We arrived in Yantai yesterday to visit the family of Bin who is travelling with us. Her uncle arranged the best possible Chinese dinner for us in a very exclusive place. At the dinner were me, Adrienne, Maarten, Arjen, Bin, Bin’s two uncles and aunts and a special guest the chief of running water from Yantai.

I have never eaten so many different and strange things. The worst of all were (and I can feel a lump in my throat even when I type this) pigfeet, chicken feet and worst of all (and most exclusive and expensive of all apparently) was Sea Cucumber, a very awful substance with hardly any taste and it really looks horrific (the dark green long thing in the picture).

It is also very common to make toasts at the dinner table, after such a toast the Chinese shout “Ganbei!” and you have to finish your glass at once.. “Bottoms up”. For this special occasion the uncle of Bin had opened a 50 year old very special wine. Which is strange because no one tastes the wine, but they just shout Ganbei and away it goes!

Not wanting to be insulting to their culture me and Arjen joined them with their Ganbei’s and we all had speeches of our own. I can say without a doubt that in my entire life (including the notorious introduction week at the university) I have never ever drank so much alcohol! After returning home to the hotel I spent the entire night on the toilet while the room was spinning like crazy. Arjen even had to be carried home after vomiting all over the nice and shiney white Honda of Bin’s aunt. I spent most of the next day lying in bed feeling awful, just as Arjen.

Bin’s family apologized for having us drink so much, but I must say that this was an experience I will never forget!

Tomorrow Adrienne and me are going to fly to Jinan, for this we have to get up at 4.30am… Happy times!

Ganbei!