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Published: September 25th 2006
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Nan Luo Gu Hutong
A lot of renovation is going on to prepare for the Olympics Wow! I can't believe it has been over two weeks since I last updated the blog.
We have good news. As we settle into Tianjin TEDA, we have found out our relocation package has been approved. We decided on our apartment today and look forward to moving in by mid to late October. I also now have a cell phone so Dave can find me when I am out shopping and playing.
The last two weeks have been pretty sedate. Dave has been working long hours. He is currently doing the job of two people. The local manager left to do other things and Dave is filling in until they find a replacement on top of the job he was sent here to do. He also is trying to find time to visit other offices around China and India.
We have found time to have a bit of fun. On September 9th, we joined Mario and a couple of his staff at a bar called Cozy's for a night of dancing and a Chinese dice game. And you guessed it...the game is drinking related.
Each person gets a cup filled with 5 dice. Everyone rolls and keeps
Foot massage
I love a foot massage. It is a great way to spend an hour. their roll a secret. You then must make a guess about how many of one number exists under all the cups. For example...if you have 5 people rolling dice then you could guess that out of the 25 dice that 10 of the dice would be a 6. #1 on the dice is a wild card and so can be considered. You go around the group until the guess is so ludicrous that the person is challenged. If the person guess matches or is under the amount then the challenger must take a drink. If their guess is over the amount then the guesser must take a drink. The band was okay. They were from the Phillipines (like most of the bands in China) and played every song with a kind of hip hop/reggae beat. It was fun.
On Sunday, September 10th, we went with Mario by train into Beijing for Mass. We went to the South Cathedral. It is the one Mass outside of the embassy that is for expats. The readings are in several languages. I think he said they have them in English, Spanish, French, and Chinese. It also incorporated a bit of Latin in the
The Kiev
We spent the afternoon on The Kiev celebrating 4 years of Motorola/Freescale in China Mass as well. It was truly a multi-cultural Mass. After Mass, we went to an italian restaurant called the Pass-by Bar. It is down a hutong (a chinese residential alleyway). Some of the best pasta I have ever had! On this hutong we found a massage parlour that gave great foot massages for about $5 USD. We also found a backpackers hotel that seemed pretty nice. Dave and I plan to check it out one day. I found out that this same hotel offers a package where you can camp out one night on the Great Wall. We are looking into it.
Last week, was the four year anniversary of the Freescale office in TEDA. We spent Tuesday, September 19th at the Russian aircraft carrier, The Kiev. Dave was like a kid in a candy shop. The idea that we were in China on a Russian aircraft carrier was unbelieveable to him. It is smaller than the US aircraft carriers I have been on. It had Migs and Russian helicopters on the deck. Below deck it actually had some replicas of an American helicopter and a 1/3 size model of the Stealth bomber. It was a little weird. They
Cutting the Cake
All celebrations need cake and champagne. also have floor show with Russian dancers performing traditional and modern Russian folk dances. I have attached some pictures.
The last week has been spent just working on the learning about the relocation package, answering the emails to provide the necessary information, working, shopping, etc.
This Saturday we head to Hong Kong for 12 days. It is two-fold. Our current 30 day business visas are up so we must leave China. We also must leave the country to apply for our residency visas and Dave's work permit. Fortunately for us, next week is a national holiday for China. Since we can't apply for the visa until Oct. 9th, we are going to spend the time in Hong Kong. Dave will work in the Hong Kong office. He may try to take a couple of days off so we can really explore the city. We also want to go to Macau and Lantau Island which are day trips. Oh Darn. Another trip to Hong Kong.
We plan to fly from Tianjin to Shenzhen and then take a ferry to Hong Kong. It is a bit longer than the train, but much more fun especially if the weather is
On the Bridge
Some of the Freescale team enjoying the afternoon. nice.
So...look forward to some new Hong Kong adventures and pictures. In the mean time, enjoy the current pictures of time in Tianjin. Zai jian
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