Tuesday 9 July 2013

GALA DAY BAG SHANGHAI STYLE

Some of you will get this, mostly the Scots amongst you, to others it will be a complete mystery, but here goes anyway, stick with me......

Last week we were at my husband's company outing, or "trip" as it was known to me as a child. Every year we would be taken, usually to the seaside by the company your father, or mother, worked for. There would also be the Sunday school "trip" and if you were lucky maybe one or two others thanks to generous relations or friends. We also had gala days. A big day for small towns when everyone would be bought new clothes, families would get together and a fun time had by all.

One thing these two occasions had in common was the "bag". All the children were issued one, not sure why it was called a bag, as it was always a box! Inside would be a carton of juice, a packet of crisps, a chocolate snowball, some sweets and a scotch pie.  http://thecelticcook.blogspot.co.uk/search?q=scotch+pie to the uninitiated you can check it out. A strange mixture I know, but we all eagerly awaited it.

Fast forward to our Shanghai trip, complete with the aforementioned "bag" LoL

This time the destination Wuxi was a bit different, as it boasts an 88metre high Buddha. Quite a thing to see, and quite a trek to the top, as I can testify.


As we got into the car, not a bus, we've moved on a bit, my husband and I were handed a carrier bag each and told by our driver, Jack, to "eat". Was not prepared for the assortment of "goodies"inside. I say goodies with tongue in cheek as it really wasn't to our taste. Take  look at contents.




It contained a bag with 12 small rolls, a box of 8 cake slices, various packs of dried fruits, crisps, a yogurt drink, which after being in the car all day in 30c heat was not exactly enticing me, a cold coffee drink and a pack of what looked similar to the famous M&S Percy Pigs. But I should have guessed, we were in China and what lay inside was tiny little dried pork sausages. The smell................still haunting me, again pork in car, in heat, for a long time, not a great idea. Still the Chinese tucked into it all, more accustomed to these delicacies than we are.

It made me think, not for the first time on my travels, that basically things are much the same the world over. People enjoy doing the same things, maybe what we eat differs, but we still all like a treat in whatever form it comes. Most importantly people enjoy having fun and spending time with friends and family.

The world should really be a more simpler place!