I have a blog post all written up about the final leg of our summer holiday, Singapore. But, when I copied it over to Typepad, the formatting was so messed up, I just didn't even want to go and look at it again. I will...but give it some time.
Yeah, blogging has been weak, at best. Been busy with various activities, work, catching up on football and getting excited about hockey season again. So, there you have it...my life.
As part of that football catch-up routine...I give you this 'highlite' of an unbelievable hit on Cal's Jahrvid Best. Be sure to watch the entire video...as Best really demonstrated how hard that hit really was....
Yesterday, while preparing to leave the office, I had tucked everything away and shut out the lights. As I reached the door, a couple of my colleagues met me at the door and we began to chat...then, I looked under my desk and saw him.
The little guy was about 1.5 inches and suffice to say, I don't like cockroaches. Dirty, yucky...ewww. So, what does a guy do when he sees a cockroach scurrying across the floor in his office? Step on him? C'mon...that's not very sporting, is it? Go ask the office 'aiyee' to sweep him up? He'd be gone by the time she got around to it. No...there is only one thing to do...grab your signature Markus Naslund hockey stick and put on a little stick work display for the office staff.
He ran under a plant that I had in the corner, so, the face-off ensued. Whilst my colleague pulled back the planter, I stood at the ready to pull that bugger behind me to the nearest teammate...the wall. After bouncing off the wall, dazed, I stick handled him out into the corridor. The carpet was difficult to get a good handle on it, but I was up for the task. A couple quick shots into my office wall...and he was on his back, begging for mercy. Not so fast.
One of my workmates doesn't like cockroaches more than I and sought refuge in a neighboring office. Just as he was closing the door, I launched a wicked 7 foot wrist shot that bounced off the closing door jam...and all were impressed.
Finally, they couldn't take it any longer...put him out of his misery, they chanted. So, with a quick back hand and then 3 successive wrist shots to the wall from about 1 foot...he was legs up groggy. No Mas!
A quick scoop and into the trash he went.
And thus, you have a day in the life of a GZ expat.
The past couple weeks as well as the next couple weeks are filled with meetings, appointments and overall busy work. I've not sat down to this blog in quite a while due to all stuff...busy.
Last weekend was spent in HK with the family. Tai-Tai had hooked us all up with the yearly doctor appointments and the like. It all went pretty well this time around...just a load of money plunked down in one sitting.
During the off times from appointments, we ate and we shopped. Hmmm...what else is there to do in HK? Tai-Tai refilled her Body Shop cabinet and I picked up a load of DVD's for myself and for Tai-Tai. Here is a quick rundown of what is needed to survive lousy TV in Chiner...
Spiderwick - this was Expat Son's request
Mary Tyler Moore Show - Season One. Old TV shows are always good for plugging in and playing away.
F Troop - Season One. Love this show...Larry Storch was always a favorite.
The Living Daylights - The only Bond flick I will have made by Dalton.
Live and Let Die - One of only two Bond flicks I will have from Moore (the other is Octopussy).
Bewitched - Season Five. Tai-Tai request...I pretty much hate this show.
Then, it was over to the CD rack. I don't buy CD's like I used to, because most of the bands that put out CD's in big box stores all sound the same. But, I grabbed a handful...
Coldplay - Viva La Vida. Another Expat Son request...I'm not a big Coldplay fan.
Stereophonics - Pull The Pin. They are in HK this Thursday...damn.
The Kooks - Konk. This band is an acquired taste...fun to listen to.
Jason Mraz - We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things. Jazzy and calm...
And, of course, no trip is complete without a quick visit to the bookstore. I was able to get Vince Flynn's latest and we also popped over to the 'modern classics' rack to grab a handful of Ian Fleming's James Bond books...never have read them.
HK's appeal for us has lost a bit of luster, except when it comes to restaurants. You can always find some pretty good stuff around many a corner...especially good stuff with good service. Those two things are hard to find here. Sometimes you can even find the craziest of names and genre's. Modern Canadian Cuisine...for most that would be premium steak and donuts. According to the menu...they didn't have donuts on it (that was down the street at Krispy Kreme). And don't forget...that's with two 'C's' (or is it three?).
