Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Eventually, the crowd grew silent and Xiao Wei stepped forward to address
them. 'These are our guests from Australia. They will introduce themselves, and
please use the opportunity to ask them questions in English.'
Then it was over to us. We spoke about our journey, Australia, and what had
happened to us along the way. Chris even recited 'The Man From Ironbark'. Every-
one just gazed, spellbound. Quite possibly no one understood a word of what we
said, but it didn't really matter.
After about twenty minutes Xiao Wei broke in with an emotional address to the
children. 'Students, do you understand that our Australian friends had much trouble
coming to our town. They were taken by the police. Students do you know that our
town is closed? That foreigners are not to come here?'
'Yes!' cried the children.
'They have had much trouble with our police, but they have asked and got per-
mission to talk to you. This is a great opportunity so ask questions,' she continued.
I was so caught up in the euphoria that I jumped onto a table from where I poin-
ted out our route on a map.
I was angered when the police finally called an end to the presentation. Follow-
ing them back through the town, I cursed and swore under my breath. It was then
that I realised we weren't heading for the police station.
We pulled up outside a shop and the policemen loosened their collars. It was
a restaurant. A table had been booked and orders placed. Several familiar officers
were already sitting around the table, waiting.
It was as if the policemen were temporarily leaving behind their jobs. Even the
man who arrested us smiled as he flicked through photos and calendars of Aus-
tralia. Questions were asked and laughter flowed as Xiao Wei translated our an-
swers. The meal was on the police, and I could only feel a little guilty for disliking
the officer for doing his job. He was human. And he was interested. Perhaps he was
as much a victim of the system as anyone else.
As I slurped down noodles and drank a shot of wine, I couldn't help feeling
that we had once again been graced with unbounded hospitality. It wasn't deserved,
asked for, or even expected; and it wasn't something that we could ever repay. We
were living our dream, perhaps a selfish one at that, yet people were willing to sup-
port us! I felt like the luckiest person alive.
After the meal we headed for the train station, where a group photo was taken
before we boarded the train. Xiao Wei's last words summed up the whole occasion
perfectly: 'Goodbye and good luck. We have to go back to work now!'
