Back to village life.

It's taken four days but the jet lag is now largely gone and we're almost back to functioning as normal humans. Those 15 hour flights sure know how to interfere with happily established circadian rhythms. 50 years ago we could take the overnight flight from LA and get off the plane in London bright and bushy tailed. These days we're ready for a holiday by the time we've made it through security to the boarding gate. 

A final few comments about China.

The West Lake at Hangzhou has gardens that go back to the 8th century. Some folks say they're older than that ( the nearby Grand canal to Beijing dates to the 5th century BC ) but seeing gardens that are 1300 years old is good enough for us. Can there be anywhere else on earth with as many azaleas ? The place is a gem.

The weather when we got there was bad. Hot, sultry and with low cloud that sometimes picked up the courage to drizzle. Walking in this sauna like heat was exhausting so we opted for a tour by electric boat. On a clear day this excursion  must be as close to heaven as a tourist can get. Our boat had a crew of three to look after the two of us. Two men steered and a young woman prepared and served tea. Halfway through sustenance arrived in the shape of a plate of tired looking strawberries. All of the crew thought it odd that we should from time to time want to venture onto the deck rather than stay in the air conditioned cabin. None of them spoke a word of English which says volumes about tourism in China. If we did venture out onto deck one of them would come and attempt to usher us back inside like stray chickens. All wore very smart navy blue uniforms that had something of the 19th century Prussian postal system to them.

Some of the pagodas and temples get busy. I mean crazy busy. In fact  neither of us have ever seen so many people in one spot. We'd not understood that Hangzhou is a BIG Chinese tourist destination. It makes Kyoto in peak season look quiet. I'd still have to say that the biggest shock ( amongst many ) for European visitors to the Shanghai area is the sheer number of people.

The sultry weather follows us back up to Shanghai.

Business Class on Chinese railways has the longest leg room of any trains we've ever been on. The seats fold out like First Class airline seats. Our journey is only an hour but some folks have been on the train for a seven hour trip down to Hainan. By the time we board the carriage is nearing the end of its journey and has a ' well lived in' look that passengers on ScotRail will immediately recognize.

Weekends, it seems,  are peak marriage time. Some young couples opt for a 'traditional' look.

It's also the time for folks from the 'burbs' to come into town. They have a ' we're determined to enjoy ourselves' vibe.

'The Font' insists on visiting an exhibition of Chinese fashion of the 20's and 30's.  I express my displeasure but it turns out to be interesting and surprisingly 'cheeky' for puritan China.

How did these clothes survive the barren uniformity of the cultural revolution ?  Did they continue to make silk during the upheavals ? There's nothing to tell us.

All Chinese hotel rooms are supplied with these.

Back in Scotland life is moving along at a hectic pace. We saw our first student heading off home for the summer. To have no exams must make these early leavers the envy of their friends. Exams start on Monday so give it a couple of weeks and the town will start thinning out big time as the students head off. The farmers wife continues to be on tenterhooks over her youngest and his bac exams. He is of course fixated on the upcoming trip to the World Cup and treats the exams with a insouciant disregard that drives her mad.

Talking to strangers. Thought for the day :https://miniphilosophy.substack.com/p/when-did-a-stranger-change-your-life

Larry, the Downing Street cat, has an iconoclasts sense of humour :https://x.com/Number10cat

A new ( old ) discovery :https://x.com/ProfTCSchmidt/status/2046565772235776211

The ultimate Taiwanese movie ? :https://notnottalmud.substack.com/p/on-yi-yi-my-favourite-movie-and-why

Microdramas. The next big thing from China :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNAWtuWzToE

Quiet, but welcome, progress :https://x.com/anishmoonka/status/2045757539409621414

A shimmering necklace

23 degrees here in Scotland yesterday. The same temperatures forecast for today. That's warmer than it was in Shanghai. The garden is parched. Rain is forecast on Sunday. It will be welcomed by the local farmers. The farm track is so dry that clouds of fine dust drift into the sky whenever a van or tractor drives along it.

The reason for going all the way to Shanghai was to see The Bund. A collection of stunning 1920's era buildings that stretch for a mile or so along one bank of the river. They miraculously survived the traumas of the 30's and 40's largely undamaged. At night they are floodlit and shimmer like a mile long strand of limestone coloured pearls. Even the most jaded of travellers would have to say it is a truly wonderful sight. We find ourselves standing for twenty or thirty minutes just soaking it all in. It's a long time since anything ot anywhere was awesome enough to make us do that. At night tens of thousands of teenage TikTokers capture the scene for posterity. For the Chinese May Day holiday the place attracts millions.

On the other side of the river from our hotel the brightly lit spires of the new business district - an Asian Manhattan. A professor from the university says that in the early 90's half of the worlds entire output of cement was used in building the new city . This seems excessive but who am I to judge ? If you add in the huge new airport and the motorways and railway arches then there might be a kernel of truth in the statement.

The view at night is indeed bucket list worthy. Shanghai is built on a working river and to our surprise barges, sightseeing boats and tankers ( and a couple of destroyers ) plough back and forwards day and night.

