The man who knew everything, the barbers and the gang in the park!

Well English corner was at 5.20, so I headed back t school early.  As I was nearing the school, I heard someone running after me.  ""Photo, photo she said in Chinese.  SO we posed for a photo and she told me about her son in Tongren University. She seemed happy with the photo and I continued on my way to school.

and after what appears to have been a successful evening in English Corner and one game of Egg Jockey later, I went for a walk into town.  I went a different way and wandered to teh end of a new street.  As I crossed the road  this chinese guy came up to me and said in English "Welcome to Tongren Number on middle school".  I was puzzled, how did he know?  I asked him and he said he was a Police Officer in charge of Foreign Affairs!  I had better be careful!  As I wandered back up the street I saw the two littel lads who had ran up to me earlier and shouted "  "Meiguoren!?" (American)and much to his surprise I said "bu shi Meigouren, Yingouren".  (nope, I'm English) He ran back to a shop and shouted "Yingouren"  I crossed over to see them.  They ran off into a shop.  Then one of the littel ones came close to me ...I growled, he looked sacred so I laughed nad he burst into laughter and ran into the shop.  As I passed the shop, an adult came out and said "Gaoxing!" (happy) "Gaoxing?" "They very excited to see you".  At that I was invited in and served some warm water...that's how they drink it here, and I was duly giggled at and photographed.  I even managed a few words of Chinese! 

Then the lady from the shop over the road came in.  She had a big  personality and the place was like a comedy club for ten minutes, most of which was about me but I didn't understand.  All in good spirits though.  Anyway she asked for a photo and I got someone to take one on my phone.

The lady with the big personality!  She was the boss of the shop over the road.  Not which shop, but she was the boss!

Photoshoot number 2.  Finished.

I then tried to walk home but completely lost my bearings and got lost in teh neon night of Jiangkou.  Eventually, and with the help of Google, I found my way back to somewhere I knew and headed home through the park.  Now the park has to be seen to be believed.  I got there about 9pm.  In one corner of the huge square there was a kind of ballroom dancing session.  Next was a children's' play areas and water and the inevitable neon lights.  In the middle there was maybe five or six huge dancing groups all doing synchronised dancing to various tunes.  In the far corner there was some traditional Chinese singing through huge PA systems.  The noise was deafening, and all this surrounded by huge neon lit skyscrapers....the video only convey a short image of what it was like!

I walked and watched, but did not take part.  I headed out of the park by the covered lit area where the musicians gather.  There was a small group and one of the guys was the violinist form last time I was there, the one I'd jammed with on harmonica. 

When I arrived he recognised me and we smiled.  People gathered and we started to talk: English, Chinese, Chinglish and Google live translate!  Again one of the women had a huge personality!  She turned out to be a chef, no surprise there...I remember the caterers from when I was at college.  ( The guy second from  left turned out to be a Chemistry teacher from the school I work at!)  We laughed and joke and mainly understood what each of us was saying to the others.  She was there with her husband and proudly showed me her son who was at Tongren University.  I n teh picture she showed, he was massaging her feet.  She seemed proud of that.

The inevitable photo, and the invite to attend Friday night and I wandered off with her and her husband.  We parted company just after the bridge, and I wandered off home.  Tired and happy.