Monday 31 March 2014

Chengdu Bookworm, March 11

Author banners at Chengdu Bookworm

After an early morning flight to Chengdu, China's fourth largest city and capital of Sichuan province, I'm met by a Chinese volunteer who teaches English at a local university. Making the most of my brief stay here, she and a friend take me by metro (first time I've had to go through a metal detector to enter a subway system) to see a renovated old quarter and its Buddhist temple.

Burning incense at Wenshu Monastery
At my early evening session at the Bookworm, I'm lucky that the moderator, Paddy Booz, is a history teacher with a passion for WWII who can fill in background to my story. I put up some maps and photos, and find this works well wherever I'm speaking. We have a lively discussion with an audience that is a good mix of Chinese and expats. I stay on to hear a panel with David Vann, Musharraf Ali-Farooqi and Danny Laferriere on ‘Why We Write’, and sit in the cafĂ© to have a welcome chicken pie. This is a great local gathering place, enlivened tonight by a singer/piano duo as well as the festival events.



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