Happy Valley

Sometimes, life really is what you make it. No matter what country you are living in we are all in danger of falling into the dreaded routine of life. Wake up, go to work, come home, eat, sleep. This has been my life the past month or so, only in Chinese.  醒，工作，回家，吃，睡觉 . So this weekend my friends and decided to break this routine and start to do some of the many things we have been talking about doing for so long.  

My Saturday of course, started with work as usual but I took comfort in the fact that it will be my last working Saturday for the next few months. After work, I met Allie and Meinan (Mexican and Chinese friends) for a trip to the super market. Now a trip to the supermarket in the UK is usually considered an annoying necessity, but to a foreigner in China, it's usually full of surprises, you never really know what you are going to see. The market of choice today was one of the biggest I have ever seen which in China, usually means it's also the busiest!

After wondering for some time, Meinan finding some chicken feet to eat and Allie some yoghurt in a bag, we came across a 'pet' section. I say pet as it wasn't so much as a pet section but fish and turtles in the smallest of containers, hundreds of them! With Mani having left me the previous weekend, I was looking for a fish to keep me company at home and this was the perfect opportunity to tick this of the 'to do' list. I of course wanted to rescue them all and so in the end I came away with not just Phillip the fighting fish but also with Donatello and Rafeal the baby non mutant turtles. 

Now, I do some things without thinking sometimes and it could be said that this is one of those occasions, (after discovering they live to 40 years and can grow to 12"), however, no matter what happens, these turtles will now have a better life than sitting dying in the tiny pots they were previously in, weather I keep them or not.

Phillip the Fighting Fish

Donatello and Rafeal

After dropping off the shopping, we went back out to one of the many clothing markets in town. These markets are again, incredibly busy and you spend the majority of your time there saying no to the hundreds of sales staff shouting 'Hey lady, you want a bag?' (I actually stopped and gathered 5 of the sales staff together and explained that if they were to use the word 'Madam' instead of 'lady', they would get a much better response). But you can get some very cheap knock off clothes at these markets, depending on your bargaining skills (in China there is never a set price, even in shops you have to negotiate a good price). 

Shopping was followed by a Mexican dinner, much to Allies delight! The dinner I was not so fussed over but the chance to have a couple of glasses of real wine, that could not be missed and so a few glasses and some cocktails for the girls later, we left a little merry and in good spirits. A good end to a fun day out!

However, the real fun was to be had tomorrow! HAPPY VALLEY - Yippee!

Happy Valley is much like Thorpe park, but with an attempt to add a 'Disney' feel to it. (I don't think China know the meaning of the word 'copyright'). Being so close to the city it took less than one hour to find our way there and I have to say I wasn't disappointed when we arrived and stepped into the park, as we were greeted with some giant, scary looking rides!

I will never forget the first ride of the day. Meinan, having never been to a park such as this, let alone been on any of the rides, was nervous to say the least. Even myself, an experienced rolla-coaster junky still gets nervous on the first ride of the day and this ride wasn't an amateur event! Still, will threw Meinan straight into the deep end, as we were thrown upside down and in various circles for the next few minutes. For a first go Meinan, well she screamed 'Mamma' several times which for myself and Allie was fantastic, as we completely forgot how scary the ride was and were in tears with laughter! There after though Meinan backed out of none and we proceeded to go on every ride open (being winter still it was cold and so not very busy!)

There was one however, that both Allie and Meinan could not get themselves to go on and I myself did not find it appealing! But, I always think that when scared, you should face your fears and so on I went alone.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DowSNAfRr0s&context=C4237d81ADvjVQa1PpcFOhEftBLloE_jLq1KE4IVVYID3d1q6FXfU=

Another factor making things that bit more intimidating was that all the instructions and safety information was in Chinese! So at times, we weren't so aware of any safety tips or general information we might of otherwise needed.. I guess that can be a good thing at times too...! One of the biggest and in my opinion, best, rides of the day was one called the 'Fast Rusher'. it started by throwing you from 0 - 80mph in about 3 seconds, similar to one in Thorpe Park. Only after, you then continue on to more roller-coaster of ups and downs, twists and turns. Ordinarily, I don't find these rides so bad, but without safety bars of the shoulders I felt more nervous than I otherwise would! Needless to say I screamed lot's, but, I did manage to lift my arms into the air and 'fly' for a short period!

We finished, with some 3D theatre, a combination of 3D effects and real life acting. Having not really grasped enough Chinese to have any clue what was going on, I enjoyed the visual and took some rest for half an hour. The sun was setting when we stepped back outside, and it was a beautiful sight and a lovely end to a fab weekend!

So if you are feeling the burn of the everyday routine, take a break from it and do something you have been talking about doing for a while... I can honestly say you will feel much more alive for it!