How it all began

1972 was a vintage year. Nothing to do with red wine or classic cars. It was the year that Mick and I married. 5th February to be precise.

We first began to think about our Ruby Anniversary roughly three years before the event. We decided that it would be great to do something really special to celebrate. We did not want to wait for our Golden Anniversary as, sadly, both of our Mothers had been widowed before they achieved that event. So we started to save without, at that time, any real idea of exactly what we were saving for.

We must have spent at least a year throwing ideas around. We would each suggest a location and then think about the things that we would do if we went there and try to weigh up the pros and cons of each idea. There were a number of possibilities. We would both love to visit India but the options available were not rocking our boat at that time. I would love to see the pyramids in Egypt but there was and still  is  unrest in the country so, we discounted that option. I would love a cruise holiday and also want to visit Tahiti and Polynesia. I did find a wonderful sounding cruise on a working cargo boat departing Tahiti and visiting the surrounding islands. It sounded heaven but, the price was beyond our means at the time no matter how hard we saved. Maybe one day.

Finally, we decided that we would both really love to visit China. I have always loved anything Oriental. Such a wonderful cultural history, stunning scenery and great food. What more could we ask. We would delay our trip until April rather than February. It can be rather cold in China in February and the Easter period was more convenient for me to take a holiday from the children that I care for.

The next stage was to decide exactly where we wanted to visit in the limited time of our holiday and to choose which company  we would use to assist us whilst in China. We usually travel independently and do our own thing but, we felt that for China we really needed some help and support. We finally decided to use China Odyssey Tours to arrange a private 2 person  tour. Our contact was Andy and we built up an excellent rapport. I told Andy a few things that we definitely wanted to include in our tour such as the Yangtze cruise. Andy sent us a suggested itinerary and we threw ideas back and forth, adding or deleting,  until we arrived at a final itinerary that seemed to fit the bill perfectly.

Departure Day - Friday 6th April

So, the day finally arrived. Friday 6th April (Good Friday) was not a holiday in France so we kept fingers and every thing crossed that there would be no snap strikes either on trains or planes. We left home at 8am and would arrive at CDG airport, Paris at 1pm. Our flight was due to take off at 4:05pm. As it turned out our flight was delayed by almost an hour. This was a cause of concern as we only had 90 minutes stopover to change planes at Doha, capital city of Qatar.

We had chosen Qatar Airline for our trip. Not the cheapest but a good reputation for a reasonable degree of comfort in economy class, plenty of  leg room. The food on board was excellent and a refreshing drink was available whenever needed. Personal entertainment screens meant that we could watch a film or sleep whenever we wanted. We both watched Warhorse. Mick was reading the book at the time.

We made up some time en route but the timing was very tight when we arrived at Doha. We were resigned to the fact that, even if we made it in time for the transfer flight, our baggage might not join us. Finally we rushed to the boarding gate where it seemed that the staff were looking out for us. In fact we were not the last to arrive. Five businessmen joined us a few minutes later and a bus arrived to rush us to the plane where all other passengers were already on board. Take off was moments away. It was now 1am, 7th April, Doha time. A new international terminal is currently being built and it will be magnificent when finished.

The next flight was going to last more than 8 hours and it would be 2:40pm when we arrived in Shanghai, Saturday afternoon. We were served a meal after take off and then most people settled down to sleep for the duration.  When we woke we really would have enjoyed a light breakfast but, as it was already after noon in Shanghai, we were served a full dinner. That was such a shame because so many people sent most of the meal back uneaten. Not really what we needed after a nights sleep and such a waste.

Shanghai - Saturday 7th April

The arrival procedure in China was efficient and did not take too long. Not the case for everyone! As  we waited for our own turn at the desk an incident was unfolding before us. A young woman was being turned away from entry. I am not sure of her nationality as I could not hear well enough to detect her accent but she was a native English speaker. It seemed that she did not have a valid visa and she kept saying 'I have a letter inviting me here', which she proceeded to wave in the face of the official who remained unmoved. She was told to go elsewhere to try to arrange a visa as there was no way she was being allowed to enter without. I wonder what happened to her on a Saturday afternoon, trying to enter China without the required paper work.

Miracle of miracles - our bags had arrived with us. Our guide was waiting and we started the journey to our hotel in the centre of Shanghai. Joe gave us a potted history of Shanghai and China during the one hour drive. He also asked why or how we had chosen China Odyssey for our trip. I told him that I was impressed with my email exchanges with Andy particularly as he had removed, at my request,  a number of visits to things like silk factories and jade museums that we knew were only government stores with greatly inflated prices.

Our hotel, The Bund, was wonderful. Breakfast, buffet style, was sumptuous. A wide variety of Chinese and Western style food both hot and cold. A chef was available to make fresh omelette's on request with your choice of fillings. The variety of steamed  buns were delicious.  I have never seen such an enormous bed, king size double. There was room to hold a party on it!! Wonderfully comfortable. This was to be the norm for us in China.

Our hotel was just a short walk from the Nanjing Road so once we were settled in our room we went for a stroll. It was early evening and the street was buzzing with people simply strolling up and down. Every few minutes we would be accosted by a street hawker, often on roller skates, trying to sell us things that we did not want. The main sales item was a pair of mini rollers to fit onto shoes complete with flashing lights. This road is a magnet for a promenade at night. Most of the shops have prices way out of our league. Lots of carved jade and gold, magnificent to look at but, certainly in our own case, only to look at. We might have saved hard for this trip but.....not hard enough for those prices. This was the only place in China where we were to find a bar to sit and watch the world go by whilst enjoying a beer. At most other locations it was necessary to go into a restaurant or hotel to buy a drink.  The unwanted part of sitting to have a beer is that you will be accosted by beggars, sometimes whole families of them. They also accost you whilst shopping but it is easier to walk away. We had been warned not to give anything unless we wanted hoards of beggars to appear, as if by magic, apparently from nowhere. Shanghai was the only place that this was a problem, although the beggars must also have  existed in most places.

We would only be staying 2 nights in Shanghai and the following night we would go to the Shanghai Acrobat show so, Joe asked if we would like to take an evening cruise on the river that first night. Why not, we decided, and it was a very good decision. The neon lit buildings seen against the night sky is a trip definitely not to be missed.

Just a few of the throng

Joe met us later to take us to the river cruise. You cannot believe the crowds, mostly Chinese with a few foreign visitors. Joe spoke to someone in authority and we bypassed the queues in order to board the next boat that would be departing. It was nice not to have to join the 'bun fight' for a place.

Mick and Chris on the evening river cruise in Shanghai

It was a cold and windy evening, threatening rain, but the neon lit buildings were fantastic to see. The rain turned out to be no more than 'spitty spotty' and soon cleared up altogether although it remained cold.  A wonderful start to the trip. Having slept on the flight we felt surprisingly fresh. Do not be fooled by the absence of people in the photo. The boat was filled to capacity but after a quick look the lights most people descended to one of the lounges for shelter or hot drinks. We simply did not want to miss anything so stayed on deck.