City on the rock

Chongqing is one of the most special city in Sichuan Province of China that I've ever visited.

In Summer, it is so hot up to 40 degree C, as what people said it is one of the "Three Furnaces" in China; but in Winter & early Spring, it is cold and humid, so damp that everywhere are covered up by a sheer of fog, so it is also know as the "Fog Capital".
 

I had a chance to visit it in both seasons, although it was only a one day business trip, I loved this city, what I've saw were so unforgettable.

There was only 20 minutes distance from airport to downtown (by taxi), very convenience; the first picture I've saw after leaving the airport was a highway on Jialing River, the highway was running in a South to North direction, where the river was from East to West. I had an amazing experience during the dry season, when the water level was so low that I barely saw the river bed and then while looking outside from the window, I discovered that the river was in a valley shape, so deep and I ...together with the taxi was so tiny...Wow! this was the "craftsmanship of nature".

Not a second, we were in the entrance of the Fog Capital, the buildings of downtown were almost right in front of us, but suddenly they all vanished...and appeared again...and vanished. I knew, we were in Sichuan now, where lots of mysterious stories created here, then a music tune of "X-file" appeared in my head.

My taxi driver brought me to reality...I reached Hilton Hotel, it was located in a commercial area along the mountain slope.  Yes! there were mountains everywhere, what I've saw the residential building around us, they were constructed on the hill slope, so interesting and special; if compared with those modern high rise, these were more harmonize to this city.

To keep this post short, I have to stop by telling you the "morning walk in the mist" in the morning after breakfast, must do and don't rush. They are definitely the best "distilled water" for our mind after a busy day. Hope you can feel all these one day, trust me, an unforgettable experience that can't be expressed in my text.

Coffee diary 03

Hello cappuccino, what makes you so beautiful today? ah, the sun of Phuket, so warm,  I can feel it, too.

It's really enjoyable to be with you in this small downtown cafe,  look around to see people passing by, there is no rush here, not only tourist but local people as well; they are nice and leisure, I am sure this is the attractive elements of this country, right?

I know we are waiting for the club sandwich, but let the smiley face lady take her time to prepare it, we have a lot of time to spend here, why not enjoy this moment for a bit longer? I really want to forget all my worry and troubles in Hong Kong. You may say I am escape from the reality, but sometimes we do need to walk away when we stuck up to a certain point. Trust me, it works, at least we can free up our mind for a while, then the"light bulb" will glow again.

Similarly, early before, I don't know why the same cup of coffee like you will taste so differently in different places at different moment, of course the brewing technique and serving environment counts, but now I know the most important is the attitude of mind that I take while tasting you. I am sure you will will be so lovely today.

「蕾」コブクロ- A song to share

 

This is a song from a Japanese T.V. drama : Tokyo Tower, that I really want to share with you. A song to express the close relationship between a man and his passed away mother, that he loved most.

A teenager who wants to escape from the village, from his mother to find his freedom in Tokyo,  with the uncountable support from his mother, he did it. But he can also feel the depress, failure, loneliness, pressure that all found in this modern city. He knows deeply in his heart how great his mother's love to him was......no matter when, where and what he did.

Shanghai Lawson

In my memory, it's not easy to find a proper 24Hr convenience store in China, most of those so call convenience store are actually local store selling cigarette & wine, very dark without air conditioning, with one local people sitting in the dark & smoking behind counter. You have to pay extra attention to what you want to buy is what you've got. 

I had this experience in Dalian before, I was tired after leaving the site, the sky had already dark; I was hungry and very cold on the street, I need to buy my distilled water before I got back to the hotel to have my dinner; so I rushed into a convenience store instead of a supermarket (not close to my area)......of course I failed, when I looked closer to the brand name in my room, it's something else, but the package was almost the same. This was due to my 3 mistakes = too rush, too lazy to find a supermarket and too concern to use a torch.


So, when I discovered "Lawson" in Shanghai, you can imagine how excited I was. Yes, I am sure it is a franchise operation from the original one in Japan, because when I walked in, the arrangement was quite the same; neat and tidy, with oden near entrance, magazine zone and quite a lot of mini size convenient product.

Did I buy anything? Yes, one 3in1 Nestle coffee pack. Anything else? No, because this store has adequate lighting, so I know what I want to buy is not what I've got, except the one and only one brand Nestle coffee.

Coffee diary 02

It's raining outside, quite heavy; I just finished my breakfast, and now, waiting for the rain to stop, with you - a cup of Japanese coffee brewed in Shanghai.

My friend told me that this is not a Japanese Cafe but a Taiwanese instead, I can't figure out, at least not at that moment; but never mind,I enjoy the timeless with you.

