I can see for miles and miles...

Taking the open plan concept a bit too far

I'm in my room at the hotel. We're now in Yantai, in Shandong Province, having flown downhere this morning. We visited the Ludong University campus on arrival but it was snowing, so we didn't see very much, although we did meet colleagues who had visited UPEI last year. They teased us about the snow, saying that we must have brought it from Canada, but also noting that the first snow was auspicious and was a good omen for the strength of our partnership.
In the afternoon we visited a wine museum (apparently a very famous wine comes from here, one which holds 40% of the domestic market) and I was most surprised to find three Picasso’s on display in the Hall of Treasures. After the tour we went back to campus for a meeting with theUniversity President, where we signed the partnership agreement between our two universities.

The hotel room is nice, it looks out over the gulf (an arm of the Pacific, I guess) and there are traditional sampans floating at anchor. The room looks out towards the east so if I'm up early enough there may be a nice sunrise tomorrow.

The only questionable thing is the room design. The bed and washroom are in the normal places- the bathroom to your right as you come in the door, with a wardrobe on the left, then the room opens out and there is the bed. Beyond the bed is a small table, and then floor to ceiling windows which open to a balcony, and there is the view of the sea.
But, when you sit on the bed, you suddenly realize that the wall between you and the shower is made of glass, so you can see right in to the shower cubicle.

Now I suppose that could be romantic, for those of younger years, and so although I'm glad I'm here on my own right now, I do understand that part of the concept.

It's the next bit that I find difficult. The door between the shower and the toilet itself is also madeof glass, and so when you're sitting on the bed you actually look right through the shower cubicleand then through the door to the throne itself. Now I don't consider myself particularly squeamish, but I’m afraid I do have a problem withthat particular design feature. Imagine standing out on the balcony with a cup of tea whileone’s partner freshens up. If you were to make the mistake of turning around too soon … as mygrandmother would say, “oh my dear ...”