We began work on 7/29 at 6 p.m. and have been kept very busy ever since. Yesterday we went to first-aid training at International SOS. It was, how you say, interesting. The instructor was a Chinese Dr. and his English was not great. Some of my favorite words and phrases were:
"First Aider": one who provides first aid.
"Meat Soup is brilliant!": This refers to the mixture of blood and flesh in an open wound and bacteria's fondness of it.
"Me I can only handle one bottle of beers.": Explaining that an adult male can only stand to lose one liter of blood before risking the collapse of his circulatory system.
As you can guess from these examples the whole discussion was a little bit gruesome. He kept referring to dismemberment, gaping wounds, and being pierced through by a "metal stick" at a construction site. The whole thing was quite amusing.
Then it was back to the family center where construction is in full swing. I'll check today to see if I am allowed to take pictures. The restaurant itself is absolutely beautiful. 15,500 square feet with 8 private dining rooms (5 very private with curtains, 3 elevated platforms that are semi-private), two koi ponds, 2 bars, plate glass windows everywhere, and a roof terrace. The terrace has an incredible view of Workers' Stadium and we suspect many an interview of athletes will happen there.
I keep forgetting, but am constantly reminded, that the summer games is a completely different animal from winter games. It's about twice as large, which means the family center will be incredibly busy. We are expecting to serve meals to 1000 people every day--Take that Bagdad Cafe--and we are only open for lunch and dinner. We received the shipment of swag yesterday. Holy bejeezus. Box after box of gifts for the athletes. Backpacks, water bottles, first-aid kits, you name it.
We took a walk through the kitchen yesterday. Bad idea. Maisie our Chinese assistant told us that it was very clean. We were all appalled. Remind me not to the next time I suggest eating anything that is less than fully cooked. That is all I am going to say about this matter. :-)
I still await the actual beginning of my job. The computers have not arrived and once they do arrive I will not have anything to do until someone with much more knowledge sets up the network for me. :-) How did I get this job again? BTW - I wasn't sure if I was to be flattered or insulted, but when I introduced myself to the room at first-aid training an "ooo" went through the crowd. I think they were all jealous because my job sounded so easy compared to their 18 hour work days.
That is all there is to report. After my 4 days here I've been designated the resident expert on Beijing and will spend some time in the next week orienting the other managers to the city. You know how much I love to play tour guide, so it will be a lot of fun. Dinner tonight is at "Meat Patty To Explode Stomach." Full report tomorrow, if I survive.
2008-07-30
2008-07-28
S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G
That's the word. It's amazing here, but also in some ways confusing. While I was able to buy a custom tailored suit for $115, it's almost impossible to get a watch for less than $50. I don't get it. I'm not complaining, don't get me wrong, but there seems to be no scale of proportions here.
About the suit. I'm supposed to pick it up today. Navy blue with a jacquard stripe, two buttons, pleated and cuffed pants. Looks great, and I could use another suit anyway. Especially if I will one day be a prof. And with prices that cheap, I figured it was OK. :-)
Pearls are also very cheap, which I've already detailed. However, I was proud to haggle a woman down to $45 for a pair of Timberland knock offs yesterday. She complained she couldn't eat with that price. What amazes me is that she started with a price of 800 yuan ($117), immediately offered me the friend discount 650 yuan ($95.50). I told her that was too much. I offered her 300 yuan. She came back with 500. I stuck to my guns and was about to walk away when she offered a compromise of 310 ($45). I paid it. Not a bad deal, but they are knock offs. I could probably get them in New York for about $30. However, I need a pair of walking shoes for this city so I figured it was worth the price.
Besides shopping I didn't do much yesterday, I felt it was best to get some rest. Our work starts today and I needed to make sure jet lag was mostly over. I think it is. It's not been terrible really. I've just needed a nap everyday at about 6:30 p.m. Which is strangely 5:30 a.m. yesterday in Wisconsin. I don't understand why I would need a nap when I would normally be getting out of bed, but that is the case.
Art and forgery? When in New York a few years ago Steve and I saw a few paintings in a bar. They were reportedly by a Beijing artist Yue Minjun. I believe they were asking $3000. They were great paintings and I wished then that we could have bought one. Alas, no. Now I am in Beijing, it's a few years later, and I found two Yue Minjun paintings in a frame shop near my apartment. She wants $175 each for them. Initially I was very excited. I thought, wow the painting is already worth way more than that. However, I decided to do some research to see if I could find a web image, or find an approximate value. Well, I think I might be dealing with a forgery.
