Back

The hubbub and long queues at Beijing airport told me the summer fling was over. It was also one evening in the last week of August in 2000 that I first arrived in the capital. What did not change over a whole decade was the hot weather which made me feel really bad. The difference is the city is no longer new to me today.

Ok. The trip to Britain was great, as I had expected. It was more than seeing the places of interest. Just sitting in a street corner watching people walking by, each with an umbrella in hand was a pleasure. Hopping on a tube in London, listening to the voice announcements with a British accent at every stop, or overhearing chitchats in a diversity of languages are interesting too. Hopping off at the wrong stop and being left alone in an almost obsolete train station called Lydney without a mobile phone and finally being picked up by a very nice English woman who took me to the town center made the journey a bit adventurous, but I enjoyed it. And… I almost forgot… I’d tasted raspberries, blueberries and blackberries!

What I love most is the clear sky and mild climate. After I came back, I can’t help wondering why so many people are leaving their native countries for China while complaining about its problems. Is it because it’s easier for Caucasians to make a living in this developing country? Will they still choose China if they are deprived of their priorities here?

Seriously, I need to think about my next move. The more I see, the more insatiable I become. Sometimes I have an evil thought. I stealthily wish the prophecy of 2012 were true. As all good things come to an end, why not all end together?