non-fiction

Christmas spirit on the new silk road – by Cobus Block

“Would you like to try our special Christmas fruit platter?” our waitress asks in Chinese, fur-trimmed, red-velvet stocking cap bobbing as she leans forward.

Kayrat glances my way and then responds, “Sure, bring us a platter and a pot of tea.”

“What about beer?” Yerbol asks the waitress.

Her reply is lost in the refrains of Jingle Bells, starting again for the third time.

“Bring us three Qingdaos each,” Yerbol yells, leaning back and reaching into a pocket for his cigarettes.

Enlightenment is just a short queue away – by Elijah Dove

Marriage, loss, and red tape – by Carl Setzer

I arrived at the US consulate in Shenyang at 8:15am. The handwritten sign on the window of the security office said citizen services would begin at 8:30. There didn't seem to be the threat of a line forming, so I figured I was safe to wander around a few minutes to see what the capital of Liaoning Province had to offer.

As I turned to leave, I bumped into something solid – it felt like a tree or a telephone poll, but turned out to be a person.

A supermodel is born – by Jon Rechtman

My career as a model started the way all good stories begin: I was walking down the street, minding my own business, when I was propositioned by a slim young Chinese woman with impeccable English, in a snazzy white dress and an attitude to match.

"You're perfect," she said, looking me up and down.

Climbing a mountain to beat the sunrise – by Elijah Dove

As we approach the staircase, flashlight beams sweep through the midnight mist-smog. Chanted words drift from behind them, and as we draw closer, shambling figures reveal themselves as street vendors, hawking canes, incense and assorted trinkets. No rest for the working. We walk briskly past them and begin our ascent on steps leading up between hulked, darkling shadows; shops by day are now become anonymous, shuttered spectres.

We are on our way to climb Mount Tai, the most renowned of China’s five great mountains. It carries the claim of being the most-climbed mountain not only in China, but in the world.