Article by Xiao Yu Er
December 15th saw Robin Café (知一咖啡馆) opening sooner than expected. Staff worked long hours, late into the night to make sure everything was ready to host the Charity Auction for Little Fish.
And yes, fish was on the menu, much to the delight of the many foreigners who where there for the event. The British were particularly enthusiastic about fish & chips being available, saying it was the best they have had outside of Britain. When I was in Britain earlier this year, I made it my project to try fish & chips in as many places as possible, and in my opinion the Fish & chips at Robin Café is far superior to any I had in the U.K.. Just saying.
But, I digress.
What a wonderful night it was, high quality food and wine was complimentary, generously provided by Robin café and Orchid Wine Estate (澳麒酒业).
Other free drinks including a very drinkable fruit tea also seem to be constantly handed out. Not to worry though, the toilets have those fancy seat covers that automatically rotate with a clean plastic cover. Classy.
Two foreign friends, Jeff from the U.S.A. and Jos from Europe, were busy mixing cocktails all night. They were experimenting with making a new cocktail especially for Robin Café. Their commitment to this assignment was admirable; they stuck at it all night with their enthusiasm never wavering. Many people, in the generous spirit of the event, supported them by offering their services as taste testers.
The end result is called ‘Blue Robin’, and is very nice indeed.
Meanwhile, while guests perused the items available for auction, or bought raffle tickets from the vivacious Julie or Pat from the U.K., they enjoyed having two talented musicians perform a unique combination of Chinese and Western chamber music. Ms Esther Li, a professional erhuist who has developed international recognition, and Mr Liu Mo, founder of Xi’an Mofang Guitar School of Music and winner of the Quling International Guitar Competition, volunteered their time and talent for the entertainment of the delighted guests.
Adam, who is from Britain, and a big supporter of Little Fish, was the Auctioneer for the night. He was obviously having loads of fun, which was very contagious and there was lots of laughter throughout the proceedings.
Many of the items had been brought to Xi’an from foreign countries especially for the event.
A visiting New Zealander brought scarves made in New Zealand from possum fur and sheep wool. Sydney company, LST Group, made two unique Sydney Opera House souvenirs in support of Little Fish. People donated hand made items from Australia, Columbia, U.S.A. and China. There were also quite a few children’s books brought from Australia, the U.K. and the U.S.A.. The Danny Lund framed prints were very popular, raising a significant amount of money.
The bargain of the night was, two hours of IELTS exam tutoring by highly qualified and experienced Cambridge scholar, Anna, for only 500 RMB.
Someone must be ecstatic with that.
Once bidding began, people quickly got into the spirit of things and competition was entered into with lighthearted enthusiasm. However, thanks to their generosity, serious money was made for a very worthy local charity.
Over 26,000 RMB was raised for Little Fish and may more people learned about the important work Little Fish do.
Little Fish have many projects to help needy people in our community. They give training and support to disabled, orphans, migrant and other marginalized children, helping them live fuller lives.
Thankyou to everyone who helped to make this event a success in every way.
Once we recover, let’s do it again!
If you wish to, you can contact Ethan at Little Fish the following ways;
WeChat: xiaoyuer9gongyi
Phone: (029) 8520 2627
Email: littlefishethan@gmail.com