Not a lot to report this week as I've spent most of the week in bed/apartment trying to fight off this dreadful cold. Didn't even get to go out for my birthday...,was just not feeling up to it and by then I'd lost all sense of taste and could not see the point in spending a lot of money on food I couldn't enjoy. Once I've recovered I intend to head off to the Aussie bar for a good feed of imported Aussie steak and chips!!! Not very exciting you might say but given I've not had any since a August it's my treat to myself!!

I gather from the news that Aus has been experiencing a heat wave with all the associated natural disasters that follow.....a total contrast to what I'm experiencing here. Today we are expecting a high of THREE degrees!!! Needless to say this weather is not aiding my recovery. But I am on the countdown till I depart for warmer weather for my holiday......only 15 sleeps to go and then I'll be in decent temperatures of high 20s/early 30s....absolute bliss for 2 weeks. Hopefully enough to then see me through the rest of this ghastly winter that is experienced in Nanjing.

Fortunately the night before I became ill I had the pleasure of attending a friends wedding party. Things are done very differently here......although they have been formally married (in the legal sense) for 18 months they had not had their wedding party. Therefore with the return of relatives from overseas the ideal opportunity arose to finally have the party which can only be described as a grand ocassion with overly elaborate formalities....Very OTT!!!

As an esteemed guest I was seated at the table with the bride and groom!! I was the only foreigner there apart from the groom so got to practice a bit of my Chinese mixed in with the English that a number of guests at my table could speak. Quite comical at times especially when I got my tones wrong and said a totally different word to what I intended!

Amy clearly decided that she wanted her wedding party to be a night NEVER to be forgotten. Her white dress was an amazing concoction and described quietly to me by the groom as looking like a peacock! Apparenetly earlier in the day they had formal photos in varioius locations around the city in which Amy wore a different white dress!! Fitting with Chinese tradition Amy then changed into a red dress.....now the groom and I were expecting to see a beautiful qipao...but oh no.....we see this red dress with an enormous bottom on it - so much so that we had to push her dress under the table so she could sit down to eat!!!!

The wedding feast consisted of many delicacies including chicken feet, eel and turtle!! Now I've got used to the sight of chicken feet even though I cant bring myself to eat them but the sight of a turtle on a plate...complete with its shell on its back and head poking out was almost too much for me. Especially when, as the esteemed guest, I was offered the turtles HEAD........I almost died on the spot and then had to very delicately get myself out of the situation without offending anyone. Fortunately it came out quite late in the proceedings so I begged off pleading that I had simply eaten too much already and then deftly asked the gentleman sitting next to me if he would do the honours in my place!!! PHEEW....got away with that one...saving face...and managing to compliment another guest in the process. And I thought organisational politics was difficult....a piece of cake compared to this dilemma!!!

Having got through the dinner it was then time for the fun and games. we had the "double happiness" lottery tickets and wedding candy which symbolises the 'embodiment of sweetness". The game was based on Mahjong of which I know nothing about (Mum, where were you when I needed you!!) and we has to call out things .....well I was simply reading out the charaters that I could understand and by chance said the right word at the right time and managed to win a soft toy!!! Hows that for luck as well as a good laugh!!!

How could I forget......one guest even for esteemed than me......Amy and Paul's dog!!!! No ordinary dog but one pampered pooch that was suitabley dressed for the ocassion with a white satin outfit complete with pearl necklace and red bows. I know a few of you will love this so I added photos especially for you!!

Having endured the delights of Chinese wine throught dinner it was with trepidation that I then went onto the baijiu with the guests at my table. Apparently I made quite a hit (according to the groom) as not many women can "gambei" as often as I did........not too difficult for an Aussie who is used to drinking alcohol with a strength greater than about 3% which seems to be the average for beer here!! Even Amy's grandfather came over form his table to "gambei" (bottoms up) with the foreigner and was honoured that I would join him. Needless to say I didn't feel the cold on my way home that night!

Well that its for now. Keep enjoying your summer and I will keep enduring my winter. Bye for now. xx