27August 08 Buying bus tickets for the first time. Although I’ve been learning Mandarin for some time now, I’m still painfully aware of my language inadequacies and my basic toneless Mandarin skills. Chris has always been good at languages and is way ahead of me with his Mandarin skills and this puts me in a position whereby I let him do all the talking because he’s better at it than me. Also, this further adds to my own feeling of inadequacy because I think I’m worse than I am and I get on that treadmill of thinking that I won’t ever get it. I need to sort my attitude out but it’s difficult sometimes when I don’t feel confident with something and it’s easy to step back rather than step up. We need to buy tickets ... read more

Day 3 in Chengdu and at last, for a short time, it rains and boy, does it rain. Up until now It’s been a very hot 40 degree but very humid. We arrived at Sims Cosy Guest house 3 days ago and spoke with him yesterday. He personally sends thanks to all of you who donated money when we sent it for the earthquake disaster fund, from Sheffield, way back in May. He tells me that the last NGO left yesterday and that the work is still carrying on in the disaster area. Temporary accommodation has been set up but that it is still hard for the people in the worst hit areas. He also told me that there are still very small after shocks and that there have been some in the recent days. If ... read more

This is a short film made by Chris for his dad. ... read more

09/08/08 7.30am. I wake to see endless rolling silver birch and fir forests again. Grey skies. The lovely sound of the train and the constant gentle rocking movement. I immediately think of the sad woman in Yaroslavsky station last night. Kirov - 12.17pm 957km from Moscow. (Kirov, renamed in 1934 in honour of Communist Leader assassinated earlier in the same year. Sergie Kirov was at one time so close to Stalin that most people assumed that he would succeed him as Party General Secretary. But he subsequently broke away and it is more than likely that Stalin had a hand in his death and moreover used it as an excuse for his own Great Purge in the 1930’s during which several million people died in labour camps. A branch line runs north to the Kotlas area, ... read more

Sheffield to Moscow Tracey’s bit 4 August - St. Pancras St. Pancras has a new European feel to it. The cakey shop has very exciting cakes with fruits and berries laden on top of the rich chocolate cakes. The station is like a cattle market though with everyone pushing and no one wants to help anyone. It seems strange to me. My lovely daughter slightly alone at the check in desk for the Eurostar. Words in texts flying through the air and last glances saying everything. My parting reminders to her - do this, do that, do the other… At Brussels I share food with 2 Arabic women and a young boy. I cannot understand them. I wished I had learned some Arabic from Jackie. The only word I know is ‘butterfly’. When Chris returns from ... read more

Tesco Green Wheelie bag will travel. As it's only 14 days until we move out of our house and 48 days until we leave for China, our thoughts have turned to packing and re packing and re re packing. As Chris has been frantically digging, like a dog, in the large box upstairs on the landing, to try to gather all of his equipment together - it's been a dawning lesson to us both as to how we are not going to be able to carry everything that has been bought for our journey (and has yet to be bought). Chris has everything for every eventuality and every possible life enhancing, thrill seeking, heart pounding extracurricular sporting activity, whereas, my mind turned to wonder how I'm going to fit the ever increasing library of books and ... read more