have had a lot of fun and many adventures as the cultural
acclimization continues. Our first day started with sightseeing on
Victoria Peak, then across the harbor to Kowloon to check out Star
Avenue (Chinese version of Walk of Fame). The view from Victoria Peak
was incredible - the density of skyscrapers is impressive along with
the architectual variety. At dinner that evening, sectionmate Matt
Payne joined us as we celebrated the first night of the trip (and only
night in Hong Kong). The night continued to a couple bars, Privé
dance club, and late-night restaurant. We met a number of ex-pats
along the way.
On our second day, we took a bus to Shenzhen (45 minutes away) to
enter mainland China for the first time. Shenzhen is a massive city
(14 million people!), with an impressive skyline. We spent the
afternoon at the headquarters of China Vante, the largest real estate
developer in China. We toured a few showrooms then spoke with a few
execs. That night (Friday night), we hung out at a nice club, Richy,
near our hotel, Lushan hotel. We partied in style with reserved
tables, bottle service, and a new drink for me... johnnie walker and
green tea.
Today was an incredibly relaxing day. We started with a late 10 am
start, then stopped by Lianhua mountain (hill) for a nice view of
Shenzhen. We then drove to a private beach 45 min east of Shenzhen
for a few hours of fun in the sun, playing a modified-game of beach
volleyball (inspired by the olympics no doubt). Along the way we
drove by Shenzhen's massive shipping port, the third largest in the
world.
In the evening, we had a nice Shanghai-style dinner, then proceeded to
one of Shenzhen's signature spa & massage complexes. This was quite
an experience. In short, I had the best massage of my life - a 2-hour
body massage. I also received a 45-min foot massage while watching
the olympics (saw the 100M final), and being brought drinks and
watermellon.
The food so far has been great. We have enjoyed several styles of
Chinese cuisine (Cantonese, Szechuan, and Shanghai), and most of the
dishes are completely new to me. Some of the more memorable items
include sea cucumber and pig nuckles. We have had pork, chicken, and
duck served in ways that didn't look like pork, chicken, or duck.
Some of the fun drinks include a sweetened herbal tea (apparently the
"Chinese Coke") and a sweet rice wine served warm (very similar to
sake).
Tomorrow we leave for Shanghai, after a Dim Sum brunch at a rotating
restaurant atop one of Shenzhen's many skyscrapers.