One thing that is driving me crazy lately are the touts on the streets of Tsim Sha Tsui. It just gets worse and worse with every visit. In one city block, Expat Son and I were asked 7 times if we wanted a tailor, copy watch, copy handbag and massage. It gets so irritating. I finally couldn't take it any longer and I asked one of the guys...'Why don't you ask the Chinese guy?' Because...the don't. They only target 'gweilo's'. He answered...'because the Chinese do this kind of business and they aren't interested.'
We did pass by one woman with the perfect t-shirt for walking the streets...LEAVE ME ALONE...in big white letters on a black t-shirt. Indeed.
Dinner at Jimmy's...Breakfast at Dan Ryan's complete with balloon for the kid. It was all pretty much set and done by the time we passed through the x-ray machines on the way to the train.
While stuck in traffic this morning, I happened along a sight that I don't see nearly as much as we would 10 years ago; the sidewalk bicycle repairman.
Back in the day with all the bikes on the road, and the horrible materials they were made out of (rusty steel and very poor inner-tubes for the tires), there was literally one of these guys on every corner. Either just there to pump up your tires, or give you a complete overhall, while you waited.
This old guy had an impressive set of tools spread out along with a multitude of replacement parts...mostly rusty used parts from older bikes.
Here, he was working on the front wheel bearings...
We've had our fair share of typhoon's here in our years in southern China. The storms batter the coastline, but usually spare us, as we are so far inland. Usually, the storms turn north at the coastline and wreak havoc on neighboring Fujian province with winds and floods.The worst we get is a load of rain and some isolated flooding.
We were in Hong Kong in 1999 when Typhoon Sam struck, leaving us stranded over night as ferry and even train service was shut down in the wake of the storm. While the storm was powerful and shut down most of the city, a bare amount of services were still available; bars, restaurants and the subway. I can remember running from the hotel door to the subway entrance and standing on an empty platform for 5 minutes, awaiting the train. Once inside the train, it was creepily empty of people. We arrived at Pacific Place mall and found the only business open in the mall was Dan Ryans. When we returned to the hotel, the storms had quieted somewhat, but the grainy pictures on our TV showed us a plane had overturned on the runway at the airport. What on earth were they doing landing during a typhoon?
Despite all the excitement we had in Hong Kong, back in GZ, it was merely wet. No winds...to tidal worries...just a load of rain. People back in GZ were wondering why we had to stay an extra night in HK...what was all the fuss?
So, that is how it is in GZ during a typhoon. Just far enough inland that the winds don't effect us as much...but we do get the rain.
Last week, typhoon Fengshen made landfall directly over Hong Kong, it pushed through Guangdong province towards GZ. With a sudden gush of air, the rains started...and they came and came. Of course, I am busy at work during all of this. Rarely is there a warning that would send us home during a typhoon in GZ.
My plans were to head north to a factory for some meetings. I jumped in the car and we headed out...less than 5 minutes into the journey, the driver stops the car and checks the right front tire; it's going flat fast. So, there I was...new, fancy phone in hand, in a repair shop in the middle of GZ having a flat repaired during a typhoon.
These storms have a way of instilling memories upon you.
Epilogue: What was merely a storm to us, was a devastating full force typhoon to the people of the Philippines and their loss was high. A sad part of why the storm wasn't more potent to southern China is that it crossed the Philippines at its peak and lost considerable strength as it passed over the island nation.
Many of my colleagues ask me about Western restaurants in GZ...'what are your favorite?' Well, in the grand
scheme of things, there are only a handful of decent western style restaurants that Tai-Tai and I like going to. With most restaurants in GZ, they are originally opened and operated by a partnership of Chinese and expat. The expat puts forth the recipes, ideas and sweat into opening and building the business. Eventually the local partner will see all the money flowing in from their venture and either buy or kick out the expat partner...resulting in a restaurant that looks western, but serves chinese food. The list of restaurants that have survived and thrived is very short...and we generally repeat visits to them.
If there is one 'foreign' food that GZ has an abundance of good restaurants, its Japanese food. There are a selection of very good Japanese style restaurants that offer just about anything you can get in Japan...there are also a selection that are serving generally Chinese flavored Japanese food. Fair enough...after all, there is nothing quite like American Chinese food!