A 5 minute google search revealed that Minjun's work is incredibly valuable. His most recent sale was a painting called "Execution" and it fetched almost $3 Million. If these are real Minjun's they are probably worth somewhere in the $200,000-300,000 range. My concern really is not that they could be lost in a gallery somewhere, but that China is relatively notorious for art forgery. This means I have to do some research. I am going to try to find a Minjun in a gallery or museum here so I can compare brushstrokes, color choice, canvas material, signature, etc. In the end it may be worth talking her down to $100 and owning a potentially fake Minjun. What if it's real? (see Who the Fuck is Jackson Pollock?).
Today I am going to seek out one of the many temples in Beijing and do some exploring. Then it is back to the apartment for a meeting in the late afternoon. Oh, and I have to have that suit fitted.
Yesterday's observations:
1) A popular chinese beverage is corn juice. I saw some in the store and asked our chinese assistant Maisie (pronounced like Macy's) what it was. She said, "Oh, I love corn juice. I am also big fan of corn yogurt." You could feel the Americans at the table cringe. I'll pick up a bottle and report back.
2) Steak flavored Ruffles are surprisingly good. I saw them and just had to try them. I mean, Steak flavor. What could be bad about that.
3) There is a lot of standing around here. Amazingly this is an incredibly service oriented place. The door person seemed upset the other day when I insisted on carrying my own groceries. When you go to a store you are followed by an employee. Not that they are worried you might steal something, but they want to be there to answer your questions and help you.
Speaking of door people, we are not allowed to open the door ourselves. When we approach the front door there is someone there to open it and say, "Ni hao" (hello). He then lets it close and runs ahead to get the next door for us. I'm surprised he doesn't follow us and press the elevator button for us.
An amusing observation yesterday. When I was at the market to have my suit fitted, I went down to another level to look at the aforementioned shoes. As soon as I stepped off the escalator a call went through the room. It reminded me of the seagulls in Finding Nemo as they would all call, "Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine!" As I stepped off the escalator one person called, "Excuse me, Sir, would you like to buy a belts?" this created an increasing cacophony of calls for a belts, a wallets, a shoes, a tie... you get the picture. It's amazing being so popular.
About the suit. I'm supposed to pick it up today. Navy blue with a jacquard stripe, two buttons, pleated and cuffed pants. Looks great, and I could use another suit anyway. Especially if I will one day be a prof. And with prices that cheap, I figured it was OK. :-)
Pearls are also very cheap, which I've already detailed. However, I was proud to haggle a woman down to $45 for a pair of Timberland knock offs yesterday. She complained she couldn't eat with that price. What amazes me is that she started with a price of 800 yuan ($117), immediately offered me the friend discount 650 yuan ($95.50). I told her that was too much. I offered her 300 yuan. She came back with 500. I stuck to my guns and was about to walk away when she offered a compromise of 310 ($45). I paid it. Not a bad deal, but they are knock offs. I could probably get them in New York for about $30. However, I need a pair of walking shoes for this city so I figured it was worth the price.
Besides shopping I didn't do much yesterday, I felt it was best to get some rest. Our work starts today and I needed to make sure jet lag was mostly over. I think it is. It's not been terrible really. I've just needed a nap everyday at about 6:30 p.m. Which is strangely 5:30 a.m. yesterday in Wisconsin. I don't understand why I would need a nap when I would normally be getting out of bed, but that is the case.
Art and forgery? When in New York a few years ago Steve and I saw a few paintings in a bar. They were reportedly by a Beijing artist Yue Minjun. I believe they were asking $3000. They were great paintings and I wished then that we could have bought one. Alas, no. Now I am in Beijing, it's a few years later, and I found two Yue Minjun paintings in a frame shop near my apartment. She wants $175 each for them. Initially I was very excited. I thought, wow the painting is already worth way more than that. However, I decided to do some research to see if I could find a web image, or find an approximate value. Well, I think I might be dealing with a forgery.