During the day it's also pretty impressive.

Foreigners tend to go on 'western' style night cruises or have private yacht trips arranged by their hotels. We took a Chinese one. The party animals on our boat were avid consumers of neat alcohol. The presence of Europeans on our cruise with Chinese characteristics was clearly unusual. People would come onto the deck and stare at us. This slightly unnerving response also happened to us on a station platform in Udaipur. 

Book reviews :https://www.millersbookreview.com/p/who-killed-the-book-review-newspaper-book-coverage-is-dying-but-dont-hold-a-funeral-for-literary-culture

Most amazing thing I've read all year :https://x.com/anishmoonka/status/2045064737478848687

A story about Starbucks :https://substack.com/home/post/p-195863299

On order . The old one has worn out :https://store.anatomica.jp/en/products/single-raglan-coat-1-gabardine-navy

Mischief is universal.

There was a time when travelling was easy. You bought a ticket, got on a plane and then at your destination showed your passport to an immigration official who would stamp it and let you in. These days you have to deal with AI and 'time saving ' machines that take your picture and demand your finger prints. That's fine if the technology works. At Shanghai it didn't . The automatic passport readers refused to read. After six attempts we were forced to download a QR code to access an online form which required slow and laborious filling in. On an i-Phone that's easy for those with nimble fingers but for those who don't it means you're forever entering the wrong letter or number on the screen and having to start again. It took us an hour and a half to make it to the passport counter. Our process was quick in comparison with some.

We'd been told that the West Lake and the gardens in Hangzhou were bucket list must sees. After an easy journey down from Shanghai on a bullet train we settle in for a glass ( or two ) of wine to reclaim our humanity. A very proud grandmother is meeting a friend in the lobby bar of our hotel. She's brought  her grandson. I'd reckon he's all of 18 months old. The wee boy is fussed over in the way only a proud first time grandmother can. While she and her friend are deep in conversation the lad  silently slips off the sofa and heads to the centre of the hotel foyer which has a large and complex flower arrangement. Low level flower arrangements are the sort of thing that attract toddlers like iron filings are attracted to a magnet. There is a loud and piercing shriek as granny looks up just as the small boy is about to launch himself onto the middle of the vases. A quick witted bell hop saves the day. Mischief is universal.

In a shopping mall an old man with his shaggy dog. He's there when we arrive and we see him again as we leave an hour later. He chats to the dog and the dog looks back, adoringly, at him. Finally, it's time to go and the dog leads him across acres of marble floors to the exit. Both are at a certain stage in life and are clearly inseparable and devoted. The old man walks very slowly while the dog walks ahead. Every so often the dog turns to make sure his companion is following. Their progress is conducted in magisterial slow motion. Sometimes the dog circles behind and gives the old man a 'get a move on' nudge with his nose. Love, like mischief, is also universal.

Some unusual names on coffee shops.

Hotels have 'cheerful' displays . These seem to have no purpose but provide space for smiling ceramic animals. Rabbits are very popular. Must be a cultural thing.

In the evening there are parts of Shanghai where you could ( almost ) think you were on Rodeo Drive or Bond Street. Face masks used to be the rule. Now I'd reckon 1 in 20 wear them.

Doors have unusual signs.

I'll post tomorrow on the skyline of Shanghai and maybe our trip to Hangzhou Gardens and then we'll be back to life in the village.  Exams start next week so there are a lot of earnest teenagers in town.

Why Huggies ( Thank God ) conquered :https://www.worksinprogress.news/p/how-disposable-diapers-conquered

Stanford understands the value of courtesy :https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/news/how-not-deal-allies

One virtual guys take on the royal visit :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9so4RYQVO0

A new restaurant in the South of France :https://www.zannierhotels.com/hotels/bendor/drink-dine/nonna-bazaar/

Cab fares and weddings

It costs £30 to even look at a cab in London. In Shanghai most taxi fares come out to less than a tenth of that. The difference in the price might be down to a) the ubiquitousness of taxis in Shanghai and b) the 'fearless' , time maximizing, driving technique of the local cabbies. The age of the vehicles - and the fact they were fully depreciated long ago -  may also be a factor. We used cabs a lot so became experts on which drivers to avoid.

Our hotel is right on the Bund. It's comfortable and the staff are friendly . Some speak a few words of English, others (most) none at all. This is unusual. In most places around the world English, or some form of it, acts as a sort of lingua franca. Check in takes 35 minutes even though I'd done it on-line before boarding the flight from London. Procedures have to be followed and passports checked. I'd reckon 85% of the guests are local and 15% international. In Tokyo or Singapore or London it would be the other way round. For some reason our hotel ( perhaps because its near the consulate ) has no Russian guests. Everywhere else they are by far the predominant foreign grouping.

On a stroll out of our hotel we notice a large number of young couples having their wedding photos taken. They all seem to be dressed identically.

It is clearly a big day for them.

Dog owners are much in evidence at the local cafes. One fellow seems to recognize a fellow Scot.

