By the time the party left Hong Kong by train on 31 March (Good Friday), all the players were equipped with excellent cameras. The trip from Kowloon Station to the border at Lowu took only about an hour. Here the party had to walk across a bridge under the eyes of armed Communist guards dressed in khaki uniforms with red tunics. There was a meal at the reception centre on the other side of the border where officials of the Chinese Table Tennis Association met the teams. Thousands of refugees could be seen queueing up on the Red China side of the border. After the meal the players boarded another train and travelled on to Canton in company with the officials. Canton was the most depressing place that any of the New Zealanders had ever seen—men and women all dressed alike dragging huge carts around the street were common sights. There were few cars but many bicycles. We had a practice while at Canton but were far from impressed with this big city (population 3 million), and were not sorry when we took off by plane for Peking at 7 a.m. the next day. The journey to Peking was an uncomfortable one in a bumpy plane. There were three stops en route and we eventually arrived in the Communist capital at 4.30 p.m. A big crowd of press reporters, photographers and local officials were at the airport. SPORT BALLET AND CEREMONIAL That night we joined many other teams in the Hsin Chiao Hotel, Peking, which was to be our home for the duration of the world championships from 4 April to 15 April. The New Zealand men played matches against Japan, England. North Korea, Cuba, Singapore, Russia, Brazil and Yugoslavia beating only Cuba (5–0) but also doing well against England and Brazil. The women played Japan, England, North Vietnam, Sweden, Russia and Ghana. They beat both North Vietnam and Ghana. During the course of the championships the players were taken on many sight-seeing tours—one to the Great Wall of China—and were looked after like kings and queens. Following the teams matches, the players took part in the individual events at the championships which were won by Chinese players. Terrific crowds attended the table tennis sessions. There were capacity crowds of 15,000 all the time, Several times all of the teams were entertained at magnificent banquets, some of which were attended by the Premier, Chou En Lai, and they were also taken to a remarkable ballet performance. Two of the most unforgettable experiences were the colourful opening ceremony where 35 countries were represented, and the prize-giving function. On 15 April we started on the journey home by flying from Peking to Canton. Again it was a most uncomfortable trip. From the air the tremendous amount of cultivation was apparent because of the intricate pattern of fields that could be seen. The stop over in Canton was again made at the Au Chin Hotel and the party left by train for the border the following morning. Once more we went through the “walking across the border” performance and carried on from Lowu to Kowloon by train. Immediately the difference was apparent. People in Hong Kong were much happier and brighter than those in Red China. END OF WHIRLWIND TOUR We spent another whirlwind shopping day in Hong Kong before flying to Bangkok by Electra (a two and a half hour journey) on 17 April. We stayed in the Thailand capital, where it was very hot, for three days and took part in the Thailand international tournament with Australian, Thailand and South Vietnam players. Sight-seeing here fully occupied everyone, a highlight being a trip around the canals during which time we saw the famous floating market. The Boeing touched down at Sydney at about 1 p.m. We stayed overnight and carried on to New Zealand on 24th April. The four Northlanders and Alan Tomlinson flew direct to Auckland from Sydney while the others went straight to Wellington.

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