A 5 minute google search revealed that Minjun's work is incredibly valuable. His most recent sale was a painting called "Execution" and it fetched almost $3 Million. If these are real Minjun's they are probably worth somewhere in the $200,000-300,000 range. My concern really is not that they could be lost in a gallery somewhere, but that China is relatively notorious for art forgery. This means I have to do some research. I am going to try to find a Minjun in a gallery or museum here so I can compare brushstrokes, color choice, canvas material, signature, etc. In the end it may be worth talking her down to $100 and owning a potentially fake Minjun. What if it's real? (see Who the Fuck is Jackson Pollock?).
Today I am going to seek out one of the many temples in Beijing and do some exploring. Then it is back to the apartment for a meeting in the late afternoon. Oh, and I have to have that suit fitted.
Yesterday's observations:
1) A popular chinese beverage is corn juice. I saw some in the store and asked our chinese assistant Maisie (pronounced like Macy's) what it was. She said, "Oh, I love corn juice. I am also big fan of corn yogurt." You could feel the Americans at the table cringe. I'll pick up a bottle and report back.
2) Steak flavored Ruffles are surprisingly good. I saw them and just had to try them. I mean, Steak flavor. What could be bad about that.
3) There is a lot of standing around here. Amazingly this is an incredibly service oriented place. The door person seemed upset the other day when I insisted on carrying my own groceries. When you go to a store you are followed by an employee. Not that they are worried you might steal something, but they want to be there to answer your questions and help you.
Speaking of door people, we are not allowed to open the door ourselves. When we approach the front door there is someone there to open it and say, "Ni hao" (hello). He then lets it close and runs ahead to get the next door for us. I'm surprised he doesn't follow us and press the elevator button for us.
An amusing observation yesterday. When I was at the market to have my suit fitted, I went down to another level to look at the aforementioned shoes. As soon as I stepped off the escalator a call went through the room. It reminded me of the seagulls in Finding Nemo as they would all call, "Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine!" As I stepped off the escalator one person called, "Excuse me, Sir, would you like to buy a belts?" this created an increasing cacophony of calls for a belts, a wallets, a shoes, a tie... you get the picture. It's amazing being so popular.
2008-07-27
Beijing Diary Day 3
It's day 3 and I am still struggling a little bit with jet lag. I'm seriously thinking of following the same procedure for any future overseas trips. I got next to no sleep the night before, which had me exhausted on the plane. I slept most of the way to SFO and then the first 4 hours of the flight to Beijing, this had me almost on track as soon as I landed here. It wasn't difficult staying up late on Friday. Last night a quick nap before dinner and I was fine. I suspect I will need another nap tonight. We'll have to see. I was up at 4 a.m. today, but there was no helping that. The market next door opens at 6 so I was getting up soon anyway.
Today's itinerary included Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, Banhei Park, and the Pearl Market.
First, Tiannenmen Square, made famous in the 80's when this photo went around the world. It looks nothing like this desolate image anymore. It is now a crowded mire of tourists. At one end of the square is a city gate with a painting of Chairman Mao. On the other end is Mao's Tomb. Flanking the other two sides are massive neo-classical buildings that serve governmental purposes (purposes which I'm too lazy to look up right now.).
They are in the process as we speak of converting the square into something that will resemble a massive Rosebowl float. There are flowers everywhere and the arrangements are quite impressive.
After a few pictures I was off to the Forbidden City, which sits right behind the square. I walked through the first two gates, but balked at paying $10 to walk through an un-air conditioned museum. Instead I walked around the city, appropriately retaining its role as being Forbidden.
Front Gate to Forbidden City
Behind the city lies Banhei Park. Again, a massive park. I walked around in it without dawdling for over an hour. I'm sure I saw somewhere near 10% of it. It was gorgeous. All sorts of old pavilions, walkways, and a temple in the center. It appears to be quite the place for Beijing families to hang out on the weekend. There were very few caucasians there, which really could be said of the entire city. There are so few, in fact, that we all kind of stare at each other when we are near. This will change during the games, but for now it is quite interesting.
Cheesy tourist photo. I didn't think $5 was a bad deal until-once I was already dressed-she told me she would use my camera. Hosed.
The Pearl Market was very cool. Imagine a flea market where they sell pearls. It is indoors, but it's a chaotic indoors. Every booth is hawking trying to sell pearls. After a few minutes I had to pretend I didn't speak English in order to avoid the deluge. This also allowed me to do business with the vendor of my choosing. My pretense worked very well, except for the few times when I had to crack up the 10th Chinese girl asking me "Excuse me, sir. Do you want a Pearl Necklace?" It's juvenile, but the innuendo was cracking me up. I finally had decided that the pearls I was buying were going to be a pink hue and found some that I really liked.