Sometimes I do have a strange feeling here, it looks like Hong Kong, I can find proper coffee shop, 24Hrs. convenience store or even Japanese curry shop; lots and lots of luxurious retail store and commercial center around, but at the end I still can clearly define that I am in China, may be the air is difference, the voice, the mood, or the colour of the city...I'm not sure.

This is the first day that I left behind after my job completed, a whole day to discover the city, starting from here, Shanghai in 2005 before the Expo, with a dash of human touch.

Sudden Escape

Hong Kong people do have a weird habit : Shopping. You may say, why? this is normal, most of the people like shopping, don't you? I treat this as a weird habit because it happens during our long vacation as the major event, even our original plan is to take a break from our hard work so as to enjoy a pleasant moment with our loves. It finally turns out as a busy shopping trip, which is quite common in Hong Kong's  family and bring back an even more tired body when return home.

In year 2006, while I was still busy in a project, but accidentally discovered that there would be 4 days clear from the schedule. An idea prompted up from my head: if I turned away from my computer now, gave a call to my travel agent, might be I could find two tickets to Phuket.


It happened within 24 hours from waiting list to step onto the plane, and here we were - a remote hotel in Phuket.

When I was sitting there, I still couldn't believe I had already left my office chair. I had no planning of what to do here, no schedule but only a sudden escape that I wanted. The sky in front of me was so blue, the air was still and peaceful, so tranquil; it took a few hours for me to settle my mind, to turn off my working machine, so relax!


I think sometimes we do need to have such kind of "sudden escape" as I call it, no itinerary. Do whatever the first thing that comes up to your mind when you wake up each morning; enjoy the simple fresh breakfast, free sun light and sea breeze, listen bird song every minute, covered by a light aroma of lovely flowers everywhere, learn the speech of tree in the wind......I am afraid my thought is having a "sudden escape" now......

Coffee diary 01

It's November? Or December? I can't figure out.

Where am I?...ah! Wuhan, alone again... with you. 

Where are all the peoples, are they preparing for the Christmas? Where are the joy? Can I join them to celebrate?

Yeah...there they are, when I look back from the departure gate. 

I feel sad because I will never be the one to enjoy Christmas there, at least not up to now.

I wish I could, some day. 

內地公幹101第二回 Business Trip in China 101 Chapter 2

事實上,愈來愈多人需要到內地公幹, 由一個發達國家去到一個經濟急速發展中的國家,所遇到的奇怪問題是無可估計的. 上回談了交通問題, 今次讓我跟你們說說旅店罷.


1) 如果要住所謂的五或六?星級酒店, 倒不如住一間中外合資的商務酒店比較穩當. 至少那個西式自助早餐是正常的.注意: 達標的自助早餐對一個商務旅人來說是十分重要的.


2) 如果打算在酒店內用膳,請第一時間查看每一間餐廳或飯店的營業時間.因為內地的用膳時間不一定連續,午間會休息. 所以常見午後烏燈黑火.


3) 酒店內的房間送餐服務也不一定是24小時, 有些約晚上11:00便會停止服務. 對於我們這些依賴房間送餐服務的小女子來說, 是很不方便的. 所以這是我每次入酒店房內第一樣必做的大事.


4) 自備咖啡,即使是三合一也好,除非你很喜愛淡而無味的雀巢三合一.幸運的話, 你會有一兩包本地名茶在桌上,不妨一試.


5) 千萬不要飲自來水,要不飲酒店贈送的樽裝水或自行往超市購買. 如果要沖咖啡, 更加要用樽裝水; 如果用自來水煲熱來沖, 保證你有"意想不到"的新感受.


6) 牙膏 - 切記自備.不是沒有提供, 而是那不肯定是否真是我們所認識的"牙膏" !


7) 我習慣在空調出口噴一點消毒噴霧,並會較大空調出風, 不論是冷或暖氣, 確保室內有大量流通空氣; 這樣較難受不潔的中央空調系統傳染.如果可以開點窗更好,但只限高層.


8) 如果要洗頭, 切記用護髮素; 沐浴後潤膚霜也不可缺,因為國內水質會使皮膚較乾.


9) 一般酒店是沒有潤膚霜提供的,即使有......還是自備好. 不然有錢也不容易買到, 因為在國內這仍然屬於奢侈品.


10) 房門的防盜鍊要全時間鎖上.


好! 暫且說到這裡.

Truly speaking, there are more and more people who need to stay in China for business, for people who lived in a developed country will face unimaginable things that may happen in a fast growing developing country like China. Last time we talked about traffic, lets have some tips in accommodation this time.


