Disney is magical, but ye gods is the language difficult (I mean, really, ‘lugubriousness’?!). Thankfully Hercules can be understood entirely without sound (or without video; I’ve tried both and no I do not have too much time on my hands). So even if my students struggled with some of the subtitles, they seemed to enjoy it this week.

School-wise, it was a two-day week: Monday off because of the Turpan trip and the last two days given for Christmas. Come 1am on Wednesday night, Tom and I met Kieran and Joel on the overnight train to Ürümqi. By 9am we were in cold and tired but in Bagang. Love Actually killed the time before Calum and Ben arrived, completing the group, at which point we went out for Pollo and swapped our Secret Santas. I was given a ‘Partner Discipline Kit’: a potentially lethal but highly effective collection designed to keep Tom in check, complete with fly swat and instructions. I think Tom’s reputation is exaggerated as we actually get on very well. Christmas Eve was given to celebrating Calum (Morley)’s 18th birthday with banquet, karaoke and beer pong.

Christmas itself was a relaxed start, after which Kieran and Calum accompanied me to Fukang while the others headed into Ürümqi to party it up with re-returned volunteers. We spent the eventing playing darts with our most recent MiniSo acquisition (the dart board) before following Calum’s waiban’s cryptic directions to a special banquet the school was holding. Us three volunteers, plus Sharon and Stephen, were especially honoured by the presence of the four most important school leaders, who stayed for the entire banquet despite being expected at several other celebrations that night. This demanded impeccable toasting etiquette: only a full shot-glass of baijiu per toast was acceptable. I lost count after ten, although we were let off comparatively lightly, and ended the evening slipping back home on the ice rather merrily via an underground spa. I sobered up during a Skype call home (following drunk darts, not advisable for a recently painted wall) and went to bed on a floor-heated stack of bedding.

Boxing Day was spent in the underground spa from the last night. Had to buy speedos but entry was £4 granting us access to pools, baths and saunas. They even had lounge chairs in which we wore pyjamas and watched films. They even brought us tea and blankets! Before we knew it, evening had arrived along with the other volunteers from Ürümqi. Returning to the rude, freezing planet Earth we payed Falaishi’s a visit for their whole braised chicken and chips. The night was given to booking hostels for February.

Sunday was a typically late start. We planned to reach Karamay (by bus) via Changji, but missed the connection and had to return to Ürümqi just in time to miss the last train. Not wanting to pay extortionate taxi fairs, we got ourselves to Bagang to stay with Calum and Mac. This was also a task, as we had difficulty finding the bus stop for the  ¥5 Bagang shuttle and yo-yo-ed back and forth past it a few times.

Having failed to get home on Sunday, we obviously missed Monday lessons (giving the school advance and highly apologetic notice). Luckily we have three between the two of us, which is the fewest of any day of the week. Kieran, Tom and I got the bus to Ürümqi then I tailed off with their passports to buy tickets while they went in search of something with chips to satisfy our cravings for the train. Somehow we managed to cut it fine (a day late), but made it home, which is the main thing.

—TJC

Featured image: Overflowing festive spirit at Karamay No. 7 Middle School.