Lost in Guangzhou! ( Part 4)
We left the hotel early that morning. One of the women would not be going with the rest of us to the airport.
“Umm, aren't you coming with us to Guangzhou?” I asked.
“ I am but by train”. she replied.
I was confused.
“Why aren’t you going by air?
She said she preferred to go by train because it was less of a hassle and she could catch up on some sleep.
“ Sleep? How long is the train ride?” I asked.
Seven hours, “ She replied.
Seven hours???! I was gobsmacked.
What is wrong with this woman??? I thought. And why is China sooooo big?
She laughed !
“I’m going to buy fabric from the wholesale market in Zhongda”. She had three large shops in Oshodi market, Lagos where she sold fabric, sewing thread, buttons, zips, and all sorts of accessories for clothes. She was super rich but very down to earth. Trading is good business if you get your target market right.
“ Ha! Ok o! Enjoy your ride.” I said as we waved goodbye to each other.
We rode to the airport and arrived at about 7:30 am for the two hour flight to Guangzhou.
It was a bit of a rough flight . I love to travel but I really do not like flying. Quite the paradox isn’t it?
I had a terrible experience aboard the defunct kabo airlines in the early 90’s as a child. It took a long time to get over it. Today? Just a bit of turbulence.. and I start with my last prayers. Lol! Sigh.
Emirates has been the only airline so far to give me that comforting feeling 35000 feet above sea level and the private jet experience I had in 2022.( Watch out for this story!)
We arrived Guangzhou and took a taxi straight to Sui Yuan Hotel. It was much nicer than the one in Yiwu . I thought the beds would be more comfortable but alas- they were as hard as the ones in Yiwu. The Chinese believe that sleeping on hard beds is better for your back thereby improving your spine and health in general. Well, spine or no spine, my frame did not appreciate this at the time. I wondered if the five star hotels offered the same service .
Later, that evening, my fellow travelers were longing for some Nigerian food. What is it about Nigerians and eating their food abroad? Don’t get me wrong I love my Nigerian food but when I travel I’d like to explore( and this has it's limits mind you! ). I find that the food doesn’t quite hit the spot the way it does back home. Could it be the air? Perhaps!
We eventually found a restaurant that was owned by a Nigerian of Igbo descent! Nigerians are everywhere! I bet there were some in Alaska!
We ordered food . I didn’t enjoy it. Like I said it lacked the oomph I desperately desired it would have ! I guess spices that have travelled over thousands of miles would lose their potency no matter how hard you tried to prepare it. On the other hand,, I wasn't a resident so I had the privilege of grumbling silently.
Conversing in Guangzhou was much easier. Their English language might not have been 100% but it was definitely better than using a calculator.
After dinner, we went shopping at one of the department stores nearby. I found the effort to translate signs into English quite funny, to be honest. I‘m sure that there has been a lot of improvement today. Now that I think of it, I should have taken up classes in mandarin upon my return. Nonetheless in 2012 this was a Herculean task as the only person I found in Lagos charged a fee of $300 per student and an additional N5000 for logistics! That was extremely discouraging and depressing.
Today things have improved. Classes can be done online and for probably less than half the price than 11 years ago. If you're thinking of learning Chinese, send us an email at hello@linguatopian.com with the subject « Ni hao » .
The next day, I was excited to be out and about the city after a very tasty breakfast and ready to face “the leather goods market “ where I discovered that being lost is no respecter of persons..
Watch out for the concluding part of this series in my next post.