I got a great deal on them, as confirmed by the Chinese woman that is working with us here for the family center. She was quite impressed with my bargaining skills. As was I, since it has never been my strong point, but I'm better at it when I know the culture is to overstate the price and that they expect you to haggle. Just not how I think business should be done, but it's my job now to work within the system. In the end I got a pearl necklace and earrings for about $20!!!!!
That's today so far. I might venture out to the gay bar tonight, which is, coincidentally, right across the street from my apartment. I swear to God that Clair finds the gay bar in the host city first. His second order of business is finding an appropriate location for the family center within walking distance of that. He's done well this time. Of the three, family center, gay bar, and apartments, the bar and the family center are furthest apart and would take about 5 minutes to walk from one to the other, while passing past the hotel. This could mean trouble.
Today's observations:
1) If you are caucasian everyone expects you speak English. Not always the case, but right more than not.
2) I think I'm going to need some sunshine soon or I just might go crazy. Rumor has it they will be seeding the clouds during the games so that it rains at night keeping it clear for the competition.
3) I've been told that in order to cut down on traffic during the games the government decided that the citizens of Beijing, taxis excepted, could only drive every other day. If your license plate is an even number you are allowed to drive on even numbered days, if it's odd, then you drive on odd days. As a result traffic is not so bad. I can't imagine the situation with twice as many cars on the road.
More soon.
Today's itinerary included Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, Banhei Park, and the Pearl Market.
First, Tiannenmen Square, made famous in the 80's when this photo went around the world. It looks nothing like this desolate image anymore. It is now a crowded mire of tourists. At one end of the square is a city gate with a painting of Chairman Mao. On the other end is Mao's Tomb. Flanking the other two sides are massive neo-classical buildings that serve governmental purposes (purposes which I'm too lazy to look up right now.).
They are in the process as we speak of converting the square into something that will resemble a massive Rosebowl float. There are flowers everywhere and the arrangements are quite impressive.
After a few pictures I was off to the Forbidden City, which sits right behind the square. I walked through the first two gates, but balked at paying $10 to walk through an un-air conditioned museum. Instead I walked around the city, appropriately retaining its role as being Forbidden.
Front Gate to Forbidden City
Behind the city lies Banhei Park. Again, a massive park. I walked around in it without dawdling for over an hour. I'm sure I saw somewhere near 10% of it. It was gorgeous. All sorts of old pavilions, walkways, and a temple in the center. It appears to be quite the place for Beijing families to hang out on the weekend. There were very few caucasians there, which really could be said of the entire city. There are so few, in fact, that we all kind of stare at each other when we are near. This will change during the games, but for now it is quite interesting.
Cheesy tourist photo. I didn't think $5 was a bad deal until-once I was already dressed-she told me she would use my camera. Hosed.
The Pearl Market was very cool. Imagine a flea market where they sell pearls. It is indoors, but it's a chaotic indoors. Every booth is hawking trying to sell pearls. After a few minutes I had to pretend I didn't speak English in order to avoid the deluge. This also allowed me to do business with the vendor of my choosing. My pretense worked very well, except for the few times when I had to crack up the 10th Chinese girl asking me "Excuse me, sir. Do you want a Pearl Necklace?" It's juvenile, but the innuendo was cracking me up. I finally had decided that the pearls I was buying were going to be a pink hue and found some that I really liked.
I got a great deal on them, as confirmed by the Chinese woman that is working with us here for the family center. She was quite impressed with my bargaining skills. As was I, since it has never been my strong point, but I'm better at it when I know the culture is to overstate the price and that they expect you to haggle. Just not how I think business should be done, but it's my job now to work within the system. In the end I got a pearl necklace and earrings for about $20!!!!!
That's today so far. I might venture out to the gay bar tonight, which is, coincidentally, right across the street from my apartment. I swear to God that Clair finds the gay bar in the host city first. His second order of business is finding an appropriate location for the family center within walking distance of that. He's done well this time. Of the three, family center, gay bar, and apartments, the bar and the family center are furthest apart and would take about 5 minutes to walk from one to the other, while passing past the hotel. This could mean trouble.
Today's observations:
1) If you are caucasian everyone expects you speak English. Not always the case, but right more than not.
