I woke up early and had a cup of tea around 6:30 in the Yangtze Bar before going for breakfast. I saw Selina, our waitress before she left. I thanked her for looking after me and then went for breakfast.
Today, we left Victoria Selina, our home for the last few days, and we should be spending some time looking around Chongqing, the vast city where we are docked. Unfortunately, it is pouring with rain, and our tour rep and today's guide decided to scrap the regular tour that we should do and took us instead on a tour that would allow us to stay a little dryer.
Chongqing.
Due to the rain, our guide took us on a short coach tour of Chongqing. One of the first things we noticed was the gradient of the mountains here. I was glad we didn't have to walk far. We visited a temple close to the river. As the ladies in the party were worried about the rain and Ewen had decided point blank he didn't want to look around, I amused myself, and lots of Chinese people by doing my rendition of Fred Astaire's singing in the rain. I sang I danced, and I splashed around in the puddles, but I could not get anyone to join me in the rain.
I found the museum very interesting, and the guide was very amusing. After being shown around the temple grounds and its different rooms and learning about its history, we were shown a Banyan Tree and told how to gauge the age of the trees by the size of their leaves. We were then taken to a small shop where we were shown Banyan tree leaves that have been skillfully painted by father and son artists. We were told they are the only people in China licenced to do this work. Whether this is true or not, the artwork is fantastic, and I used up some of my last remaining Yuan, purchasing a framed leaf with a painting of the Original city of Chongqing. It cost ¥180 and was one of my favourite souvenirs of the trip.
While I was in the temple, our guide told me she liked my hat and compared me to the Kung Fu Panda, who had a similar hat. I believe by this, she didn't mean that I was fat, but rather that she meant, like a panda, I was revered and should be respected. This was shortly put right when she saw the Jade Buddha hanging around my neck; she remarked that I had a tummy like a happy Buddha. I offered to let her rub it, to bring her luck, but she declined as her husband may not have felt it was lucky.
After the temple, we were taken to a museum to look around where we would be able to stay out of the rain. After walking around for a while with Mel and Tracy, I decided I had had my fill of culture and decided to go to the cafe for a drink and to sit down for a while. Tracy joined me, and we walked towards the Museum Cafe.
It was on the way to the Cafe that I was approached by a girl waving a camera at me. She was a student at a local university and would like a photo taken with me. I told her that it was fine, and her friend took our photo and asked if she could have her photo taken with me. As the second photo was being taken, the rest of the university group of girls appeared, about 16 of them. I then had my photo taken with groups of the girls, girls on their own, with me wearing my kung fu panda hat and with them wearing my kung fu panda hat. The photo shoot was watched over by our guide, Branwen, who said she had never seen anything like it. She told us she is used to girls being asked for their photos because of their blonde hair or blue eyes, but this is the first time she has had a member of her party who is seen as a sexy Buddha or Panda pin-up.
After fighting off all of my adoring fans, Tracy and I settled down in the cafe, where I was surprised to find they served Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee. I purchased one of these unique coffees for us, and we waited for the rest of the gang to finish their look around the museum.
We all left the museum and were then taken to lunch in Chongqing. The coach driver performed an unbelievable 3-point turn and reverse movement on a busy road, and we parked and then walked a short distance to our restaurant. We walked past a large pet shop with hundreds of caged birds singing for their freedom, and I was convinced I was not the only person who wondered if there was a link between the pet shop and our restaurant's kitchen. We enjoyed dinner and said goodbye to each other and our guide, Branwen. Branwen told us, with tears in her eyes, that we are the friendliest group she has ever had. We, of course, believed her.
After lunch, we were taken to a hotel where we had two rooms in which we could freshen up and get ready for the flight home. Ewen takes the key to the men's room and goes straight up to refresh himself. Rob decided to do a bit of last-minute shopping and disappeared into Chongqing. I refreshed myself in the bar, where Michael joined me. The girls took turns using their room and then settled in the hotel bar to wait for our coach to go to the airport. Mel, Michael and I all played an impromptu game called 'Guess the song and who sang it', courtesy of my laptop. After a few hours, we left for the airport.
Route home.
Chongqing to Beijing.
Our gate at the airport was changed, and when we arrived at the new gate, there were lots of people milling about due to the flights that had already been cancelled. There was a large storm front coming in. Our flight was delayed for a few hours, and we were lucky to catch our connection.