It's gonna be a wayny day

Wayne gets his wish for atmospheric weather. The fog outside is so thick that it drips. Time to go native and invest in a yellow plastic raincoat. We are expected back in Shanghai today and have to get off this sacred mountain.

double portrait

dorm chic

When we leave Wayne and Jeannine are on a sugar high from mixing cloyingly sweet vanilla hot beverage – I can't bring myself to call it 'tea' – in their breakfast rice gruel.

 Everything is shrouded in mist and raindrops on the way to the Eastern Steps Cable Car, and the cabin gets quickly steamed up on our way down.

'It's gonna be a wayny day' is Jeannine's composition inspired by our days on the mountain. Makes for the perfect music to go with the pics, ne?

We reverse all our bus travels and pay the Koala hostel another visit to enjoy their good food and a bus booking. Somehow we have a thing for cutting it fine for the overland bus: This time we get sidetracked with a non-English-speaking tea-exporting couple driving us to two banks, a declined ATM transaction and phrasebook directions back to the bus stop...

pronunciation in brackets!

We arrive in Shanghai in the dark and get a (metered!) taxi to Kent and Hanrich's place. Directions here are easy because Kent gave us little laminated address cards for exactly that purpose! We meet Hanrich, have a quick tea and then Jeannine and I return to the hostel to be reunited with the rest of our luggage.

Back in non-sweaty clothes and with our own shower we feel like queen bees, ready to snuggle in our twin beds.

back in Shanghai