Tai-Tai and I have found a spot that we like to go over and over again. It is a chain, with 4 locations, but the one location we go to all the time is a familiar place. The cooks, waitresses all know us. We have our own bottle of sake on the wall! And, we are always surrounded by loads of Japanese expats enjoying their meals as well.
We will either sit at a table and have sukiyaki, noodles, or sushi on some days or nights. But, if we want to have a nice long big meal, we'll sit at the grills and enjoy a big tepanyaki meal. Sipping sake, a nice cold beer and course after course of perfectly cooked seafood and beef.
As I had mentioned in previous posts, I have been finding it difficult to dig into the wallet to find some cash to donate to the relief efforts in Sichuan. I adopted a wait and see attitude towards the whole thing. Partially to see what the domestic response would be and partly to find a reliable source to pass along goods for donation. In situations like
this, cash just seems too easy for someone to skim off the top. I think we all learned valuable lessons from the monies donated to 9-11 relief as well as Katrina relief. Some commenters would call me an a*hole...while I call myself cautious. Too often we have experienced the joy of passing along charitable
donations to orphanages, schools, villages, only to return to each of
them and find that none of the items we donated had made it to any kids
or families.
A reliable source (our kids school) to pass along stuff has been found and the pile of stuff we have had in our home is ready to go; 100kg of rice, blankets galore, bags of food, excess shoes (that is the big black bag), brand new sleeping bags which the kids were to use on sleepovers and towels and other goodies (the picture doesn't capture it all).
My pessimism had spread through the locals, which again, I was being cautious in my approach. I wanted to see just what the response would be. Too often I have experienced events at work in which we would try and do charitable work, only to have 5 or 6 people show up (and usually 1/2 are expats). But, my co-workers have impressed me by chiming in for over RMB100,000 (USD12,000)!! That is just cash donations among co-workers...it's very humbling.
Here's hoping it all gets where it needs to get to...
The money is rolling in from corporations for earthquake relief. Although there is no way to tell how much individuals have donated, if I gauge from our office, there has been RMB80,000 raised so far. Not bad for a country not really known for its 'Good Samaritan' feelings.
Like I said before, I have a real hard time donating right now, without much reassurance to what the money is used for and where its going to. We have been asking around for places to donate clothing, food, etc., but we are only getting vague addresses and no firm organizations which are making any sort of collections for stuff. All they want is money...and I'm just not comfortable with that at this moment.
While in HK this weekend, several charities were out on the street canvasing pocket change from passers-by and being quite successful with it. While in the hotel room, we flipped on CCTV9 for a bit to watch some of their coverage of events and they popped up with a static screen asking for donations (in English) with the bank information and accounts for the government Ministry of Civil Affairs (but their website posts info to the Red Cross of China). Uhhhh...sure...you want me to give my money to the government?? Why is it that I see some bureaucrat rubbing his sweaty palms together in anticipation of his windfall.
The torch run through GZ had been planned for many
months. My plan had been in place as
well…stay the hell away from the city on that day. Our office is located directly across the
road from Tian He Stadium, which is where the torch run was to end. The run was to start at the convention center,
which is about 2km from our house! Knowing how crazy the Chinese are for
everything Olympic, I just didn’t want to be in the vicinity…the large,
nationalist crowds have always made me a bit nervous (just ask the Japanese).
I did as planned…and by the looks of the photos (which were
taken about a block away from our office), I had made the right decision.
No, despite the country falling into a nationalist rant, those are nazi salutes the people are giving the torch. Those are mobile phones. Hmmm...maybe Hitler knew something about the future?
Speechless. I wonder where the guys are with the whistles that stop people from jaywalking on this crossing. Prolly got fired that day for losing control.
I did not take these photos...they were sent to me in a mass email. I am not sure who took them, so I am giving credit to whoever took the photos...nice work. Sorry to pinch them from you.
Disclaimer:
The views expressed on this website/weblog are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of you, my employer, my mom, my church, the corner market where I shop, my cat or anyone else. They are just that...my views.
