Last stop of Leslie and Tiffany first RTW...

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This is the end of a pretty cool trip...or actually...nearly the end. We left Luxembourg on the 24th September, and just over one month later, without a single plane ride, we are in Shanghai. This is also the end of a longer trip, as Leslie have now completed their first round-the-world trip, started in July 2012 when we left Asia for Argentina.



Leslie and Tiffany left Asia as children...and they come back as teenagers...or close to it for Tiffany. That 15 months trip was a dream I never thought 5 years ago I could take. First, there is the fact that if Leslie has now lived with me for close to 7 years, it's only 2 years and a half for Tiffany. The day she moved in is like yesterday, but still, so much has happened the last 30 months. Than there is the fact that now, I spend a good two months working in Africa each year...and going from Bangkok to Africa, or from Buenos Aires to Africa, is exactly the same.



This trip will for sure have an impact on their life...we'll see in which regards...but South America will for ever be in them...and they have finally gone closer to Europe too.



I have lived 6 years in Shanghai, from 2003 to 2009...Leslie two and a half years...and Tiffany only spent 4 days in Shanghai prior to this trip. Trust me, I would have loved for Tiffany to spend more time here, but that was not my choice. So for Leslie and I, it was kind of a mission, to show Tiffany "our" Shanghai. This is slightly difficult as the city is changing face every 6 months...and that we left here already 4 and a half years ago...not yesterday!



So we visit a little, we shop a little...we eat...a lot...I even partied a little...but most importantly, we saw friends...a lot of them. We basically went from long lunch most of the days to dinner. Well, it's not that easy for long lunches during the week...I can't tell you how much they work here. And every night, it was dinner...with friends, one night after the others.



And as Jean put it...Tiffany, you cannot imagine how much I've heard about you...it's such a pleasure to finally meet you! They were all pretty happy to see how Mister Leslie is now a teenager...yeap...growing young man. Was also pretty cool for Leslie to spend some time with Max, one of his great friends back when we were living in Shanghai.



Would I still love to live in Shanghai...not really sure, inflation is killing the fun in this place. Imagine....the rent of our flat has just double in usd terms in just 4 years...the school for Leslie and Tiffany...that would be "only" 55,000usd per year...and nobody else is paying that for me. And a decent glass of wine in a restaurant is minimum 10usd. Put it simply, Shanghai is today as expensive as New York...for the same price, I believe NY is way more fun!



Sunday night we left Shanghai...I first drop the kids in Saigon where they will be spending few weeks...and for me during these few weeks I'll do...what I'm used to do...



So for me it was Sunday in Shanghai, Monday working in Saigon...Tuesday was more tricky as I had to secure the school in Bangkok, plus find a new place to live, organized the movers, issue few airline tickets and do some shopping...all done in the same working day...before another pretty cool dinner...and a not so early bed time. Wednesday was...running around Hong Kong for few business issues...and Thursday...I was in Congo for an amazing week-end. I know, that's a week!



This is the end of a trip...but we are not yet back to Bangkok, this move will only be just before Christmas. So guess what, I'm not over with my few entries...and they could be from...well...all over...



Oh yes, and in Shanghai...we visited the Bund, the Science Museum, the Urbanization Museum...and we jumped in our past...with Tiffany!



But I can tell you, the last 16 months were amazing...one of a kind, that I will not forget tomorrow!

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Time does not stand still
Lots of changes can happen in 4 years especially in countries and cities making an effort to progress. As you found some of the changes are good and some are not. Happy travels.

[Graciela]

TIME......
Every house is one world, used to say my grandmother. Your story, your history, your family, your kids and your trips make a whole world. Like me, like everybody else. Life is good.