2) I think I'm going to need some sunshine soon or I just might go crazy. Rumor has it they will be seeding the clouds during the games so that it rains at night keeping it clear for the competition.
3) I've been told that in order to cut down on traffic during the games the government decided that the citizens of Beijing, taxis excepted, could only drive every other day. If your license plate is an even number you are allowed to drive on even numbered days, if it's odd, then you drive on odd days. As a result traffic is not so bad. I can't imagine the situation with twice as many cars on the road.
More soon.
2008-07-26
Observations Day 2
I have to go to the police department at 10 to be logged in as a visitor and receive my proof of residence. I was up very early (7 a.m.) and had time to have breakfast, make coffee, unpack and clean the apartment a little bit. With a little more time to kill I decided to go for a walk and explore the neighborhood.
Our apartments are right next to Worker's Stadium, where they will be holding soccer competition. When I say next door I mean next door. There is a giant square, which took me about 30 minutes to walk, with the stadium in the middle and our apartments on one of the corners. While walking around the square I was able to find an ATM. I'm still hoping to find one a little closer. I withdrew 700 Yuan, which I'm told is roughly $100. I still have to get online and check out the exchange rate. During my walk I noticed a few things.
1) The heat here is downright oppressive. I was schwitzing while going for a casual stroll at 9 a.m. The heat is most likely the reason for the invention of the chinese fan, of which I saw many, all in use. There were also many people walking with hankies to wipe their face. I may look a little Noel Coward, but buying a hankie is the first order of business after the police station.
2) There is an awesome outdoor gym right across the street. It's a crazy and wonderful concept if you ask me. All of the machines use your own body weight to create the resistance. There were rowers, chest exercises, a Gazelle looking thing, and all sorts of other machines. It was quite busy and there were lines for some of the machines. I also got a photo of a gray haired woman doing the splits. If you exercise everyday maybe you too will be able to say the same.
3) There is no right of way on sidewalks. People don't walk on the right as we do in the US. They just walk. If you need to get around them, you find your way around them. In many ways, my few cultural observations thus far have made me very glad to have lived in San Francisco for so long. Although I'm surprised to see the same traits carried over to the mainland (I'm not sure why I am surprised by that), I'm amazed at the sheer volume of it, i.e. it is everyone, not just a few people on the street.
4) This is not from my walk, but from my apartment. The bed in my room, although large, has got to be the hardest surface I have ever had to sleep on that was considered a bed. Seriously, it made me long for the days of sleeping on gym floors in a sleeping bag. No lie. Thankfully, I had that Madison Scouts training or I may not survive the next month. That said, I will still be looking for some sort of solution to the problem. Pillow top, feather bed, whatever I can find. Today's adventure should be very interesting. I'm going to try to explore the Chaoyang Art District, find Jenny Lou's western style grocery store, and perhaps Wal-Mart (seriously, a bed solution can't wait.) In addition I may just have to have dinner at 66 Degrees Norwegian Restaurant. When in Rome, right?
Our apartments are right next to Worker's Stadium, where they will be holding soccer competition. When I say next door I mean next door. There is a giant square, which took me about 30 minutes to walk, with the stadium in the middle and our apartments on one of the corners. While walking around the square I was able to find an ATM. I'm still hoping to find one a little closer. I withdrew 700 Yuan, which I'm told is roughly $100. I still have to get online and check out the exchange rate. During my walk I noticed a few things.
1) The heat here is downright oppressive. I was schwitzing while going for a casual stroll at 9 a.m. The heat is most likely the reason for the invention of the chinese fan, of which I saw many, all in use. There were also many people walking with hankies to wipe their face. I may look a little Noel Coward, but buying a hankie is the first order of business after the police station.
2) There is an awesome outdoor gym right across the street. It's a crazy and wonderful concept if you ask me. All of the machines use your own body weight to create the resistance. There were rowers, chest exercises, a Gazelle looking thing, and all sorts of other machines. It was quite busy and there were lines for some of the machines. I also got a photo of a gray haired woman doing the splits. If you exercise everyday maybe you too will be able to say the same.
3) There is no right of way on sidewalks. People don't walk on the right as we do in the US. They just walk. If you need to get around them, you find your way around them. In many ways, my few cultural observations thus far have made me very glad to have lived in San Francisco for so long. Although I'm surprised to see the same traits carried over to the mainland (I'm not sure why I am surprised by that), I'm amazed at the sheer volume of it, i.e. it is everyone, not just a few people on the street.
