Wow… So much has happened since my last journal entry that I don’t know where to start.

I’ll begin by saying that my friend Matt, who I’d been doing loads of sight-seeing with and had become good friends with, sadly decided to return to Melbourne. The combination of a contract disagreement, staff problems, and seriously disliking the food here, meant that he couldn’t cope any more. He decided one day that he just had to leave, and the next day he was gone. Bummer! I’ll miss him! Hopefully our paths will cross again one day.

Which is something that has become a regular occurrence here unfortunately!...

A number of friends have left over the last month, and my friend Hamilton is also returning to Australia this Saturday. I’ll be the only one left soon!

The most difficult goodbye was to a guy that I’ve become very close to during my time here, Paul. He’d been teaching in China for a number of years, but decided very recently that he just couldn’t take it any more and found himself a much better teaching position in Oman. So… After a ‘Mission Impossible’ style escape from the university teachers’ accomodation… Paul and I disappeared to Shanghai for some sight-seeing… And for Paul to catch his flight West.

We had a great time visiting the zoo, and even got to see a giant panda… A box that must be ticked in China! Unfortunately, it was a shame that most of the Chinese visitors to the zoo seemed to think that we were part of the entertainment. I think a lot of people spent more time staring and pointing at us than they did at the animals. I wasn’t too bothered by this, but Paul, having already had enough of China, had to try very hard not to rise to the bait. Poor thing! He had a few Elephant Man moments,

“I am not an animal. I am a human being. I am a man!”

Hee hee hee! (Sorry Paul!)

We also spent some time relaxing in a couple of really nice bars, The Blue Frog and Captain’s Bar, on top of the Captain’s Hostel, which has one of the greatest views in the city! It was nice to chill out and chat… But it wasn’t great having his imminent departure hanging over us!

And then… After too short a time… Off he flew.

Such is life! We have however made a pact to meet up again as soon as we can. I must admit Oman looks very tempting, and if not Oman… We’ll meet somewhere in the middle I’m sure… Happy days!

Onwards and upwards…

My guitar lessons are coming along slowly but surely. I'm really enthusiastic still and have progressed from chord practice to learning a few songs. I can play the intro to my favourite song in the world ‘Wish You Were Here’ by Pink Floyd, as well as some Neil Young and some Cranberries’ stuff. I found myself practicing so often that I ended up with huge blisters on my finger tips, so my guitar teacher very kindly took me shopping for nylon strings. Much better!!!

My guitar teacher, Rommel is as cool as it gets... He’s Fillipino, and I swear to god he must think I'm naturally blonde (no offence meant to my lovely blonde friends!). He shows me something a few times, makes it look easy, and by the time he hands my guitar to me I've completely forgotten.

My Mandarin lessons are sooooooo frustrating!!! I can easily remember the words and pronounciation... But remembering which tone to say the words in is just impossible!!!

For example... Take the word 'ma' (nice and simple... so you'd think!)... But depending on what tone you use it can mean 'mother', 'to hit/whip', 'slow', and 'horse'... Plus you use 'ma' on the end of a sentence to turn it into a question...

So...

If you say 'ma ma ma ma ma?'... Using tones 1, 2, 3, 4, then 0... You are asking whether mother whipped the horse because it was slow!!! Mad!!!

Also... Take this poem...

niu niu qian niu, (1st tone, neutral tone, 1st tone, 2nd tone)

niu niu, (2nd tone, 4th tone)

niu niu niu niu (2nd tone, neutral tone, 3rd tone, neutral tone)

... You are actually talking about a girl who was trying to drag a bull, but the bull was too slow, so she pinches it to make it go faster... Obviously!!!

So... You can see why confusion can occur when foreigners attempt to speak the language.

Having said that, I had a great moment the other day.

I asked a street seller for a bottle of water, and she gave me a warm one, so I asked if she had a cold one, which she got for me. Then she asked where I was from, and I told her that I was from England. Then I asked how much the water was, and she told me, and I understood... Then I thanked her and said goodbye... And she said that I was welcome, and said goodbye too.

... An actual conversation (ish?!?). I scared the poor woman when I walked away though. I was so pleased with myself that I started jumping up and down and making whooping noises... She probably now thinks that all westerners are freaks. Oh well!!!

China celebrated mid-autumn and the Moon Festival a week a go… Which meant some time off work… Yaaayy!!! Everyone gave their friends and relatives moon cakes and a huge number of couples decided to get married during this festival weekend. It was all very heart-warming. Some students even gave me moon cakes, which I found very touching… Although… I must admit I found them rather over-rated!!!

The funniest thing ever (which was also seriously unfunny at the time) happened to me the other night. A Chinese hunchback tried to steal my bag!!! Can you imagine? A short hunchback in a suit tried to grab my bag when I was walking to the pub, but the fact that I was about a foot taller than him meant that I over-powered him and he scuttled away. I mean… If he had managed to grab it from me, did he seriously think he could out-run me?!? He didn’t look like he was a member of the hunchback athletics society!!!

The incident itself wasn’t actually that bad… But the fact that so many people stood around and watched, without thinking of coming to my rescue, bothered me more. By the time I arrived at the pub, I was told I looked rather hysterical… Can anyone blame me?!?

Well… I have a million other things I could talk about, but I’ll end this entry on that high note.

I’ve added a couple of pictures to the site… Some of Paul and I in Shanghai, and also a couple of my friend Mike with the sign outside of his apartment, which says, ‘No Speeling’… What?!? Who on earth translated that?!?

I hope everyone is well, and I send big hugs to you all. I miss you all loads and love getting your emails!

E xxx