Tag Archives: Chinese

Big changes at the University of Birmingham (Rousse)

Posted on October 4, 2025 by Dreamaticus

Childhood friends SB and KH met me in Birmingham to scope out venues for next year’s university reunion. We were in for a shock when we reached the University of Birmingham campus. The French department was completely unrecognisable. The corridors … Continue reading →

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Jack Dee in love (Rousse)

Posted on November 5, 2024 by Dreamaticus

Jack Dee was in love – with me! As a token of his affection, he had already given me a red silk, traditional, Chinese Tang suit jacket. Now he was begging me to meet him on Thursday evening for a … Continue reading →

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Stitching scarves and a super-rich stranger (Rousse)

Posted on June 22, 2024 by Dreamaticus

I took advantage of the stately home’s in-house sewing team and handed over my enormous scarf with the request that it be cut down to a manageable size. When I came to the end of the self-guided tour of the … Continue reading →

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Body building at the British Library heist (Rousse)

Posted on December 17, 2023 by Dreamaticus

Barefoot and carrying a towel, I arrived at the British Library ready for action. A small Chinese woman whipped the towel out of my hands. ‘This is soiled and completely inappropriate for our criminal purposes’, she scolded. In the end … Continue reading →

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Fun and games with trains (Rousse)

Posted on March 4, 2022 by Dreamaticus

I needed to reach Liverpool by 13:15 for a meeting. At 12:30 I jumped on the first train that I saw at Edinburgh’s Waverley Station, assuming that it was a London service that called at Leeds. I was right in … Continue reading →

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Kneeling toilet is a safe haven for jewellery stash (Rousse)

Posted on January 25, 2021 by Dreamaticus

No wonder I kept getting lost in the hotel. Due to a booking mishap, every day TPR and I were moved from one bedroom to another. Although annoying, it would have been so much worse if the weather had been … Continue reading →

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County Durham coal mine confidences (Rousse)

Posted on June 21, 2020 by Dreamaticus

My sister S whispered over the telephone that she’d heard about a woman from County Durham, now living in Sydney, who had sold secrets about British coal-mining to the Chinese. When I next saw her in person, my sister confided … Continue reading →

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The Apprentice’s Lewis Ellis graduates (Rousse)

Posted on December 22, 2019 by Dreamaticus

Lewis Ellis was graduating with a Masters degree in Early Modern History and English from the University of Worcester, as was I. I couldn’t wait to add another set of letters to my existing Masters qualification and spell out the … Continue reading →

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Chinese tour of Scotland (Rousse)

Posted on August 2, 2019 by Dreamaticus

We had been ‘volunteered’ to take a Chinese man and his elderly mother on a tour of the Scottish highlands. The ‘elderly mother’ seemed rather childish to me, stuffing herself with sweets in the front passenger seat of the car. … Continue reading →

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Chinese Square puzzle (Rousse)

Posted on July 22, 2019 by Dreamaticus

During the terrible Hebridean floods, which brought down hundreds of buildings, I met two honeymooning couples from China. ‘Where can we find a divorce lawyer?’ one of the foursome asked me. ‘Why would you need one of those?’ I asked. … Continue reading →

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