So what happened after we finished the trek?? The challenges continued, the Fun Bus continued and the strangeness of China continued. Some moments will stay with the Fun Bus though, just because you had to be there.
Back at the Hotel at the end of the trek, we were treated to a glass of champagne, kindly arranged by one of Ron's suppliers. Heaven!
One of my greatest triumphs of the week was teaching Maria how to use chopsticks. Confuscious say "girl who can pick up cherry tomato with eyes shut make very good wife".
AFTER dinner we went to the streetfood market (strange thing to do, but I don't think they thought we would eat anything on offer!)
The array of 'food' on offer was amazing - and all cooked fresh to order. Tempting.....
Here we have sheeps testicles, deer testicles, snakeskins and other stuff
Tim set the ball rolling with a kebab of silkworm pupae. Nobody wanted to be out-done though!
The sales technique was great - "you buy testicles and penis for just 50 Yuan!'. Must try that at some of my restaurants!!
The deer testicles were quite tasty, if a little gristley
and the snakeskin was just foul - chewy, greasy and a horrid texture
The dog was actually quite nice - a bit like the Maccy D's we had the other night
Everything was available (that you would normally stamp on or run away from). I think most of the stock came out of our lodges from earlier in the week!
Ron tucks into a nice bit of penis - Harry's still trying to swallow his mouthful
Gemma and Rachel look glam eating locusts - I can see a guest slot on 'I'm a Celebrity' in the offing!
Jane and Fiona share some Honeybee cocoons - or are they testicles???
Tim became ever-more hardcore - I think he'd missed dinner?
Just like Tesco's deli counter
We ate the smaller versions of these scorpion - far more tender and delicate!
Andrew in action with another penis. This was a popular menu item, appearing on the menu at the Lancaster any day soon!
To protect the innocent, I won't tell you what we've just eaten here. I think the expressions say it all!
The night we went for a massage was hilarious. Phil said not to worry, you keep all your clothes on and there's nothing 'dodgy'. Given that Phil had been wrong on more than one occasion, we weren't sure what was to come.
Tim certainly seemed to be enjoying his foot massage....
... but surprise, surprise, the guys from the Fun Bus had to change into Pyjama bottoms. This is one of the funniest things I've ever done, as we had our feet massaged while Ron taught the girls to sing 'The Wild Rover' and other Irish songs. My feet felt great, but my sides ached with laughter!
We even found a pint of the Oirish in Beijing - although the City is still very primitive in most parts.
We had a day of culture at the end of the week, starting in the forbidden city where the Emperor kept his 3,000 concubines!
There's still a strong military presence, although not that long ago I'd have been shot for taking this photo.
The square is huge, and will apparently hold one million Chinese or half a million Americans, according to our guide Martin!!
This photo will be appearing on my office wall any time soon. What a great group of people!
The locals still find Westerners fascinating, and we were constantly badgered to have our photos taken with them.
Chairman Mao made a personal appearance
and Jason showed how much he loved us by flying the flag!
Lunch was in another local hostelry - we were excited (not) about what might be on offer
and yet again, it was ....... Chinese! The tomato soup was delicious though!
The Chinese tea ceremony was fascinating, and the resultant brews tasted great. I think the theatre of it all made a huge difference and the girls were charming.
The Jasmine blossom tea looked incredible - but I'm not sure whether you'd drink it or put it on the coffee table!
It was absolutely freezing as we set out on our Rickshaw tour of the ancient Hutong District of Beijing.
The 'drivers' were certainly more adept at manoevering and parking than Mr Shin!
Mine & Harry's driver had a big job on his hands, but i did my best to take his mind off things with a little tune on my Gourd Flute
It was a fascinating area, and the food market contained stuff I've never seen before
These 'hands' did look almost human!
Don't even ask what these things were
Andrew avoided the gore and went to buy some Jasmine blossoms - at about one tenth of the price of the tea house!
With huge thanks and congratulations to my fellow Fun Bussers:
Jay: Jay Z, the Jaymeister. Part time tour guide and Kermit impressionist.
Lorraine: Lozzer - the filling in the Ron & Stew sandwich, and my soul mate
Krishnan: Lost for a while!, but came back to the fold.
Ron: The funny, singing, caring, amazing Irishman
Harry: The Fire(water)breathing dragon
Fiona: Flophop to her friends. Ding Dong!
Andrew: The gentleman's gentleman
Maria: My little sparrow and secret Ladyboy with a shewee
and not forgetting our guide, the long-suffering Jason; my vertigo buddy Rachel; Darren the rock; Martin the Move Buster and the members of the Power Rangers. Thank you one and all for an incredible experience!
1 comment:
It looks like you all had an incredible experience, something that you will remember forever! Cant believe how difficult the trek must have been though! Some of the pictures reminded me of when I went to the street markets in Thailand. A very interesting read. Congratulations and well done to all.
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