1) Instead of looking for a so called 5 or 6? stars hotel, you better find an international business hotel, (even owned or run by both local and foreign parties). Because you will have a guarantee of morning buffet breakfast in "real western style". For a business traveler, this is really important.


2) If you will most probably having your lunch/ dinner in hotel, make sure you've checked the operation hours of them once in your hotel room, which are listed in the booklet. Because in China, restaurant may not operate normally,  say from 0800 to 2000; they may close for several hours after certain period. If you are not in a proper time of lunch or dinner, no one can serve you; the chef may already go home for a nap. And that's why you will always discover some restaurant are totally dark but having door opens on the street, or even in a hotel.


3) If you are a person like me who depends on the hotel room service a lot, especially at late night; please check the delivery time as a must do item. Most of them will not operate in 24hrs, some only up to 2300.


4) Unless you are a fans of Nestle 3 in 1 coffee packs, bring your own. For those served in China's hotel is only a kind of "coffee look powder".If by chance you have some local Chinese tea bag, on the contrary, you can have a try, sometimes they are bonus to your trip.


5) Never drink directly from the tap, drink the bottle water provided by the hotel with sealed or buy from the supermarket. If you need boiling water, boil those from the bottle water, especially for your coffee; or otherwise, it's for sure you will have an unforgetable experience to your "new taste" of coffee. Trust me - I've did some test before.

6) Bring your own toothpaste. Yes, the hotel will normally provide a mini size for you, but you will not be sure whether it is really "toothpaste" according to your knowledge after you've taste it.


7)  I have a habbit every time when I arrive my room - to spray disinfectant onto the air grill, then turn lower of the thermostat no matter it is operating in cold or warm air.Just to make sure there is enough air circulation to reduce the chance of being affected by the poor centralised air conditioning system. It will be better too to open a bit of window if possible, but only for staying in high levels for security issue.


8) & 9)  Remember to bring along and use with your hair conditioner and body lotion after wash, because the water type in China is special which result in dry skin. Don't assume you can easily buy body lotion in China, it is still a luxuary product and is difficult to find even you are willing to pay a lot more. You may find some hotel do provide them......I will still suggest......better use your own unless you have thorough read the ingredience or you are familiar with the brand.


10) Always hook on your safety door chain whenever you are in your room.


O.K. lets finish up to here and talk next time. Have a Good trip !

Introduction of Coffee Diary

I wonder how many cups of coffee we've already consumed in our life? Don't try to count, it will never has a figure.

I have a collection of snap shots in the Pacific Coffee corner of the airport, everytime I leave H.K., I will take a break here before departure.It's not only record the trip, but the weather, time and my mood, too.

As this blog is "Coffeebreak" by protowork, I think some sharing of my coffee moment is a good idea. So a new series of Coffee Diary is coming very soon, hope you will enjoy :) 
 

Never too early

It was 4:00a.m. in the morning, I just climbed onto my bed at 1:00a.m., as far as I've remember, I was in a hotel of Nanjing, a local called "5 stars" hotel; their buffet breakfast were delicious, but how come I've got these? The reasons was I had to catch up with an 8:00a.m. international freight, so I booked a taxi at 6:00a.m. and I should check out at around 5:30a.m. But the worst thing was I woke up earlier even I was so tired. If you were me, would you forced yourself to sleep for another 45mins.? It's difficult, really really difficult.


So finally I decided to pack and finish my instant noodle + instant 3in1 coffee for an instant "refresh".


In normal practice, to arrive the airport 2 hours earlier for international departure is quite common, especially in China, because you have to spare extra time of facing the unexpected delay by human issues; in addition, if you have hand carry luggage, you better boarding as soon as you can, otherwise your luggage storage above your seat will most likely be occupied by someone else; then you have to say goodbye to your bags and hopefully they are safe in 10 rows in front of yours.


But there are always an exception. I remembered I did arrive Nanjing airport at around 6:30a.m. assuming I could start check in immediately, but the fact was all passengers waiting outside the gate (the international departure zone is usually smaller then the domestic without much to shop or to eat) together with their huge packs of souvenirs, until 7:30 something, all rush towards the counter at once, you can imagine how messy it was?! Don't worry, I will leave those details.


At that moment, I regret to give up my sleeping time and deluxe breakfast to wait outside the gate; but if I have to re-arrange again, I am sure I will have the same schedule, because there is never too early; just like our life, by having one minute extra, you may have a chance to reverse the whole story. 


P.S. - Blessing to people affected by the Iceland volcano ashes, wish they can return home very soon.

