In case any of my three loyal readers wondered whether my blog died a quick death, I'm here to assure you that Louis Hutong has not disappeared. I have actually been on a two-week business trip that left me very little time for blogging.
For the first part of my trip, I was back in San Diego for a strategy sharing event hosted by company. Despite the constant sun and fresh air, I couldn't help but miss Beijing. There is just some real and tangible quirks about the people you meet and the experiences you have in China that most of Southern California is lacking.
Commentary aside, let me take you through a visual stroll of my trip....
1) The Jerusalem Beetle
I have no idea what the heck this thing is. Even though I lived in San Diego for five years, I never once saw anything like it. My Mexican-esque co-worker referred to it with a much more sinsister Spanish name like "The Sky Devil of Death." Even though I found her description appropriate, another co-worker corrected us by calling it a Jerusalem beetle. I could really care less what it was called, all I could think about was whether anyone in China would eat it. Note to self: Look up Jerusalem Beetle Chinese Dishes.
2) The Petco Park Experience
Part of the San Event included some teambuilding at Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres. In terms of team buildings, this one was in my top three, behind only the Simatai Great Wall and Paintball tournament events. Entering the park, we were all eagerly greeted by the Friar, who seemed to have more eagerness for some than others. As I tried to step in with a photo of my female co-worker, the Friar pushes me away and even attemps to punch me.
A little ticked off, I said, "Where's the Chicken?!?" It pretty much went downhill from there.
3) The Archaelogical Dig
As we continued on our tour of the stadium, we stopped in front of a display that had an exhibit of archaelogical items found while building the stadium. Since I now live in China, any mention of it in the US grabs my attention, especially a dig in San Diego, California. So what do we find from some of the Chinese people that once lived there? A few dishes, cups, and a laundry?!? How is that for reviving a stereotype?
4) Why do Americans Spit?
I couldn't help but take a picture of this. For all the talk we "foreigners" make about spitting in China, we seem to be pretty nonchalant about the ridiculous amount of sunflower seed spitting that happens during an average baseball game. I just hope the US and China governments can now use this shared pasttime as a bridge to the future.
5) Hong Kong
But San Diego was only the first part of my trip. On the way back, I spent some time in Hong Kong working at a trade show where a couple of my products were announced. It's been about two years since my last trip to Hong Kong, so I was amazed by new perspective. Before, it seemed so bustling and exotic. Today, compared to Beijing, Hong Kong seems awfully safe, amazingly clean, and agonizingly white-washed.
5) Oh wait...before Hong Kong! And Donuts!
Before I landed in Hong Kong, I had to make a quick detour through the Incheon airport near Seoul. I wouldn't normally mention this except for the fact that some of the places within the international terminal actually accepted US dollars. Maybe others have seen this in other airports, but this was a first for me...and I do fly fairly regularly! More impressive, there was Dunkin Donuts which really hit the spot after flying over the Pacific. Unfortunately, I had to wait 10 minutes to get my donut because an asian lady in front of me wanted to quibble about the US dollar conversion she was getting from the cashier. By the way she was acting, you'd think she was being robbed, but when I was close enough to see her order, I noticed we had the same thing...which after a quick computation in my head revealed she was getting angry over 25 cents. I was tempted to tell her she should just be happy they take dollars there and that she should donate the 25 cents as a tip!
Anyway...here's a photo of...well...my food. Considering how famous Dunkin Donut's coffee is, I thought I'd share how they've localized by now serving green tea.
6) "You want to see my bedroom?"
I was lucky to catch a couple of beautiful days in Hong Kong. It was a little windy, but overall, the skies were blue and the air was clean. And to top it off, I had a kickin' view from my bedroom window.
7) The Tangler
However, the strange thing about my hotel was they left this little jewel (see image below) on my bed every night. I'm just going to be honest and say I thought it was some weird sex toy. The fact that it is called the "Pillow Tangler" did little to diminish my less than pure thinking. On my second night, I happened to catch the maid during the turndown service, so I asked her why they left these here. She gave me a coy little smile, as if she knew where I was going with this, and just said, "It's a game..."
I decided not to ask her what the rules were.
Later I asked one my co-workers if they had anything strange on their bed as well. One replied, "You mean the sex toy!"
8) Hong-ky Tonk Man
Some of use were able to make it out to the Hong Kong nightlife, but since we're non-local, the only place we ended up was Lan Kwai Fong...which seemed to me the HK equivalent of Sanlitun here in Beijing or Roppongi in Tokyo. You know, the places where all the white guys go to score...
But anyway, I did get a picture of this Elvis impersonator walking through the bar area. Sorry about the bluriness, but Elvis doesn't stop for anyone.
And speaking of impersonators, my co-workers were debating if the girls at one of the corners bars were transsexuals or not. Can anyone tell me what the answer is? If you do know, just tell me yes or no...please do no recount any of your Crying Game stories.
9) Gypsy-porean!
But just in case you thought I wasn't do any work at all during this trip, let me point out that I had to slave away beating off the hordes of people attending our booth. By "hordes" I mean one person per hour. And by "beating off" I mean graciously letting you take photos with our Romanian booth babe!
That's right, I spent 4 days sitting and talking with a Romanian model. All I can say is, "What were you doing during that time?" Yeah, let me answer that...you were "not sitting with a Romanian model." Seriously though, she was a sharp girl with a deep love for Romania and SouthEast asia. Oh...and she hates gypsies.
One last important note, the booth model also thought the tangler was a sex toy.
10) Watch your valuables
Last and probably least...this little "gem" of a sign found above a urinal in the Hong Kong airport. Were the "valuables in front of me" referring to myf amily jewels? Because I always try to keep them in front of me while urinating because keeping them behind me is a little "bu shufu" if you catch my drift. And to make things more challenging, this was a "No Touch Required" urinal, which explains the little yellow puddle below it.
And yes, taking a picture in the bathroom did have a few people worried...
So now I'm back in Beijing, puffing away on the pollution and listening to the melodious sounds of Beijing-hua. How I missed you...
