THE chairman opened the April meeting and members were asked to vote for where they would like to go for the annual outing, Ironbridge or Cardiff. Cardiff won and it was decided this year that members would be asked to pay towards the cost of the coach.

The national annual meeting is to be held on June 14 in Birmingham. Members were asked to nominate a delegate to attend.

The speaker for the morning was Ray Sturdy who gave a most interesting talk on China – ancient and modern.

It was 25 years ago that Ray first visited China, at that time everyone seemed to ride bicycles.

He returned for another visit two years ago to find that now everyone seems to drive a car and, with a population of 1,350 million, the congestion is horrendous.

The slide show started with pictures of Beijing, visiting the zoo and the giant pandas. The Forbidden City, an area dedicated to the emperor and empress, had the most magnificent buildings, and the Olympic stadium visit was a must. A gondola ride took the party to the top of the Great Wall of China where a walk of 11 miles took in superb views.

The next meeting will be held on May 20 at 10.15am at the URC Hall, Malvern Link , when the speaker will be Alan Clarke on Travels In Turkey.