內地公幹101 Business Trip in China 101

很多人也會往內地公幹, 特別是香港回歸中國之後. 幾年前我也常在一兩天之內往返國內不同城市工作, 以一個不常出門的女子, 實在遇到不少問題. 但經過一段實戰之後, 也有少許心得想與你們分享.

1) 查明當地天氣, 因為中國城市日夜溫差很大, 有時可以相差10度, 絕對影響所需要準備的衣物.

2) 你所乘坐的航空公司決定你是否要先在上機前吃點東西. 經驗告訴我除港龍外(非中航 co-share freight), 如坐其他的航空公司, 還是預先吃一點點好. 特別如果你是一個愛咖啡的人.

3) 不要以為一個人坐在窗邊便不會被打擾, 其實坐在通道邊不但出入及進餐比較方便, 遇到旁邊的乘客有問題, 如嘔吐或鬧事, 閃避也容易一點.

4) 如坐國內航班, 請務必帶備濕紙巾, 薄荷膏, 口罩, 因為空調往往比較差.

5) 行李盡量輕便, 不用寄倉可避免遺失及漫長的等待時間, 特別往國內, 這種事情足以摧毀你整個行程, 切記!

6)  找換, 接送, 住宿等盡量在離境前安排妥當. 不要浪費時間在當地機場與當地人周旋; 除非你有大量時間, 金錢及冒險精神.

7) 如必要乘坐計程車, 不要把行李放在行李箱, 還是放在身邊坐位上好. 這樣不會被無良司機脅持行李講價.

8) 乘車時要行大路, 即使司機提議也不要貪快行捷徑.

9) 緊記抄下車牌, 並肯定收費錶已啓動.

10) 行車時不要睡覺, 留意路線及路標.

好, 暫且說到這裡, 下次再談.

Many of you will need to have business trip in China, especially when Hong Kong was returned, I used to have this short trips rapidly in some years ago. As a lady not had much experience from the beginning, I gained some lessons after those "on site training"and would like to share some tips with you.

1) Make sure you counter check the weather of your target cities, the temperature can varies more that 10 degree Celsius from day to night time, especially to the cities located in the North of China, like Beijing. Your luggage should have proper clothing 

2) According to my experience, if you are not fly with Dragon airline (the non co-share flight with China Airline), but all others from Hong Kong, you better eat something you like before boarding; especially for those who need coffee. 

3) If you are alone, take the seat near the aisle instead of next to window, it may be a lot more disturbance, but your great flexibility while going to washroom and dining, plus the emergency escape from trouble maker next to your seat are still worth. 

4) If you need to take the domestic flight of China, make sure you've got disinfectant wet towel, mint ointment and mask in your pocket, because the poor ventilation without these handy tool may "kill" you in a second. 

5) Hand carry luggage is the first rule, avoid disaster that happen always of luggage lost or keep on waiting at the delivery tracks till the last flight arrive to the airport. This will absolutely spoil your trip into a mess. 

6) Try to arrange all your exchange of currency, local transfer and accommodation before boarding in your own country; don't bother to make those deal in the airport when arrive China with local guys, unless you have a lot of time, money and would like to be a great explorer. 

7) If you really need to take local taxi, carry your luggage with you at the seat area and avoid putting into the storage at the back; then you will not have a chance for the bad guys to  blackmail you for more fee by locking your luggage / document. 

8) Take the usual driving path, never the short cut as suggested by the driver, even you are running out of time. 

9) Remember or mark down the taxi no at once, and make sure the driver did activate the charge meter. 

10) Don't sleep even if you are tired, try to remember the traffic route / time, especially to some landmark or road sign. It always help in case some driver wants to treat you by using a longer path to your destination.


O.K.! just up to here, may share more next time if you feel these are useful.

Good morning Nanjing

It is not always a bad experience of having business trip to China, like the one I had in Nanjing.

October 2005, I had to go to Nanjing for a short business trip as usual, no big expectation. But when I arrived the airport, I met the first good sign; a local taxi driver who approached me and out of expectation, I agreed to take his car to my hotel. This was not my ordinary choice, because this kind of taxi would usually charge more than the usual fare and you would have a big trouble if the fee couldn't be settled while you were on your way or your luggage was still locked in his car's storage.  

May be it's because of his tone of promise, and the peaceful feeling that I felt. I arrived my hotel safely, the fee was fair charge as seen on the meter. So I agreed to take his cab again tomorrow when I left.

Second good sign was an upgrade to my hotel room, the view was so nice that I almost thought I was in Tokyo rather than in China, a comfortable hotel with good breakfast was the best reward for my work other than cash. 

