Existing -- (Update)

The past umpteen days have been lived through the eyes of Dali (Salvador).
This surrealistic existence, hopefully, has a glimmer of reality scheduled: Tuesday at 8:00pm.

In a blink of an eye... Dali re-paints the landscape .. might be Wednesday ... such is life in Hi-Tech China .. now on my 4th. flight re-schedule plus much logistic tap dancing.

Deep memories, thanks to the uncompromising, Scottish school system.
Poetry by Rote Learning, backed up by; corporal punishment, to those of short memory

Reflecting .. Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Vagabond"
Give to me the life I love,
Let the lave go by me,
Give the jolly heaven above
And the byway nigh me.
Bed in the bush with stars to see,
Bread I dip in the river -
There's the life for a man like me,
There's the life for ever.

Normal posting coming soon ...

Friday evening - dinner

Dinner with friends: last nigh it was Hunan Food (very spicy hot) Sunny on the phone to Judy (3am US time) Betty and Tracy:

Saturday with Friends

A late start for a Saturday ..13:30 we head off:
Paulo, Dave, Matt + friend and myself.
Betty was busy with banking and apartment moving etc, so it was just 5 for a late lunch.
By 16:30 we arrive, Mrs.Yang’s tea shop.
We meet up with the owner of the ”DVD” store we frequent ..he is long time fiend of Mrs.Yang and fellow tea addict. This day, for me, underscored the need to find folks you trust to do business with.
DVD store .. Dave has been shopping there for 6+ years, me about 4. Outwardly this is, “typical” Copy DVD store, the difference, integrity of staff and owner. I’ve had staff tell me “Don’t buy this, you bought it last week, just a different cover” Return a defective disk.. money back / replacement or different DVD-CD, your choice. It’s been like this since day one.
At one point there was 10 of us enjoying tea and chit chat.We get around to finding more of the elusive 1994 Shupu. With the store busy I get to rummaging through; shelves, cabinets and hidden corners. (much to amusement of the local customers)
With some luck I find, not one, but three cakes of long lost 1994 shupu. With some fanfare, the customers show there approval of my find. I get two cakes for “old” price of 200 RMB. We split the other cake, ½ for me (no charge) ½ for Mrs. Yang. She will save it for when I come back …
During the; searching – banter and tea drinking, Dave and Paulo discover a 2007 Shu. We taste sample brews over a period of an hour. Dave and I each buy a Tong (7 Cakes: 500 RMB)2007 Minghai Shu 7572, lets check back in a few years.
Explanation of numerical code:
The code 7572, "75" means this recipe was first used in 1975. (pre Y2K)
"7" refers to the special "Blend/Mix" of raw leaves used used in this cake.
"2", refers to the tea factory. "2" = Meng Hai Tea Factory.
NOTE: the many many variables between batches:
Cake compression, weather and drying conditions (natural sun dry or wood fire assisted)
You must try the cake BEFORE you buy ... next year a 7572 will vary; "sub-par" or "better".

Good Morning: 早上好 Zao Shang Hao

As the sun rises, a subtle shift from summer to autumn is in the air.
The lake is a wonderful place to walk and clear the mind ..   Enjoy:No shortage of Marble and Granite in China:


Almost like a giant sail boat ..(local government building complex)

Wet (est) Storage.

Well if your into “WET Stored Pu-erh” do I have the place for you.
Kaua‘i, the oldest of Hawai‘i's major islands.
One of the wettest places on earth, average rainfall: 485 inches per year on Mount Wai'ale'ale.
(London gets about 21+ inches or should I say 539mm)
Year around average temperatures range from: 70° to 81°F. (21° -27°C.)

Spent 5 days with Robin and Heather near Po‘ipu Beach, on the south shore. Rainfall ranges at a modest 40-50 inches a year. We stayed in a cabin nestled in the foothills around Mount Kahali.
So yes, if you want to experiment with wet storage, this IS the place.

Heather is relocating to Kauai. So far she has manged to buy a car (Ford Explorer).
Our last night, Jake and his brother met us for dinner. (Jake and Heather)