4) This is not from my walk, but from my apartment. The bed in my room, although large, has got to be the hardest surface I have ever had to sleep on that was considered a bed. Seriously, it made me long for the days of sleeping on gym floors in a sleeping bag. No lie. Thankfully, I had that Madison Scouts training or I may not survive the next month. That said, I will still be looking for some sort of solution to the problem. Pillow top, feather bed, whatever I can find. Today's adventure should be very interesting. I'm going to try to explore the Chaoyang Art District, find Jenny Lou's western style grocery store, and perhaps Wal-Mart (seriously, a bed solution can't wait.) In addition I may just have to have dinner at 66 Degrees Norwegian Restaurant. When in Rome, right?
Beijing Day 1
And, BOY, has it been a day. To do this story justice we really need to step back to Brooklyn, which already seems ages ago. Mom was nice enough to take the morning off of work yesterday (?) in order to drop me off at the bus depot. I Then took the bus to Chicago. Seems simple, right? Wrong. It was a local bus - meaning we stopped in Milwaukee, Kenosha, Skokie, Waukegan and downtown Chicago. Estimated travel time: 4 hours. Actual travel time: 6 hours. Don't even get me started on the vaguely homeless youth and my fight with him about his dog.
When I finally arrived in Chicago Karen was kind enough to still be waiting for me at the bus station. A relatively complicated search for a bank ended successfully and we headed to her place and then to dinner in Andersonville. Sushi, yum! BYOB Sushi, even better. It was great and we had a great time.
Back at her place we finally went to bed at about 11:30, and set my alarm for 3:45. Yep, you calculated that correctly 4 hours and 15 minutes of sleep before a long journey. the flight was relatively uneventful, so I'll spare you the details. Upon arriving in Beijing I immediately encountered and quickly learned a substantial cultural difference. That is: my needs are more important than yours. Do you see that line for checking passports? Well, if you don't raise a big stink about my going to the front of it, well then I'm going to do it. I cant raise a stink in Chinese so I just joined them.
The new airport is gorgeous. Huge rooms with soaring ceilings, so much more pleasant that waiting for my bags at SFO. (I'll be posting images of a lot of this stuff on Flickr as soon as I can.) I also had the pleasure of having someone waiting for me with a sign so that I could be driven to my apartment. I felt a lot like a rock star, especially since there were so many people waiting with signs that the line moved very slowly. Imagine 300 people whose needs come first crowding together trying to make sure their passenger finds them. It was a similar feeling to what I would imagine the red carpet at the Oscars is like.
I found my driver and he drove me to my apartment. What I've seen of the city so far is quite interesting, and perhaps not so strangely reminds me of Rostock, Germany. Lots of green space, lots of trees, and then a few really tall buildings.
The apartment is amazing. Frankly, it's way more space than 4 guys working all day need. 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, dining room, a huge living room, two balconies, oh and Marble floors, just kidding, they appear to be terrazzo but they are meant to look like marble. Steve -- he with the most rank in the apartment has the master suite with the hot tub. However, Steve doesn't arrive for 3 days and you know what that means. I'm going to be enjoying some High Life.
Which brings me to dinner with Clair and Marj this evening. First, on the way to dinner we passed a restaurant with a sign advertising "Meat Patties to Explode The Stomach." I kid you not. And, no we didn't eat there. We were just down the street at China Garden. It was a very nice restaurant with decent chinese food, warm beer, and an excellent decor. All very nice.
Afterward, Clair convinced Marj and I that a foot massage would be a great idea. Now I've heard of the Chinese foot massage before, and let me tell you, it was grossly understated. That massage was 90 minutes of amazing. You heard me. 90 minutes. Starting with the shoulders and the neck while the feet were soaking in hot water and herbs the massage therapist beat me to a pulp. Seriously he hit me so many times I was considering filing abuse charges, except it felt soooooooo good. Eventually we turned around and he started working on my feet. They must have been very naughty, for he was spanking them constantly. Not an action I expected in a foot massage, but not a bad idea. Clair even fell asleep for a minute. I'm sure I did too, and I'm not sure if he wasn't spanking my feet to keep me awake. In the end a 90 minute massage cost each of us about $22. I WILL BE GOING BACK.
