Overall, I am really impressed with the organization on this trip and I can't figure out why anyone would voluntarily sign up to keep track of 60 people for so long. MBA students are a very demanding group when it comes to travel, and people aren't afraid to speak up and make demands. The organizers are extremely accommodating as well. Also, it's great that everyone is so interested in taking advantage of every opportunity to go out and also they all communicate well on our new favorite chat application wechat. If only it let you group chat with more than 40 people. (update: it does, since we had some sort of connection to TenCent, the makers of wechat)
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Visit with Carrie in Hong Kong
Last night was an early night since there wasn't much organized for the entire group. A lot of people went out but it was sort of a mess to figure out where they were and I wanted to rest up for tonight which is at Luxy, one of the best nightclubs in Taipei apparently.
Today, I had the chance to meet up with Carrie, our roommate for about 3 years back at home. She just had a baby and it was fun to visit her and her husband for lunch, if only for a short time. The baby is 6 months old and not that I am an expert but he is a big baby and looks just like Kenneth. Carrie, I am looking forward to your next bay area visit.
Friday, January 11, 2013
Boat ride to Cheng Huang
Today, we got up early for a dim sum breakfast and then a boat ride to Cheng Huang island. The boat ride was a lot of fun with our huge group taking over a really nice party boat. During our stay at the island, we walked along the beach and then up to a look out point.
Today was very low key. Lunch was on our own on the island, and there was a ton of free time to hang out and enjoy the area.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Hong Kong peak tram
Today, we were supposed to get up early for a company visit with Cathay Pacific, but a few of us stayed up way too late last night to do that. Also, after the Dianping disappointment, I didn't really want to go.
The afternoon was spent at the top of the HK peak tram where we saw the views, took some nice pictures, and got some food.
Later, there was an alumni mixer where I met the leader of Sun Microsystems office in China. He was working for Sun for 22 years so we shared some stories about it.
At 8, there was a light show on the harbor where many of the buildings had lasers or some kind of lights synchronized to music. The Hong Kong skyline is pretty amazing at night.
After this, we went to a bar called Ozone which is supposedly the highest bar in the world on the 118 floor if one of the skyscrapers. The drinks are 20 each though so after one drink, we went to wan chai for another bar. That bar kind of sucked so I called it a night.
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Day three in Shanghai
We got up early for a visit with Dianping, which is the yelp of mainland China. The company visit was simply a powerpoint presentation and Q&A session, so it was hardly worth the visit. Also, we could barely hear the speaker. Still, it was nice to learn a bit more about the company, which I previously knew nothing about. The rest of today was not too stressful as we had some free time to go around and try to get something to eat and then head for Hong Kong. Being in Hong Kong, and away from the great firewall of China was a breath of fresh air (literally as well) from the other places we visited.
For the nighttime activity, a couple of us headed out to a famous Hong Kong neighborhood to check out the bars and clubs. We were hardly prepared for it, and got to the area really late, so we mostly just talked and hung out. We grabbed some food in the wee hours and headed home way to late.
For the nighttime activity, a couple of us headed out to a famous Hong Kong neighborhood to check out the bars and clubs. We were hardly prepared for it, and got to the area really late, so we mostly just talked and hung out. We grabbed some food in the wee hours and headed home way to late.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Day two in Shanghai
Today, we ventured away from Shanghai to a place called Hangzhou, which is said to be a paradise on earth. The tour guide told us about all folklore about the women who live here, who are pampered by their men and live a pretty good life. All women want to come to this city for a posh lifestyle. The tour guide was wearing a wedding ring, but I didn't ask her any questions about her own experience.
Hangzhou was much prettier than Shanghai. We took a boat ride across a large man made lake and walked around on the other side which had a nice little park. It was pretty rainy and cold today, but the good experience made up for it. After lunch, we went to the top of a tall pagoda overlooking the city, but only had about 20 minutes to roam around before heading back. There was an alumni dinner which was our first taste of American food in a really long time. It was wonderful and sorely missed, since we get the same sort of food on almost every meal.
Hangzhou was much prettier than Shanghai. We took a boat ride across a large man made lake and walked around on the other side which had a nice little park. It was pretty rainy and cold today, but the good experience made up for it. After lunch, we went to the top of a tall pagoda overlooking the city, but only had about 20 minutes to roam around before heading back. There was an alumni dinner which was our first taste of American food in a really long time. It was wonderful and sorely missed, since we get the same sort of food on almost every meal.
Monday, January 7, 2013
First day in Shanghai
Today, we went to a temple called Chenghuang, which was very picturesque. The weather was pretty cold and foggy, or smoggy (no idea which one), but I still got some nice pictures. I didn't get much detail from the history about the place since the tour guide was mostly in a different place than I was, but that was okay. For lunch, the place was a famous restaurant in Lv Bo Lang with a ton of plates again. Most of our meals take place in really fancy restaurants where they bring like 25 plates or so for about 8-10 people. There is way too much food for anyone to eat, but at least there is enough variety that I can find something that I don't mind eating.
Later, we had some free time to shop around and then went to see the Shanghai skyline. The skyline was impressive, but unfortunately it was really foggy, and we couldn't really see all the buildings clearly. Dinner was at a place with a view, but they sat us in a place where we couldn't see it. I went for vegetarian fare this time, and was sort of glad that I did, since I got to miss the turtle stew, squab, and other lovely dishes that came out.
The fun nighttime activity here was karaoke, which was awesome because they fit the whole group into one large karaoke room. I got the chance to see who the most outgoing singers are in the group and listen to some of their signature songs. One or two were good, but the microphones were crappy and you couldn't really hear them very well. Still, this was a really fun night.
Later, we had some free time to shop around and then went to see the Shanghai skyline. The skyline was impressive, but unfortunately it was really foggy, and we couldn't really see all the buildings clearly. Dinner was at a place with a view, but they sat us in a place where we couldn't see it. I went for vegetarian fare this time, and was sort of glad that I did, since I got to miss the turtle stew, squab, and other lovely dishes that came out.
The fun nighttime activity here was karaoke, which was awesome because they fit the whole group into one large karaoke room. I got the chance to see who the most outgoing singers are in the group and listen to some of their signature songs. One or two were good, but the microphones were crappy and you couldn't really hear them very well. Still, this was a really fun night.
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