to be a battle between me and him as to whether or not it was acceptable for him to spread his arms and legs over my abdomen em. Always travel train if possible in China people.
Feeling super elated at being off the bus, me and Helen skipped along the Bund at 5 AM watching the sunrise, and all the insane Chinese Tai Tchee activities. You name it they were doing it on the Bund that sunny morning, everything from walking backwards to clapping their hands behind their back to 90 year old ladies almost in full splits with their legs on walls. Was the best 'old people doing crazy tai tchee' spotting in China so far.
Me and Helen had a wholesome few days in a rather disgustingly hot shanghai, at 60% humidity it was almost too much to bear. We went to the Shanghai art gallery, which I really enjoyed; it was full off old communist socialist realist paintings, an amazing black and white photography exhibition and cool pop art plus some interesting contemporary works on the ground floor. Comes highly recommended as a cheap way to spend a day in pricey Shanghai. This and a tasty Italien meal plus a few excellent goodbye nights out made up our last few days together in Shanghai. Was sad to say goodbye. Felt like a lose end staring into a big abyss of about a month and a half to fill all by myself :( I had to pick myself up though so I went straight to the nearest star bucks and bought myself a ludicrously overpriced Double Chocolate Frappechinno and went to see the 10000 Mao badges in the new 'Dong Lu cultural zone' (you will be cultured in the cultural zone)And it would of made a great picture, however my camera was broken. Hoping to get a new camera sometime soon! I declined to go up to the top of the Gin Mao tower (tallest building in China, 4th in the world) mainly due to the fact that during the day Shangai is as smoggy as Beijing so Im not sure what there would of been to see. ALso, much of my week in Shanghai was spent either hung over, dazed and confused because of the heat or in a deep melancholic state as me and Helen had parted. This laziness was also in part because I rather got in with some of the creatures of the night that seemed to reside in the hostel (you guys know who you are) and I had a few memorable nights out in Shanghai, getting down and (literally) very dirty in a hole of a western club called windows (which was just what I needed after spending 2 months in nightclubs in Yantai trying to fathom how it was possible for Chinese people to dance so completely out of time with any 'music' that was playing and making our own fun.) Other than the nightlife there is not a lot a I can recommend of Shangai. I also jumped on a random bus along the bund and went to see the loading and shipping at the docks which was really cool. One side of the docks is linned with say around 1 million crates which is the daily delivery for Shanghai and on the other side is Walmarts daily delivery- average of 2 million crates.
Having though rely 'done' Shanghai (nights) it was time to go and I hoped on the sleeper with an Aussie guy called Mark to Guilin. We discovered a shared love of Rummy and passed the time easily. The past few weeks have been quite exerting on the old travel brain: (its been out of education two years now guys, whaddya expect) me and Helen had a Godfather moment before we left. Iv been learning and playing as many new card games as possible (Hearts, 25s, Chinese poker, Poker; Texas hold em and 5 card stud) and been listening to much previously unheard of deep house music, que much clicking and whirring as opposed to 'banging' house music that comes highly recommended by Andy whom Im traveling with just now- Isolee and Squarepusher I can so far recommend. Jane Eyre and the Little Prince have so far also proved meaningful travel reading. And not to mention the sudden panic at the end of Shanghai as I realised I was missing a few essential phrases to get myself from A to B (for some reason this seemed to matter less when I was part of a twosome) A desperate attempt to learn as much Chinese as possible seemed to of paid off and I could say pretty much everything that I needed to for my last month in China. Nothing short of a miracle. Strangely enough I met on my travels very few people who seemed bothered by their lack of ability to communicate at all (not that mine was perfect) and it proved very useful in collecting friends on my travels in southern China. Take note anyone who is thinking of traveling in China alone. Anyway enough for now, take care everyone love m