And that brings us to this very moment. As I write this I still haven't figured out the internet connection here, but I will have it set up tomorrow. If not, I'll go to the coffee shop tomorrow and send out this message. Until then, Siu siu (Thank You). That's the first word I Iearned today.
When I finally arrived in Chicago Karen was kind enough to still be waiting for me at the bus station. A relatively complicated search for a bank ended successfully and we headed to her place and then to dinner in Andersonville. Sushi, yum! BYOB Sushi, even better. It was great and we had a great time.
Back at her place we finally went to bed at about 11:30, and set my alarm for 3:45. Yep, you calculated that correctly 4 hours and 15 minutes of sleep before a long journey. the flight was relatively uneventful, so I'll spare you the details. Upon arriving in Beijing I immediately encountered and quickly learned a substantial cultural difference. That is: my needs are more important than yours. Do you see that line for checking passports? Well, if you don't raise a big stink about my going to the front of it, well then I'm going to do it. I cant raise a stink in Chinese so I just joined them.
The new airport is gorgeous. Huge rooms with soaring ceilings, so much more pleasant that waiting for my bags at SFO. (I'll be posting images of a lot of this stuff on Flickr as soon as I can.) I also had the pleasure of having someone waiting for me with a sign so that I could be driven to my apartment. I felt a lot like a rock star, especially since there were so many people waiting with signs that the line moved very slowly. Imagine 300 people whose needs come first crowding together trying to make sure their passenger finds them. It was a similar feeling to what I would imagine the red carpet at the Oscars is like.
I found my driver and he drove me to my apartment. What I've seen of the city so far is quite interesting, and perhaps not so strangely reminds me of Rostock, Germany. Lots of green space, lots of trees, and then a few really tall buildings.
The apartment is amazing. Frankly, it's way more space than 4 guys working all day need. 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, dining room, a huge living room, two balconies, oh and Marble floors, just kidding, they appear to be terrazzo but they are meant to look like marble. Steve -- he with the most rank in the apartment has the master suite with the hot tub. However, Steve doesn't arrive for 3 days and you know what that means. I'm going to be enjoying some High Life.
Which brings me to dinner with Clair and Marj this evening. First, on the way to dinner we passed a restaurant with a sign advertising "Meat Patties to Explode The Stomach." I kid you not. And, no we didn't eat there. We were just down the street at China Garden. It was a very nice restaurant with decent chinese food, warm beer, and an excellent decor. All very nice.
Afterward, Clair convinced Marj and I that a foot massage would be a great idea. Now I've heard of the Chinese foot massage before, and let me tell you, it was grossly understated. That massage was 90 minutes of amazing. You heard me. 90 minutes. Starting with the shoulders and the neck while the feet were soaking in hot water and herbs the massage therapist beat me to a pulp. Seriously he hit me so many times I was considering filing abuse charges, except it felt soooooooo good. Eventually we turned around and he started working on my feet. They must have been very naughty, for he was spanking them constantly. Not an action I expected in a foot massage, but not a bad idea. Clair even fell asleep for a minute. I'm sure I did too, and I'm not sure if he wasn't spanking my feet to keep me awake. In the end a 90 minute massage cost each of us about $22. I WILL BE GOING BACK.
And that brings us to this very moment. As I write this I still haven't figured out the internet connection here, but I will have it set up tomorrow. If not, I'll go to the coffee shop tomorrow and send out this message. Until then, Siu siu (Thank You). That's the first word I Iearned today.
2008-07-22
The Journey Begins
I leave for Beijing tomorrow. Actually, it's an extended trip that will take me almost two days to get to Beijing.
In order to be in Chicago in time for a 7 a.m. flight I will be taking a bus from Madison, WI tomorrow (11 a.m., July 23) and spend the evening and a short nap in Chicago before getting up at about 4 a.m. to get to the airport.
My flight out of Chicago (7:03 a.m. July 24) will take me to San Francisco where I will transfer to an international flight. Boy am I glad I won't have to "Western Style" apartment. I'm not sure if this will mean the Bidet will be taken away or not. But I'm not sure that for 30 days I would want the exotic elements of a "Chinese Style" apartment. I'll have the chance to see a Chinese apartment, but all things being equal, when you are working as hard as I will be working, it's nice to have a few comforts of home.
