11.Utterly forgettable except for a few re-memorable memories ....so this is contemporaneous

The only excitement was Nathalie misplacing her jewellery and then finding it exactly where it had been put.  Only after it had been reported to the crew.   Pretty much over the food, everything fried or baked.....   Visited a temple of ancient proportions except that if had been relocated when the Dam had been put up.   This temple's claim to fame was that it is supposedly haunted....

Above repents fertility rites. The half sphere in background represents the girl bits and weights 185 kgs and the bit in the middle represented the boy bits. A good man is supposed to be able to roll the half sphere around the pointy bit and then balance it on the pointy bit.  Is that clear? 

For a Buddhist temple, it was a great disappointment.   It was dirty, exceptionally commercial, and there was absolutely no reverence shown..... And at the very top of the hill, was a Taoist temple.   

He did get to stand in the Yangtze, and had we had more time would have gone for a swim.

The Yangtze.

and it was crowded too.....

There is so much construction going on along the river, so many bridges, roads and complete towns still being completed.   Some of the bridges are very impressive too.  The unusual thing to get used to is that every city looks the same has multiple high rise buildings with no occupants, and are all less than 15 years old.    

That's an enormous crane on the top.

One of a dozen similar towns, all lit up in a similar if not brighter fashion. 

After the final meal, served to us by our lovely waitress Wendy (don't think this is her birth name.) we had another cabaret show, put on by the crew and a few of the more different passengers.   Mostly the big noses, and a five year old Chinese girl.   Some of the performers were very prepared and polished for this 'impromptu' performance.   

The penny has just dropped.       There are some people this cruise stuff suits.  It seems that there is a cohort of people who relish the concept of being held in close confines with hundreds of other like minded people, answering and obeying the bells, transported to extremely commercial locations, and being force fed trans fats high carbohydrates, and life threatening crispy bacon for EVERY meal, and being herded like cattle on on and off the craft, being sent off and greeted by twenty staffs each telling you to have a 'rovery' day, and 'mind your head 

'and 'watch the step' EVERY time and having an extremely irritating crew photographer nearly having a very expensive camera deposited somewhere inappropriate.

'Wind in your hair wind in your hair'move like a tiger' smile...that will be 50 yuan thanks.

It works for some...but. At least fifty percent of the Andrew and Nathalie cohort will be dead before he gets on a cruise any longer than two hours.  It is so un-natural to be civil to strangers for so long.

Having said this, we feel that we are extremely fortunate to have such a great group of people that we have been lucky enough to have been travelling with.....and obviously they with us.