Lunch or dinner with cock balls?

Up at 10.30 wondering if that is enough sleep to go without an wu shui. However, it appeared that we had all been invited to one of Tan’s ex-colleagues at 1.30 who lives just a little south of Pingguo.... Haiwei also called to invite me for an evening meal and said he’d call back at 5pm with the details, so no likelihood of an wu shui then.

But 1.30 turned to 2pm and we got to the house nearer half past. I started to doubt we were having lunch and my fears were confirmed when I was told we were to drink tea with some more ex-colleagues. I should have guessed it wasn’t going to be lunch - no-one arranges lunch at 1.30 or later. So I texted Haiwei and gave him the honest reason I wouldn’t be available at 5 and he seemed to understand - I’d ping him when I could.

We picked what I thought was a massive pear but apparently it was "just" a grapefruit

I went out for a walk by myself and found a place where I bought some little meaty snacks as I hadn’t eaten all day, before the heat forced me back to find shade. They were busy cooking upstairs and it seems I wasn’t the only hungry one as others were picking on the rooster balls before we finally sat down to eat at 4pm, which if this was an evening meal was rather early - linner? Lupper?

One of three transformers I met on my walk

I suppose it was a mini-reunion meal and there were around 10 of us and wine was forced upon me as apparently there was no beer. After an hour or so it typical style more people arrived and others dropped off. Then a bloke arrived with a box of beer so I had something more palatable to sip on, except sipping wasn’t an option.

For the first time ever I found a sauna in Pingguo - what? The whole place is basically a sauna 80% of the year

Waiting for the meal to be ready from outside the sauna

One of multiple plates of rooster balls, or would it be more appropriate to say cockerel balls? 

It was a lovely meal though, especially the company

I had explained my prior engagement with a friend at 5pm and they said they’d take me there “very soon”. As it was of course I was obliged to participate in multiple gan bei’s before they let me leave and some non-drinking bloke gave me a lift to where he was at 6.30. It wasn’t his own house, and it wasn’t his mother’s house, but his wife and younger son were there so it must have been legit. Haiwei made me talk to his older son to come around and speak English but for some reason he was adamant that he wouldn’t come. I didn’t quite get the reason and although slightly happy I didn’t have to speak English, was also slightly concerned. Anyway, Li Kun called me to say my tee-shirt from yesterday’s picture was ready so I went home with an excuse and picked up Xixi to go there in the dian dong che to pick it up with her. I didn’t mention it looked rather like a New Zealand top. I appreciated it but had to leave to be with the kids for the evening.

Later, Li Kun IM’d me to see if I had time to meet up but I was still with the kids so had to decline, but I sent him that picture of my new guitar and told him I loved it! I did make the effort to meet a friend to drink tea though to counteract the beer, and afterwards I was really tempted to go for another massage but I soberly realised it was rather late and should get back. That didn’t stop me chatting with Awl till 4am though….