Thursday, November 20, 2008

Phil goes to China



Just got back from 11 or so days in China (on business with some pleasure tucked in there). First time for me. Shanghai and Hong Kong mainly. Some of you have been there I'm sure. A few quick thoughts from a first timer:
-12-15 hours from LA to Hong Kong. The seats where you can lay down are totally worth it.
-Shanghai/HK are both very accommodating to westerners.
-HK seems to have NYC vibe without the crime.
-Shanghai seems more European.
-I was told that the locals can be punished/fined if they're caught being rude to westerners in Shanghai.
-A lot of our government/business restrictions/regulations don't exist here (yet).
-People in the factories work their butts off.
-Read where 13 billion booked @ the big business convention in Donggaun (city in a huge industrial/biz area 2 hours outside of HK) compared to 24 billion last year.
-There was a candle light vigil (normally reserved for nat'l tragedies) in HK while I was there by the people who got screwed by the Lehman/Wall Street fiasco.
-From what I observed, there's very little of what we would term a middle class here yet.
-In Shanghai and Dongguang, you share the road with mopeds, bicycles and people just kind of standing in the road. And I mean share--lanes, turning lanes, intersections, U turns out of the blue--it's really best not to look (unless you're driving)LOL
-Fish heads--not that bad. Chicken knuckles--not so much.
-Thai or Thailand style massage (as recommended by my chiropractor) is totally worth it.

I attached a few photos. Also, here's a very well link to the worlds tallest building (for now) in Shanghai. If you want to want to take a clear look and catch some views of the modern part of the city:http://www.swfc-observatory.com/en/

1 comment:

cindy 1981 said...

Pollution is what gets me. My eyes are bloodshot the entire time I'm there. We are usually in Shenzhen China. Great pics Phil!!!