The Other Life

So, back to the "other life" – the family life. The regular trip back home which really is a different life. Spending time with family and different friends, eating different food, driving (occasionally) and spending leisure time visiting places that are a world apart from China. On this trip we spent a few days in the Peak District, one of the country's nicest national parks and complete with pretty villages, wonderful green rolling hills, excellent pubs and cafes, and superb walking.

We stayed in the uniquely British concept of a Bed & Breakfast, and this one was exceptional, run by an elderly couple with a few extra bedrooms in their farmhouse in the middle of nowhere with excellent breakfasts, wonderful views, and of-course, wi-fi. Dad, Andrea, Hannah and I had a wonderful time – Hannah probably enjoyed it the most, since she had the best views seated a meter up on my back, though she did do a bit of walking too. We did the usual trip up to Manchester to visit old friends, almost all of whom are now settled down with partners. The genius idea this time was to go to Tatton Park, a stately home outside Manchester with wonderful grounds for walking, an excellent playground for kids, nice cafes, and for those interested, beautiful gardens and house. Of course we also stopped off in Stourbridge on our trip up North, as we always do, to see Ian, Hannah and their lovely kids.

It being England and touching 25 degrees every now and again there was the requisite BBQ too: at my mum's for my sister's informal birthday dinner, and at my dad's for something similar with some of my old London friends. There was also a typical London Transport experience (maintenance requiring the use of the wonderful "bus replacement service") which meant we arrived late for a Play in London (the excellent Fences, with Lenny Henry), and a few trips to London to get some drinks with other friends.

Speaking of plays, one should mention Edinburgh, though a more detailed review of what happened will follow separately. We went to the Fringe Festival for four packed-out days, seeing some professional—and some not-so-professional—actors and comedians. It is quite something: 2,700 shows across 250 venues (some with over ten theatres inside) packed into a beautiful, fairly small, city, and with a wonderful atmosphere. Actors themselves ply the streets handing out flyers for their shows when they are not acting. There are donation-only shows (donate according to the quality), free street-shows, and a mix of professional shows. There is stand-up comedy, improve comedy, dance, physical theatre, musicals, spoken word, circus, and more. Really something to suit everyone, though it is hard to work out what is good or not, which I suppose is part of the fun.

I can't recommend the experience highly enough though it won't be cheap with flights from London likely to cost a hundred pounds return, a hotel something similar for a room per night, and then expect to spend between twenty to fourty pounds a day per person if you want to pack out your day with different shows. Somewhere in between you'll likely spend money on alcohol and maybe some food, if there is time.

It feels so different: being with different people in different places and almost at a different time: it's possible to find similarities between the US and China sometimes (such as the size and geographic diversity) but almost impossible to do so between the UK and China. The two countries are in such a different stage of development, it is surreal. The conversations are so different, it is ironic: the discussion about spending a small country's entire GDP on a new railway line will go on for years, the construction will take decades (in China, the railway would be built before the UK had even approved the project, and it would be a faster railway). The debates on being in or out of the European Union hilarious when every other country in the World, including China, are racing into new trade treaties of all sorts. The joy of reaching 0.6% economic growth when China is fretting at slipping below 7.5%.

I won't go on, but I will seek to conclude by emphasizing the huge value one gets from seeing things from different perspectives. It is truly difficult to step out of one's own shoes, try to remove biases and to try to see things differently. But it can be hugely rewarding. As I've said before, everything is relative: anything can be anything depending on what you compare it to. And when you can see things differently, you can value things differently, prioritize differently, and hopefully, overall, make better decisions. Gotta love that trip back home!