A Fat Purple Fig

My host, Zhou Mei, collects the three of us, Magnus, Hannah and me, from the front step of our hotel. I have opted out of the day’s activities, keen to be well-rested for the dinner I’ve been most looking forward to: the one that sees us welcomed into someone’s home.

The food on our trip has been nothing short of astounding. We have been lucky to have our locations and dishes chosen for us, thereby benefitting both from insider knowledge and the generosity of our guides.

It has been an absolute gift.

We are joined each day in Xúzhōu by student volunteers who assist in all things – language lessons, catching public transport, and acting as tour guides par excellence.

I’m feeling pretty good when I wake, due mostly to the prospect of soon spending some time alone. My roommate is cool, clever and kind, but I would be fibbing if I didn’t admit I’m thrilled that the NCP students are moving to their uni accommodation.

It will be a gift just to have the place to myself.

Cíxǐ Tàihòu (Empress Dowager Cixi), of the Qing dynasty, is said to have served 100 dishes at every major meal, from which she rarely ate more than a single bite.

It is our first day at uni. China University of Mining and Technology (CUMT) is one of China’s national key universities, which means it receives special government support for its research and teaching excellence. It is the country’s leading institution for mining, energy, and earth sciences, though its programs also span engineering, management, and the humanities. Of its 40,000 students, almost all live on campus.

We catch a bullet train to Sūzhōu. The journey of over 1200km takes a little over 五 (wǔ) hours. It is a welcome opportunity to sit, despite narrow seats designed for slighter frames. Attendants stride up and down the aisles, selling shuǐguǒ and delivering Starbucks kāfēi. Conall offers me a beef and coriander chip, which tastes exactly like beef soup. And I mean, exactly.

We see many sights while in 北京 (Běijīng), keeping up a cracking pace that mostly sees us home after dark. I struggle occasionally. To be fair, I tend to keep up a cracking pace on my own trips, and have a capacity for physical endurance, if not actual fitness. In China, it is the social aspect that pushes me to my limits.

中国 (Zhōngguó) = China (middle country)

Spotting recognisable Hànzì never gets old. Had the giant ‘P’ with a cross through it not appeared in this sign, I would still have known that this is an EXIT, and is not a good place to park. I’m not sure about the message on the left, but this I do know: it is a message about people.

I am in two minds when I awaken. Yesterday’s next-level touristing (13hrs, 12.4km) has punished my feet and lower back, and my social battery is as flat as a tack. On the other hand, today’s hot ticket is the Great Wall of China…so there’s that.