Today was yet another sunny and dry day. We've been very lucky during our UK visit so far. Rumours of a wetter day tomorrow though. We shall see.
Yesterday we took a train down to Hereford to stay with my brother Dave and his family. A very warm welcome and delicious food. Today we walked into Hereford centre, where Ava loves the charity shops, with a picnic in the Cathedral grounds. JD is fascinated by the "dead people" in the churches, Cathedrals and Abbeys he has visited and now thinks any and every statue must contain a dead person! He's "clicked" with his cousins really quickly which gives Ava and I a bit of a break at times through the day.
Today was yet another sunny and dry day. We've been very lucky during our UK visit so far. Rumours of a wetter day tomorrow though. We shall see. Today was our Open Day where we invited a lot of friends and family to come to my Mum and Dad's house for a chat over food and drink. We welcomed ex-work colleagues [eg Susie from Futurekids and Alan from National Power, in picture, left], family [eg cousins Maureen and Dorothy, left side below] and friends from College days [eg Ratch and Catherine, below] plus many others. It was a lovely event, held outside in the sunshine with a gazebo for those who preferred the shade. Thanks to everyone who travelled from near and far to come see us. It was terrific to catch up with you all again. Jiajia, JD and I will be moving into a small flat early next year while our main house is remodelled and redecorated. After 4-6 months we should be able to return to a beautiful "new" abode - at least, that's the plan. The new flat is on the 11th floor and overlooks a Kindergarten now sporting a natty new name!
Kudos to my brother Dave for taking the huge leap of accepting voluntary redundancy from his well-paid but very stressful job as Director of the fastest growing Housing Association group in the country, and setting himself up as a self-employed training consultant. It was easy enough for me to take voluntary redundancy when I was in my twenties with no family commitments, but Dave has had to consider so many more factors. He has so much experience and so many skills to offer, though, I'm sure it will be a great success. Click here for more information. Good luck bro'!
Today was a recovery day after the journey back to China, and a largely sleepless night with an upset and screaming JD. None of which is being helped by a stinking cold with all the requisite symptoms. The school term starts tomorrow and Lattitude, the charity for whom I do teacher-training ever 6 months (starting on Monday), is having all sorts of problems getting their volunteers' visas. So I've no idea how many students, if any, I'll have turn up next week. But the UK trip was so worth it. We only just made it, with Jiajia's suspected TB and confirmed pneumonia, and plans were changing all the time. But you can't beat family, can you? Or good friends. Everyone rallied round and were so generous with their time, energy and money. JD has a whole new bunch of relatives and he grew up an awful lot in those three weeks. Let's hope there's less trauma when we (hopefully) return in Summer 2016. The countdown has begun! [PS 27th Feb: I had a fever last night and woke without a voice! Jijaia is still coughing - 5 months and counting. But at least the Lattitude volunteers all got their visas finally, so a full cohort next week]
Andy's second surprise was a belated gift for my 50th Birthday - tickets to a Premiership match; Southampton v Liverpool. So Andy, his son Louie (birthday treat for next week) and I braved torrential rain and bitter cold to take our seats and cheer on the Saints. Well, as an Everton supporter, I didn't want Liverpool to win, right? It was a good match with controversial penalty decisions and a stunning first goal. Sadly the best team lost; 2 v 0 to Liverpool. Great fun though.
We are staying with my youngest brother Andy and his family now after a wonderful time with Dave and family in Hereford. Andy has a few surprises up his sleeve for our time and the first was for JD - a fantastic "Thomas the Tank Engine" model steam train ride in a nearby park. JD is a big fan of the TV series and could barely contain his excitement at the trip. We walked around the lake and played in the playground first, to build the anticipation levels and then straddled the engine and puffed our way back to the car park. One of the things Jiajia likes most about the UK is the easy access to beautiful, natural scenery. I must confess to sometimes being a little blasé about rolling hills and wide-open spaces but what I do thoroughly enjoy though are her ooohs and aaahs as she sees scene after scene of countryside views. Symonds Yat [below] was well worth the drive that got us there. Stunning views looking down on the winding river below, whilst birds of prey hover above. JD meanwhile was more taken with the local Fire and Mountain Rescue Team doing various exercises which saw them swimming across the bitterly cold Wye river before coming to each others' rescue with ropes and floats. Something for everyone.
