You don’t need big gifts to be happy
N 33°52'33.8'' E 109°55'27.7''
Date:
25.01.2016
Day: 211
Country:
China
Province:
Shaanxi
Location:
Shangluo
Latitude N:
33°52’33.8”
Longitude E:
109°55’27.7”
Total kilometers:
11,835 km
Maximum height:
542 m
Total altitude meters:
15.830 m
Sunrise:
07:42 am
Sunset:
6:02 pm
Temperature day max:
minus 2°C
Temperature day min:
minus 15°C
(Photos of the diary entry can be found at the end of the text).
We have given a lot of thought to how we can get to the broken drawbar suspension. Fortunately, Riese und Müller has taken up the cause. “This is my greatest birthday present,” I email our thanks back home
Now that we know that the drawbar suspension is on its way to us, we move from our icy north room to the east side so that we can at least let the morning sun into the room. The effort was worth it just a short time after the move, as the new room is not only pleasantly bright, but the air conditioning also works. “Very good,” I say happily, as we will most likely have to wait a week for the spare part. “See, now you’ve already received two birthday presents,” laughs Tanja. “Come on, I’ll take you to a cafe for breakfast.” “Is there a real cafe here?” I wonder, because this is rare in many Chinese cities. “Let me surprise you.” “Okay,” I reply, and we leave our little room. Outside, we are greeted by blue skies, biting cold and beautiful sunshine. The street is bustling with activity, just as it was when we arrived. Only that the gray, the dreariness, the desolation and hopelessness that I felt when we arrived has given way to vibrant life. People consume and trade in the stores, stalls and on the sidewalks. We see a cat living next to a cardboard box. A leash hangs from her collar, which is attached to a hook in the wall of the house. “Poor animal”, it goes through my mind, because the cat is walking on the smooth floor tiles of the hallway with all four paws without making any progress. Like a hamster in its wheel. If her owner had let her roam free, she would probably have become a victim of traffic long ago. “Her owners mean well by her. Look, her food bowl is full,” says Tanja. We pass the Muslim bread baker who bakes his flatbread in an oven on wobbly wheels. He waves a friendly greeting to us. As if he knew that today is my birthday. Every 50 meters we look through the smudged windows of a busy, simple hairdressing salon, of which there are an endless number in every city, just like restaurants. Next to a small fruit store, a man is mending car tires. Shoes are also offered for sale. There is a bank next door with an ATM in front of it. A well-dressed businessman is inserting his bank card into the slot. A Chinese man dressed in rags pushes his heavily laden cargo bike past us with great effort. Old cardboard is piled up meters high on the loading area. The cabs honk their horns to attract attention. Suddenly a machine gun rattles, or so you might think. These are fireworks that are set off at all times of the day and night, as in almost every city. The mixture of sounds and exotic smells is stunning and yet I hardly notice it. Obviously, we have gotten used to it. We are in China, in Asia, and although it is winter, although it is cold, we feel comfortable here.
Just 500 meters from our accommodation, we enter a modern, tastefully furnished patisserie. The young sales clerks, dressed in nice uniforms, greet us cheerfully and whisper excitedly to each other. My eyes wander over the many lovingly created cakes with great appetite. “Is this real cream?” I wonder. “Choose whatever you fancy,” says Tanja.” “Hmm, maybe a cup of cream yogurt and peaches? Or a slice of chocolate cake? The strawberry tart looks tempting too. And the croissants… Oh man, I don’t know what to choose?” “Have it all.” “Everything?” “Yes, why not. We can take what you can’t manage and eat it this afternoon,” Tanja suggests. No sooner said than done. We order a total of three slices of cake, four croissants, a pot of cream yoghurt, a large pot of yoghurt with cake batter and peaches, a large pot of cocoa, also with pieces of peach in it, and two cappuccinos. On the second floor of the patisserie, we are surprised by a sun-drenched café. We sit down by the window and wait for our order. “I wish you a good day,” we are greeted in good German by a young Chinese man sitting at the next table with two friends. When we return his greeting in our language, he can hardly believe that he has actually been understood. He is literally writhing with joy and his whole body is almost twitching. His friends laugh excitedly. It turns out that the three of them are studying German at the university in Lhasa: “Unbelievable”. While we wait for our ordered breakfast, the young student uses the German language skills he has acquired. “For the first time in my life, I see Germans in our small town and can hear their language. I just can’t believe my luck. You know, my dream is to travel to Berlin one day,” he says, and once again he is overcome with joy that touches us deeply. Then the three of them say goodbye to us. “If you need help, give me a call,” he says and hands us his phone number. Then one of the young girls in uniform comes and places a tray with all the cakes and steaming drinks on the table. We begin to feast until our bellies bulge with a huge appetite. We talk about our trip and our great, exciting lives. Is it my birthday? Does a special day like this carry a different, perhaps more subtle energy? Quite unexpectedly, tears run down my cheeks. They are not tears of sadness, but definitely of joy. “It’s a wonderful birthday,” I say to my Tanja, with whom I have been traveling around the world for 25 years now and love her at least as much as I did on the first day. “That makes me happy,” she replies, smiling at me.
When we want to leave the beautiful place after more than two hours, the sales clerks ask for a few photos. “Gladly,” we say. Their enthusiasm is great. They stand next to each other, chattering excitedly and smiling into their smartphones. “It’s nice when you can bring so much joy to people with so little effort,” I say.
I take a few photos on the way back to the hotel. We’re all jolly and laughing. Apparently our cheerfulness is contagious. A plait baker, who I have just photographed, gives each of us one of her pastries. Does she know it’s my birthday? In the evening we go back to the restaurant opposite. The waiters greet us effusively and immediately offer us a seat under the warm air of the air conditioning. When the food arrives, the chef has conjured up a lovely pattern on the plates with the sauce. “You didn’t tell him about my birthday, did you?” I ask in surprise. “My Chinese certainly isn’t good enough for that,” Tanja replies. “Unbelievable, it really is a special day. You don’t need big presents to make someone happy…
The live coverage is supported by the companies Gesat GmbH: www.gesat.com and roda computer GmbH http://roda-computer.com/ The satellite telephone Explorer 300 from Gesat and the rugged notebook Pegasus RP9 from Roda are the pillars of the transmission.