If anyone has skype, I will do my best to log on occasionally and be available. My skype ID is the same as my yahoo e-mail address (sans the yahoo.com, of course). I would most likely be on mornings in China, which is most likely evening where you are.
Time Differences:
Chicago: +13 hours, i.e. noon on Thursday in Chicago is 1 a.m. Friday in Beijing
San Francisco: +15 hours
Baltimore: +12 hours
London: +7 hours
Berlin: +6 hours
When I am in and settled I will post again to let you all know how things are going. In the meantime, think of me as I fly half-way around the globe.
Cheers.
In order to be in Chicago in time for a 7 a.m. flight I will be taking a bus from Madison, WI tomorrow (11 a.m., July 23) and spend the evening and a short nap in Chicago before getting up at about 4 a.m. to get to the airport.
My flight out of Chicago (7:03 a.m. July 24) will take me to San Francisco where I will transfer to an international flight. Boy am I glad I won't have to "Western Style" apartment. I'm not sure if this will mean the Bidet will be taken away or not. But I'm not sure that for 30 days I would want the exotic elements of a "Chinese Style" apartment. I'll have the chance to see a Chinese apartment, but all things being equal, when you are working as hard as I will be working, it's nice to have a few comforts of home.
If anyone has skype, I will do my best to log on occasionally and be available. My skype ID is the same as my yahoo e-mail address (sans the yahoo.com, of course). I would most likely be on mornings in China, which is most likely evening where you are.
Time Differences:
Chicago: +13 hours, i.e. noon on Thursday in Chicago is 1 a.m. Friday in Beijing
San Francisco: +15 hours
Baltimore: +12 hours
London: +7 hours
Berlin: +6 hours
When I am in and settled I will post again to let you all know how things are going. In the meantime, think of me as I fly half-way around the globe.
Cheers.
2008-07-13
To Get Things Started
Welcome to Vagabunt. During the past several years I have had several friends engage in exciting adventures both locally and overseas. When this happens it is often difficult to tell everyone what is going on. Mostly because you get tired of telling everyone the same story, no matter how exciting, over and over. These same friends have engaged in blogging as a way of letting everyone in on the excitement while only having to tell the story once.
Enter Vagabunt. Vagabunt is a word of my own creation. Fittingly it is a combination of the English word VAGAbond and the German word BUNT (meaning colorful). As a noun it would roughly be described as a colorful traveler, and if you know me well, I think you might agree. If you don't know me well, well then you are either eavesdropping on
my blog, or you are a newer friend. Either way, welcome and enjoy.
So, let's get started. The journey began, like all others, with a single step. A step out the door to my 1977 Volkswagen Convertible. On July 3, 2008, I got in the car and headed to Portland, OR. Portland was a mere 3-day layover on my way to Wisconsin where I will be "living" for the rest of this summer. I use scare quotes because "living" is perhaps an overly stated verb to use. I will be here for the next 2 weeks, then I will leave for China. When I return from China I will spend another 3 weeks in Wisconsin before embarking on a week trip to Berkeley, and finally a year in Berlin.
Back to Portland. I chose to go to Portland to visit my dear friend Amie who has lived there for a few years now. She's a sweetheart and a good soul, and just being in her chaotic presence was calming for me. It was the perfect beginning to a very long drive
I will write more with pictures coming soon.
Enter Vagabunt. Vagabunt is a word of my own creation. Fittingly it is a combination of the English word VAGAbond and the German word BUNT (meaning colorful). As a noun it would roughly be described as a colorful traveler, and if you know me well, I think you might agree. If you don't know me well, well then you are either eavesdropping on
my blog, or you are a newer friend. Either way, welcome and enjoy.
So, let's get started. The journey began, like all others, with a single step. A step out the door to my 1977 Volkswagen Convertible. On July 3, 2008, I got in the car and headed to Portland, OR. Portland was a mere 3-day layover on my way to Wisconsin where I will be "living" for the rest of this summer. I use scare quotes because "living" is perhaps an overly stated verb to use. I will be here for the next 2 weeks, then I will leave for China. When I return from China I will spend another 3 weeks in Wisconsin before embarking on a week trip to Berkeley, and finally a year in Berlin.
Back to Portland. I chose to go to Portland to visit my dear friend Amie who has lived there for a few years now. She's a sweetheart and a good soul, and just being in her chaotic presence was calming for me. It was the perfect beginning to a very long drive
I will write more with pictures coming soon.
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