My job went smooth without big obstacles, and the only bad thing was I had to wake up at five, forgot my deluxe hotel breakfast, replaced by an instant noodle and met Mr. Chan under the cold weather of 4-5 degree, in order to depart at eight.

At six, the street was still dark without much lighting, Mr. Chan had already waiting in front of my hotel, he turned on the heater a bit earlier so I could jump into the warm seat at once.
We had a good travel time within that 45 mins., watching the sky turned from totally dark into a shimmer of silver.Not much communication, but the trust and relaxation was hardly found ever since in China.


When we arrived, I gave him not only the reward he deserved but the sincerely thanks that was difficult to express. I went out from the cab, a cold chilled air hit onto my face, when Mr. Chan's taxi just vanishing, a touch of pink began to spread out from the silver blue sky, so beautiful......I wanted to light up the a cigarette, like those scene in the movies, but as a non-smoker,what I could do was, took a deep cold breath of air in and said : Good morning Nanjing.

火機?火雞? Lighter ? Turkey?

自從911之後, 各国機場安檢相對變得嚴密. 那天我工幹後由北京機場準備回港, 人己是十二萬分疲倦,冷不防在出境時被叫停, 一位高傲冷漠的女同胞說: huo ji...(忘記告訴大家, 我的普通話實在普通過普通) 哎! 什麼呀? 請她再說一遍 :huo ji...火雞?怎麼可能, 又不是聖誕節.再問, 又是huo ji...開喼嗎?

我在人來人往的通道, 毫無頭緒之際, 突然想起, 呀! huo ji = 火機! 用以點香薰爉燭的打火機. 就這樣把"違禁品"交給那個目無表情的女同胞, 然後才回到現實.

事實上, 這絕對是我的錯, 因為国內習慣把完整字句縮短, 例如 : 廣交會 = 廣州交易會; 奧運開幕式=奧運開幕儀式; 無論如何總得比原文短一點. 所以, 除了學好普通話之外, "自動句子還原系統"設置是必需的......如果市面上有供應的話, 我想, 我很需要!

Security checking is more & more important in the airport after the disaster of 911, I remember I was returning from Beijing after a business trip, so tired that I wish I could sleep right away in the airport at least for an hour or two. When passing the security check, an airport officer - a cool lady stopped me in Putonghua :huo ji...what? Turkey? how come? it's not Christmas, there would not be a turkey in my suitcase. So I asked her again, she replied in the same tone: huo ji...(by the way, I have to confess that my Putonghua is only in kindergarten grade) did she said open the case? I wondered......

My mind was full of question mark, no body was willing to give a helping hand as they were rushing into the gate. Suddenly, I know what it should be, the lighter (similar pronunciation as turkey in Putonghua, except it's normally in 3 words in Cantonese). The one for my aroma candle that fly from Hong Kong. So, it was sacrifice and I was free.

Truly speaking, this is my fault, not only because of my poor Mandarin, but I forget people in China,they used to speak in short form, like : 廣交會 = 廣州交易會; 奧運開幕式=奧運開幕儀式,
one or two word less is still good to them; so if there is a kind of built in software something like "recovery to original phases", I definitely need to install one to survive !


廣州交易會= Guangzhou trade fair
奧運開幕儀式 = Olympic Game opening ceremony

Kunming - My first fly

Six years ago, I started my China business trip for one of my client. To me, it's a bit excited but not attractive; because I am the kind of person who don't have much good impression to the China cities, especially I had to deal with a big problem that time - my first client, my first project and my first fly.

Kunming is well known as a good travel spot, it has brilliant weather and scenery. It is quite far away from H.K., as far as I've remember it took almost 4 hours for me to fly, but fortunately was I took the Dragonair, so the facility and airplane lunch were good enough to me.

I was travel with my client, so we went to the site straight away after arrival and worked till 9 p.m., followed by a very deluxe dinner with their franchisee (actually I was already exhausted, so I needed a coffee instead of chicken) and went back to site by 11:30p.m. until......1 a.m. something......

It was around 8 in the morning, I was sitting in the hotel coffee shop, waiting for the confirmation of whether I needed to stay for another day to assist. The coffee was not good to taste, the world outside window was not attractive, but this was the moment that I waited so long, alone. I knew there were much more for me to discover other than the business zone here; but my time was so limited and my thought was full of work.

A few hours later, I left the city, the problem had not been totally solved yet, it had to be continue treated remotely from H.K.; but I have to say, you will forget all your tired when you saw your client feeling relief from their difficulties. By that time, I understood that, we are under the same sky.