I haven't ice-skated since I was a youth, so it was fun to head to a small rink in an industrial estate today to give it another go. Esme and Josh were embarrassingly confident. I looked carefree when pushing JD around on a little sledge - less so without the support. JD loved it though. Sometimes he looked a bit nervy, but whenever I paused to catch my breath he was shouting, "...again, again!".
Here at Dave's we've enjoyed meeting up with our ex-Kunming friends Peter and Judy [above], an old mate of mine Krista, and her hubbie Stuart, and the Sams family [right]. Our friends mean a lot to us as a family as Ava has very few relatives and mine are usually many thousands of miles away. So to keep in touch by email, Skype or letter means a lot. And our visits to the UK provide a brief but valuable way to renew friendships. When we made the last minute decision to UNcancel our trip to the UK after Ava's TB scare and pneumonia, we knew we'd have to cut back on our planned travels to see all and sundry. Thankfully, many of our friends and family have put themselves out to come and visit us at the places where we are basing ourselves. At my parent's house three College friends travelled down to say "Hi", while various uncles and aunts popped in to meet JD and catch up on our news.
A picturesque train, taxi, train, train journey has brought us to my brother Dave's home in Hereford. JD met Dave and his daughter Esme last year when they visited us in China, but it's Dave's son Josh who has most grabbed JD's attention. JD is following him around like a doting puppy, discovering all Josh's toys like a never-ending treasure trove. It's been great to catch up with Dave and his wife Sarah, and their kids (including the friendly little girl they are currently fostering). Ava and I are seriously thinking about settling down in the Herefordshire area when we move to the UK to retire, so we are taking the opportunity to pop into estate agents and visit various houses and builders during our time here. We've also popped into the doctor's twice whilst here too, as Ava's cough is showing no sign of improvement, poor thing. His favourite "new" food is yoghurt, partly for the taste and texture, and partly for the opportunity to daub himself and get a few laughs. Ava is still coughing a lot after her pneumonia, so we're taking things fairly easy these first few days. Rather than travelling around, as originally planned, we're being visited at my parents' house by various relatives and close friends. We've finally arrived in the UK and are slowly getting over our jet-lag, although with JD waking up at 2am or 3am each morning, wanting to play, it's a tiring business. It's so nice to see him getting to know his Nanny and Granddad who he's only seen on Skype before. Today we were treated to a late Christmas meal, complete with paper hats and crackers. JD is enjoying western food and eating by himself a lot more. Dave and Esme have had surprisingly little jet lag and have been keen to get out and about during their first full day in Kunming before heading on to other cities, towns and villages. They started today with a visit to the house to meet JD, ma-in-law and our Nanny. JD quickly forged quite a bond with Esme and was very happy to be held and played with for as long as she had the patience. Then off to Green Lake Park to see impromptu dancing and singing, followed by the more tranquil, YuanTong Temple [shown here, with umpteen turtles]. It's Kunming's largest and most active temple and we enjoyed exploring the various sections. We were also lucky enough to stumble across 25-30 local ladies (and a few men) chanting and hitting various bells and drums as part of one of their services. We were treated to a visit from Daizzy and her family this week. She was in Kunming for a couple of days from Qiaojia (5 hours away by car - used to be 13!) where she lives and works as an English teacher. I did a week of training there some 8 years ago and we have kept in touch ever since. The weather was hot and warm and her daughter, "Amber", enjoyed playing on the slides with JD in our local children's park. Unfortunately, the following day was suddenly quite cold and wet and, perhaps because of that, I found myself feeling quite dizzy throughout the day (something I suffered from a lot a few years ago, but have been free of since). Hopefully it's just a blip on the health front.
It is our good friend Gemma's birthday today and, despite her being off travelling somewhere between Bali and Australia at the moment, we decided to buy her a gift for when she returns. So meet "Gemma", the orange fish above. And when we found out how cheap the fish were (Sorry, Gemma! 2RMB each = 20p a fish!) we decided to buy two more to keep her company. Meet "George" (black) and "Margaret" (white) named after the G & M in Gemma's name - purely coincidental that my parents share the names (...Jiajia chose them, honest!). Wonder how long they'll survive for (...the fish, that is, not my parents)? Were we meant to buy food or something?
