China Itinerary or Chinerary, as it were…

Here’s a brief version of our China itinerary. Mike put together a pretty awesome schedule of speakers, site visits, lectures and excursions in Shanghai, Chengdu and Beijing.

As I said, I won’t be able to blog from the mainland, so you’ll have to use your imagination until I get back home and can post stories and photos from our 2 weeks in China.

Thanks for joining me on my travels this summer!

SHANGHAI

July 25
-Depart Hong Kong; arrive in Shanghai 4:30pm
-Dinner with Dan Washburn, editor of shanghaiist.com

July 26
-Dinner with Bill Kazer, Managing Editor of Xinhua Finance – financial newswire for China’s markets

July 27
-Breakfast meeting with Chen Weihua, editor of the China daily in Shanghai

CHENGDU

July 28
-Depart Shanghai; arrive in Chengdu 4:50pm

July 29
-Visit Chengdu Panda Base (http://www.panda.org.cn/english/research/1.htm) to play with nine-month old panda cub (and cuddle it, duh)
-Excursion to the city of Dujiangyan, about two hours’ drive from Chengdu, which was badly hit by the May 2008 earthquake. (http://a11news.com/112/dujiangyan-china-earthquake/)
-Visit a hospital in Chengdu to learn about the work of Stand Tall, a Hong Kong charity that helps people who lost their limbs in the earthquake by providing artificial limbs. They have done so for over 1000 quake victims so far. We will get a briefing on their work, meet some of the doctors, physiotherapists and patients.
(http://www.futuregov.net/articles/2009/may/10/make-everyone-stand-tall/)
-Dinner with diplomats from the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu

BEIJING

July 31
-Depart Chengdu; arrive in Beijing 2:30pm
-Dinner with Melissa Chan, Beijing correspondent for Al Jazeera English who just got back from covering the riots in Xinjiang

Aug 1
-Visit the Great Wall.
-Dinner with Michael Pettis, a professor of finance at Peking University and one of the leading figures in the Beijing music scene. After dinner, he will take us to one of the music bars he runs for a performance of Chinese rock music.

Aug 3
-Meeting with Kaiser Kuo, an expert on new media in China, working as a consultant for Ogilvy and Mather (PR) and a Chinese website called Youku.com. He was also the driving force behind Tang Dynasty, one of China’s pioneering heavy metal rock bands.

Other meetings to be confirmed include:
- Bill Weinstein, Acting Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy.
-Mei Yan, CEO, MTV China.
-Joe Kruzich, Chevron China Representative and former Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Consulate, Shenyang.

Return to Hong Kong from Beijing August 7, return to Los Angeles August 8.

A Farewell

It's unbelievable how fast the time can fly by, but we lived each moment to its fullest here, and it's time to say farewell to our beloved city, our beautiful gem, our flashy paradise, our Hong Kong.

I had a very special last day with the HKTB - the PR team took me out for a phenomenal lunch at a Shanghainese restaurant (good practice for tomorrow!) and we took a ton of photos, exchanged cards and gifts, and traded email addresses to keep in touch. Angela, Cody, Wilson, Way and Larry got me a beautiful bracelet and I'll think of them every time I wear it! My coworkers at the HKTB were so very special to me, not only were they great mentors and great friends, but they became my family here too. All the little things they did for me meant so much and made a huge difference - like translating lunch menus for me, teaching me Cantonese phrases, mapping out routes for me, and making sure every afternoon when I left the office that I would be okay in Hong Kong on my own. Some of the nicest people I've ever met, and a lot of fun too. I haven't laughed that much at work in a long time.

Lunch in the Cheung Chau Room

Way, Wilson, me, Cody, Larry, Angela

Farewell lunch

Wilson, Cody, Angela, me, Gloria, Kathy, Suki, Eva, Eliza

PR Team at HKTB: Wilson, Suki, Eva, me, Mayee, Eliza, Gloria

My work Ohana: me, Cody, Angela, Wilson

The rest of the evening has been spent packing everything in my room in anticipation for going to China tomorrow and then returning to "The States" on August 8th. In a room that can barely fit a bed, a toilet and my body, it's been quite a feat organizing and packing into 2 huge suitcases...I've sustained a few bruises but the only things left in my hotel room are those that are bolted into the wall (I'm returning with the entire island of Hong Kong in my bags).

Tomorrow afternoon we begin our trip into Mainland China. We'll spend 3 days in Shanghai, 3 days in Chengdu and then a week in Beijing. I'll post a brief version of our itinerary shortly.

Today isn't just a farewell to Hong Kong, but it is also a *brief* farewell to you, blogosphere. For many reasons - some more disclosable than others - I won't be able to keep up my blog during our two weeks in China. BUT, I do plan on updating with pictures and stories later in August once we return from the trip. While in China I'll have internet access, so I can check and send emails no problem, I just won't be able to blog .... so please do keep in touch over the next 2 weeks!

Thanks for sticking with me in Hong Kong and being a part of my experience! It's often the highlight of my day to share my stories with you and to read your comments here...I hope I've been able to entertain you, teach you a little something about Hong Kong, and open up a window into SE Asia for you. And for some of you in particular, I wouldn't have been able to do any of this if it weren't for you...thank you a million times over for this once in a lifetime opportunity - I am so grateful for your love, support and guidance!

The funny thing is, out of all the Cantonese words and phrases I learned this summer, I never learned how to say "goodbye"...probably because the common expression of "goodbye" in Hong Kong is an often overly emphatic "BYE BYE!" (pronounced BAIIII BAIIII) So instead, for now, I'll tell you "lay ho" or"hello"...I'll be talking and blogging with you again very soon - and for some of you, I'll be seeing you very soon as well!

Solar Eclipse in Asia

The longest solar eclipse of the century occured in Asia (partially visible from Hong Kong) this morning...

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/07/22/solar.eclipse/