DAY 18 - 05-02-2009 YANGSHOU

Up early today. Droped me laundry off with Manuel, should be read this evening.

Heather, John, Sophie and me met this fella in the reception area and he took us to the local park to teach us a bit of Tai Chi. The park was masive and packed with local Chinese doing Tai Chi to music and playing cards on these stone tables and chairs that are all over the place, we all said that they wouldnt last five minutes in an English park.

Saw a five piece band practicing, there were two of these large four stringed mandolin things, two of these one stringed instrument they were playing with a bow and a bamboo flute. Sounded canny good!!

The little fella (never found out his name, he looked a bit like Penfold off of Danger Mouse) took us to a quieter part of the park. Before we started he gave us a bit of history and explained the steps. Then he started to take off his trousers which revield a pair of shiney satin white Tai Chi pants. The basic form is 24 steps, we learned 5 of them in an hour. It was so good to do and pretty hard. He kept saying pusshhh the baaalllll, puusshh the baaallllll. There were no balls!!!!
The passing Chinese thought it hilarious and kept taking photos of us doing it.

After a shower we met up with Rachel and all went for breakfast and the sun had his hat on and he was coming out to play. It was red hot. Proper sunglasses and T-shirt weather. The sun burnt of alot of the mist and fog that we had yesterday so the surrounding mountains looked incredible.

Wandered round and me and John got bartering with a fella for a Mahjong set. Which we got for half the price.

Whilst I'm showing off me bargining skills, we went down to the river and got a boat (I say a boat it was entirely made from Bamboo apart from a metal frame used as a sun sheild) for 15 Yuan each when she started of at 60. She started papping her sel when we were walking towards the other boat peddlers, she kept tutting and saying 'no money, no money' when she agreed the fare.

We were on the boat just over an hour and it took us down the river away from the town. It was dead peaceful and quiet. We saw the Cormarant fishermen and young lads fishing from single man boats with rod and line. We saw ladies washing their clothes in the river. Oxes drinking from the river. All these river boats that people lived on. It was brilliant.

Went for a coffee and had a bash at Mahjong, now thats a pretty tough game to understand. John had played it before and tried to teach us. Its nothing like the Mahjong on the PC when you just match up the tiles. This is hardcore Mahjong.

Got me laundry back in one piece, that Manuel must work canny hard!

Went for some dinner and then drinks then when we came back to Fawlty Towers in the early hours of the morning the buildings in front of the hotel had gone. Totally knocked down. I thought for one second that I was in an episode of Fawlty Towers, kept expecting Manuel to come running in saying ' Mr Fawlty, Mr Fawlty, where is the hotel, it no there anymore'

Crazy Stuff!!!!!