Presumably dogs are taken for a long start of day walk then onto breakfast. Life for a urban hound in a city this big must be difficult.

On a street corner a group of ladies are practising what they must consider to be a 'Latin' sound. The effect can best be described as 'unusual' .

Yet more wedding couples seem oblivious to the heavy traffic. People waiting at a bus stop look on as if this is the most natural thing in the world. When a bus arrives the young couples stop being photographed and step onto the pavement. When a bus goes they move back.

When we return to the hotel the Groucho quartet are still there. They seem to have a producer . He seems quite pleased with their performance. We decide Chinese - Argentinian Chacarera must be a thing. 

A great cinematic moment and a  great cameo of American and English use of language :https://youtu.be/awsmXerhLqQ?t=107

We watch yesterdays speech to Congress by the King. It was quite political but his host doesn't seem to have been bothered by it. The gift of the bell at dinner was inspired :https://youtu.be/KaQdlOTU0ms?t=551

Things I didn't know. Mushroom capital of the world :https://pennsylvaniaindependent.com/politics/pennsylvania-is-home-to-the-worlds-mushroom-capital/

The wonderful Picasso exhibition

We'd heard about an exhibition of Picassos works in Shanghai that was said to be impressive : https://www.museumofartpd.org.cn/en/exhibitiondetail?id=180 . It's our first destination on our first night in town.

It turns out to be not just impressive but outright brilliant.

The pictures displayed on walls painted by Paul Smith the British fashion designer. A refreshing change from the whitewashed walls approach that galleries love.

Forget stuffy. This exhibition of 80 of the artists works is fun.

Crowds of young Chinese are out enjoying themselves.

Some rooms are wittier and more successful than other others. The room with pink walls and peach floors was close to drowning the pictures with sensory overload.

A Picasso of a baby owl is something I could live with.

This is a TikTok generation. Out on the Bund thousands of love struck twenty somethings are happily photographing each other against the backdrop of the old concession era buildings. At midnight the place is still humming but, as the cars are mostly electric , it's much, much quieter than a European city. In fact the quietness is positively eerie. There are lots of Russian tourists ( as in thousands and thousands of them enjoying visa free travel ) but very few western Europeans, even fewer Americans and almost no Japanese or Singaporean visitors in the hotels. Almost no one speaks English ( even in the big hotels ) and communication is now done on translation apps. 

Shanghai to London

 Breakfast in a sunny Shanghai.

Then the better part of 15 hours on BA back to London.

We miss the connector to Edinburgh but get one out this morning and have a wonderful view of the bridges across the Thames as the sun is rising.

More tomorrow when the jet lag is under control.

As we taxi into the terminal airport in Edinburgh a large Airbus from Hainan airlines arrives bringing passengers from Beijing. They've literally started a four times a weeks direct service to Scotland. It flies over Russia which saves 5 hours but that's not reassuring for Brits if there's a mechanical problem and it has to land in Moscow.

Meanwhile all eyes on this afternoons garden party at the British ambassadors residence in Washington. Will the next few days pass without incident ? The King can be counted on to approach everything with dignity.

Shanghai bound.

Last night Google had a major download. This morning the desktop is barely functioning. It is so slow.

Later today we'll take the last flight down to Heathrow. Tomorrow we head off on the 13 hour connecting flight to Shanghai. 'The Font' has spent the last three days packing 'lightly'. Angus quietly marvels at the elasticity of the word.

Here the weather is perfect.

On the beach it may not be warm but it's not cold. Perfect  sweater weather. The local pooches are in heaven.

We're getting towards that time of the year when it doesn't get dark. It's light from well before six to almost nine. Soon it will be bright from four to eleven. By seven thirty there's a queue of youngsters waiting to use the library. Greggs is doing a roaring trade in sausage rolls.

The daffodils on the golf course are past their best. The bluebells are only just coming out.

Back at the last wee house before Denmark the farmer is finishing off planting the potatoes. At one point yesterday there were no less than nine tractors planting, ploughing and watering. This morning there's only two of them and a large water barrel on a trailer. The seagulls have arrived for a lavish breakfast.

We plan to be back on April 27th. Easily remembered in the village because that's when the farmers youngest starts his exams. In a small village such things are shared adventures. People have already started to wish him well. Two weeks after his exams finish he's off with his elder brother and four mates to Boston for the World Cup. Rather bizarrely they have got a great deal on two rooms at the Hyatt in Cambridge. They tried to book a family room for six but the hotel sensibly thought a large group of teenage male football fans sharing was pushing the concept of 'family' to destruction. It insisted on them taking two rooms. It seems demand for hotels during the toyrnament isn't quite the bonanza local hoteliers had been expecting.

The love life of penguins in Kyoto :https://x.com/DoctorLemma/status/2043230135281971466

Warning to pedestrians in Manhattan :https://x.com/yohaniddawela/status/2041485410518331681?s=61

An unusual degree course in the 21st century. The young lady at the 3:30 mark seems very grounded :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PV1RdLMhko

The passion in the face :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7auBhHgi7d8