2 days ago I left Suzhou with Dave and Rita to go to their home town where we would spend New Year with their family. It was only a short journey, about 4 hours or so, which was ok.  The driving outside the city on the highway is scary to say the least but we made it here to Maba in one piece. 

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I got here but the town is not completely rural although there are many rice fields on the way. 

The sun was shining but it was cold. The house has a small courtyard. The house is on the right and the kitchen is in front. I quickly realised that this was not going to be a comfortable home from home. What reinforced this was when I was asked if I would go to the public baths next morning for a shower.  I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it and I did. 

The house is nice but there is no heating at all. I’m very grateful to be invited though and the extended family have been very welcoming indeed. They were concerned about me coming to be honest because they were wondering how I would cope. It’s ok until you have to go to the loo or get your kit off. I have plenty of clothes with me to keep warm. 

Mind you they can’t quite understand why I eat banana and bread in the morning instead of what you eat at lunch or dinner and I think they felt a little offended at first but I think they realise that us foreigners are just weird or maybe it’s just me. 

I did go for a stroll down to the centre of town to get my bananas and that caused quite a stir because there ain’t many tourists in this part of China and there was plenty of curiosity and did I blow their minds when I spoke in Chinese😆