A nice cup of tea or two...

Okay this is a very daft entry. But when you spend upwards of 17 hours on a train or bus and you have finished your book, your mind (at least my mind) sets itself some daft tasks to carry out!

I love Asterix books and the cover of 'Asterix and Cleopatra' details the ink, paper and beer consumed in the creation of this masterpiece. After over 2 months on the road, this is our own tale of consumption. And the ice-creams are all Kathy's. Honest, guv.



Russia
Trains = 6, metro = 7, planes = 1 ,cars = 2, hovercraft = 1, cups of tea = 89, beer = 12, beds = 8, bottled water = 50, ice-cream = 30, buses = 16
other spirits = whisky, cognac, vodka!!

MONGOLIA
trains = 1, taxis = 3, cups of tea = 15, beer = 20, beds =2, bottled water = 15, ice-cream = 6

CHINA
trains = 5, planes = 1, taxis = 16, cups of tea = 25, beer = 26, beds = 14, bottled water = 60, ice-cream = 26, bikes = 6, buses = 21
other spirits = homemade rice wine, homemade sweetened rice wine, rice wine

Crouching panda, peely wally Scot

CROUCHING PANDA

PEELY WALLY SCOT

China is a country of constant contraditions - there's always someone trying to get you to part with your money, but always someone willing to help too. By the end of our time here we are exhausted by the constant refrain of "Hello! T-shirt? Coke? Postcard? Good price. How much? You say price, you say price!" On the other hand, we have met some amazing people and had countless encounters with Chinese generosity, mainly in the form of free food of one description or another.

A particular highlight is at our guesthouse in Tiger Leaping Gorge, northern Yunnan. The guesthouse is at the start of the famous Gorge trek, which we plan to do, and it makes sense to stay here. It's called "Jane's" and the Lonely Planet describes Jane as "a real character." Fair enough - there's alot of them in China. We are met at the entrance by the campest Chinese guy I've ever seen in my life. He directs us upstairs, where we meet an older woman. She's not Jane. Neither is the younger girl in the kitchen. Then it dawns on us - yes, that was "Jane" at the entrance.

We order dinner, which is totally delicious, and it turns out that Jane does alot of the cooking, so we start asking for tips and recipes. Jane is delighted with this and gives us a tour of the kitchen, telling us how to make sauces and not to buy ready-ground chillies. Then she asks: "Do you know how to make cheesecake?" An hour later, after a quick briefing session on the BBC Food website, I am in the kitchen of a Chinese guesthouse, directing operations for a lemon and strawberry cheesecake. After a bit of improvisation we succed and the result is left in the fridge overnight and served in enormous, complimentary portions for breakfast. It tastes surprisingly good considering the lack of key ingredients and kitchen implements. The only real problem is that I'm not that fond of cheesecake and I've just eaten a giant breakfast in preparation for an all-day trek. But free food cannot be refused in China and I choke it down.

3 is the magic number!

And this time it's a boy!! Congratulations to Kevin, Jess (and Ruby the cat!) on their handsome and very cute baby boy - Finlay Levi Robertson. Kathy and I send all our love and wish you the best health and happiness for the future.
'Finlay Levi Robertson' - what a fantastic name to introduce yourself to the ladies with! That's 3 babies in the Edinburgh area now and counting. They must be adding something to the water round those parts.

I also saved the best example we found of Chinglish especially for you guys. Many signs and instructions make you giggle and chortle in China, but this restaurant sign had Kathy's English lit / post-modernist /deconstructionist mind working overtime. I, on the other hand, thought it made perfect sense. :-)