The Amazing Jason Zhang – He and his wife Fan did so much to help me out while I was living in Yangshuo near Guilin, Guangxi Autonomous Region . If you are ever there definitely drop by the Double Moon Hotel and say hi.

10am and the phone rings “Andy, its Jason. I am outside and we have a bed for you. Are you still asleep?” Mercy!

I mean I hit the sack in the early hours and still feel really full of flu. I get outside to find he’s there with his mate. They are in full uniform and have this state of the art four wheel drive flat-bed police truck.

“We have to collect it now. No other time!” and at that we were off.

Turns out, the bed is on the top floor of the Li River Hotel as they are throwing out some of their stuff. When we get there, unable to move the thing, Jason is on the radio getting even more guys to help him. From up on the roof, I can see police literally running across the road from all directions to help out. Two emerged from the park at top speed. It’s like he’s called for back-up and something big is going down. So there are all these policemen helping Jason with this bed, base, headboard and mattress down all these flights of stairs, making a right old commotion.

On the way back Jason drives right through a road block. As we go past, this squad car bursts into life and goes ahead of us lights and sirens ablaze. I don’t think this can be for us, just bizarre timing. I mean there we are taking a bed back to the hotel with full escort and police protection.

“What was it with this bed?” I think, leaning out of the window to see people stopping in the street, heads turning, all wondering what was going on. At this moment there is the strong temptation to shout

“WE HAVE THE BED AND WE’RE COMING THROUGH!”

From Just Turn Left at the Mountain, Chapter 9: Return to Yangshuo: Square Peg in a Round Hole