cressida Posted January 21, 2011 Author Share Posted January 21, 2011 Another surprise, Cressida----no, the sexes are not seperated although they are tactful about it, usually. I don 't think they 'd put a young girl in with 3 young lads, for example-----but, to be honest, I don 't know how they organise things like that in their booking system ? Otherwise, as far as I can tell, it 's just ' pot luck ' most of the time. People rarely get undressed at night as most journeys are for only one night.......but, I suppose for longer journeys people can change in the toilets or ask the others to go outside the ' room ' for a few minutes. Similarly, I 've often had to book a ' top bunk ' but, being nearly a 100 years old, I 've always had some young lad or girl who will swop places. Chinese young people are generally very kind-----or maybe they 're just scared that a lump like me might tumble on them from above ?? I 'm surprised you look down on ' long johns ' ! I 've got some pink ones you might admire ? Wait till I get back to Sheffield ! Now, then WHERE are those tea-ladies ! Lets say F.E. that if I was going to travel on one of those trains I would probably wear longjohns at night, in the hope it would deter the natural urges of any predator - UNLESS I found myself sharing with someone on here who shall remain nameless OR a certain Mr Craig (I saw his look-alike in Harvey Nicks, London once) Just had an 'orrible thought, what if you were to tumble onto the tea trolley, or the tea lady - I forbid it in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fareast Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 Yes, if I was unfortunate enough to fall headlong into a tea-lady or a tea-trolley, in China, I would probably be charged with ' offences against the people ', ' economic sabotage ' or ' causing widespread [ ! ] social disorder '..........and would probably get 15 years in the slammer, somewhere in remotest N.E. China------living on fungi soup and dodgy water. I 'm sure your long-johns would NOT deter predators, Cressida-----quite the opposite in fact. I know when I wear my pink ones [ with tassles ], I have a job ' repelling boarders ', so to speak. I used to pop in Harvey Nicholls a lot, years ago. Are you sure it wasn 't me you saw ? I do look a little bit like Mr. Craig------in parts ! Now, come on, you ex-U.K. tea-ladies. Just sign on the dotted line and it 's Hey Ho and a new career on China 's quaint, old rail network. [ subsidised canteen facilities ]. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cressida Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 I don't know if you receive many of our TV programmes where you are, but I was watching Eggheads (Quiz) and one of the questions was which country drank the most tea - India England China I thought it was China, being the most populated but it was India does that surprise you too? Tassles on longjohns! What is the world coming to:hihi: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karis Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 You know, when the Geekest Link is big enough, I think I'll have a tea lady. MMM. I really do miss that! It's the small things you miss in life - some of those old activities have been lost in this new age of technology. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cressida Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 You know, when the Geekest Link is big enough, I think I'll have a tea lady. MMM. I really do miss that! It's the small things you miss in life - some of those old activities have been lost in this new age of technology. Some people don't even get a break in the morning or afternoon nowadays, indeed, having tea made for you at work is a treat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harleyman Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 One day during a visit to China two years ago we were taken on a visit to a tea plantation. We were led into a room and sat at a long table. The young Chinese tea ladies started off by explaining the different kinds of tea. Apparently the green tea is the top of the line and the black tea the reject. As far as I'm concerned I'll go on drinking the black tea. The green tea tasted like mild flavoured bilge water. The food in China is awful. Nothing but white rice, vegetables and stringy little pieces of greasy meat and this seemed to be the only fare even in the classy restaurants where we ate in Beijing and Shanghai The only good stuff was the western style buffet breakfasts served at the hotels. By the time we left even McDonalds and KFC seemed on the level of gourmet dining. It was that bad! The food on the Air China flight to Beijing and later to Shanghai was mostly Chinese but much better. At least there was some different varieties available. However the hotels, service, hospitality, tour guides and the motor coaches were excellent which made up for the bad food and tea experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cressida Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 One day during a visit to China two years ago we were taken on a visit to a tea plantation. We were led into a room and sat at a long table. The young Chinese tea ladies started off by explaining the different kinds of tea. Apparently the green tea is the top of the line and the black tea the reject. As far as I'm concerned I'll go on drinking the black tea. The green tea tasted like mild flavoured bilge water. The food in China is awful. Nothing but white rice, vegetables and stringy little pieces of greasy meat and this seemed to be the only fare even in the classy restaurants where we ate in Beijing and Shanghai The only good stuff was the western style buffet breakfasts served at the hotels. By the time we left even McDonalds and KFC seemed on the level of gourmet dining. It was that bad! The food on the Air China flight to Beijing and later to Shanghai was mostly Chinese but much better. At least there was some different varieties available. However the hotels, service, hospitality, tour guides and the motor coaches were excellent which made up for the bad food and tea experience. Oh goody, now LordC won't go;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fareast Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 I gasped in surprise, my knees buckled and I had a very hot flush when I read Harleyman 's comments on Chinese food ! Admittedly, you can get poor food anywhere, but Harleyman and his fellow-travellers must have been singularly unlucky with their holiday food-----two years ago ! [ At first I thought they were observations from about 1949 ]. I know for a fact that 2 years ago, China was [ and is ] packed with every kind of food shop,, market, cafe and restaurant you can think of. I 've never known a country where food plays such a central role in everyday life. One of my favourite restaurants in China was a place called ' Golden Hans ' [ there 's a chain of them throughout the country. ]. You paid a fixed amount and then you could eat [ more or less ] as much as you wanted. There were huge tables, buffet style, where you could choose from dozens of dishes-----fruit, vegetables, cakes, soups----loads of stuff. The only exception to all this was the meat which they kept bringing round to the table [ as meat is expensive for locals in China ]. You would get about 15 kinds of meat-----beef, chicken, pork, lamb-----plus other things like pieces of pizza, corn..... The initial cost of all this ? About 3 pounds 80 pence. Nice lager-type beer about 60 pence for half a litre. Live music, good atmosphere, clean toilets------generally speaking----good nights with friends that I 'll always remember. And ! there were hundreds and hundreds of similar places and places of ALL descriptions and this wasn 't in Beijing. That 's why I found Harleyman 's experience so unusual------unique in fact ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karis Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 Some people don't even get a break in the morning or afternoon nowadays, indeed, having tea made for you at work is a treat Yep. That's definitely sorted my decision! Breaks shouldn't be a luxury, and being at work should be as pleasant as possible... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cressida Posted January 23, 2011 Author Share Posted January 23, 2011 Quote Fareast:One of my favourite restaurants in China was a place called ' Golden Hans ' [ there 's a chain of them throughout the country. Run by a German, sunbeds in the back and spray tan on offer and if you don't behave you get a 'Golden Hans Shakey Shakey' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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