Incredibly it is a month since I last updated my blog. We are so busy at the moment that time seems to fly by.
The visit to Shanghai was amazing. Our group (6 of us) met up at the hotel and went the same evening for dinner with our hosts. It was a large private room in a large restaurant. Our hosts were very welcoming and entertained us royally we had a lovely meal and then went off to bed . The men all had a business meeting whilst the ladies had a day’s sightseeing. In the morning we went for a walk around Shanghai then met two of our Chinese friends who took us on w brief tour including going to the top of the world’s tallest building. 216 stories! It was amazing.
Back to the hotel to get ready for the big Company party – 700 people sitting down for dinner!! I was worried about this. I wondered whether I would be able to cope with the noise of so many people. We arrived and met with our hosts and we went straight into the hall and to our table. Everybody received gifts and the evening began. There was a buffet of food, but it was all brought to the table and the dishes seemed to arriving continuously. There were speeches and visual displays and then anyone from the guests who wanted to, performed on the stage for the entertainment of the rest of us. The variety of performances was amazing. I was so pleased that I could manage to hear so well in this noisy environment. All too soon it was time to go back to the hotel. More gifts followed. The next day we all had a tour of Shanghai and then had dinner together in the evening. The following day the men again had a business meeting and the ladies joined our Chinese friends to tour the old part of the city. It was lovely and so alive with colour. Red lanterns were hung everywhere ready for the New Year celebrations. This year is the year of the pig, so pigs featured very prominently. We visited the old shops and then after lunchewe visited a temple and some beautiful gardens. Next day we were off to a water town which was very interesting and then on to a lake resort. This was so pretty and the hotel that we stayed in was very attractive too. The next day we were back to Shanghai airport ready for our return journey in the morning. It’s a long flight 12.5 hours. And 8 hours difference in time. It took me a long time to get back into UK time. On the way home I thought I would see if I could hear through headphones. To my surprise I could! The biggest problem was keeping the the headphones in the right position for me to hear. Another first.
We are now back into the swing of all the events that are coming up. Life is so busy! But I am so very pleased that I am able to join in and take an active part in all the events.