For any readers who didn't receive my Christmas newsletter... Thank you for keeping up with the blog throughout another year. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year! [PS ...sadly my Granddad died a few days after this newsletter was sent out]
I'd already said my goodbyes to Granddad on leaving for China twice before, not expecting to see him on each return. He'd been "looking forward" to the end for some time, firmly believing in a heavenly reunion with his wife, my Nan, who passed away a decade earlier. He was a really fantastic chap; hard-working (farmer, decorator), principled (a concientious objector in WW2), constantly cheerful and with a heart for everyone. It's a real shame JD will never meet him.
The photo top left shows Lesley James Harris (JD's first initial is from Granddad's middle name) as a child, front centre. The picture below shows him surrounded by his four children (two with their spouses) and his first two grandchildren. I was his eldest grandchild (bottom right) with my parents behind me and my brother Dave showing off! My two younger brothers and their families has a nice Christmassy get-together recently [see photo above]. It's very frustrating not to be able to join in with meet-ups like that, especially at this time of year. Meanwhile my parents were coping with the aftermath of a large tree from next door crashing down into their garden and smashing two fences. The tree's now been cut up and removed [see photo right] but the clear-up continues! My parents had a clear-out of their attic the other day and sent me some photos from my youth, many of which I'm pretty sure I''ve not seen before. This one is me and my great-grandfather, of whom I have no memory. JD is unlikely to meet his great-grandfather sadly - he's reached 102 years but is failing fast apparently. The three school photos below record just how easy it is to go from sweet to swot to geek! A warning to all. It was kind of my parents to send Jiajia and I a Wedding Anniversary card, received yesterday. A bit bewildering though, as we were married at the end of July, 2011. But my parents are not to blame - the postmark clearly shows it was stamped on 2nd July. So it took 4½ months to arrive here! No idea why, as the address was in Chinese as well as English and I usually get post through in about 3 weeks. Still, better late than never I guess! JD's finally ready to eat with us at the table and, courtesy of a high-tech high-chair, which my parents in the UK kindly funded as a Christmas present, he's now eating his milk and mush at the same level as the rest of the family. Eating is still his main problem area, however. He is all smiles and curiousity and gurgles, until he sees that dreaded milk bottle or bowl of mashed-up food. Then it's cries, squirms and a huge fuss. Despite how comfortable the high chair is, JD seems to prefer the box it was delivered in! Surrounded by toys and able to sit up and lean on the sides, he can play there for ages, watching people come and go around him. He also got a lovely reading book in the post from UK friends yesterday, but it was the plastic wrapping around it that really took his fancy! What can you do? My Grandad is a marvel. His had his 102nd birthday yesterday (yes, that's 1-0-2!!) and has only recently started showing signs of deteriation in body and mind. I've already said my "last goodbyes" to him twice, and I may have to do it once again if he's still around in another year's time! He's led a fascinating life, as some readers may know, including being a "concientious objector" in World War 2. So I wish him a really Happy Birthday with (dare I say it?) many more years to come!! Please don't let your siblings end up like this. Pledge whatever you feel you can afford by clicking here. Do everything in your power to help unfortunates like my brother Dave and his wife Sarah. Thank you so much, on their behalf.
It's very strange when separate worlds collide... today my boss(es) Robert (Norfolk) and wife Rachel [far right and second left] met with my parents [centre] at Robert's parents' house [his mother left, his father taking the photo] in the UK. They had a delicious garden lunch in gorgeous sunshine (hence 4 x sunglasses and 1 x squint) before exchanging anecdotes and gifts from, and to, China. Very jealous!
Yesterday saw a World Record broken in Yunnan (and it wasn't the speed at which I managed to get to the toilet during an upset tummy of a night!). It was actually Chinese tightrope walker Aisikaier Wubulikaisimu walking 18m (58ft) between two hot air balloons suspended over Kunming's Stone Forest in just 38 seconds - the fastest ever such traverse. It may not sound that fast, but it took my parents longer to walk through the main gate of the Stone Forest when they visited there a couple of years ago.
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AuthorPaul Hider lives and works in Kunming (SW China) and regularly updates this blog about his life there. Past blog entries
April 2024
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