Intensity of experience

I think that's why my trip to China seemed to go by in a flash. 10 days does not seem like too short a length of time, but the long work hours I had to pull, the late-night social activities with clients and colleagues and the overwhelming explosion of sensory input that I had to take in all make it feel as though I just left.

I can probably claim to be the only person I know to have gone to China and not have visited the Great Wall. I used the short space of personal time I was able to free up over my second weekend to visit Matt, his family, and his new fiance in Xi'an, the old capital during the Tang Dynasty. Well worth it. Aside from finally having an opportunity to meet Linnea, and to personally congratulate her and her husband-to-be soon after the proposal, Xi'an also provided me the opportunity to experience a more rural, less industrialized China than I saw in my visits to Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen. The terracotta warriors, despite being attacked by an even larger army of tourists, were nonetheless an impressive sight. Xi'an also had a feeling to it that implied it was more the way China used to be.

Friends and tourist attractions aside, Chinese culture was wonderful to take in. One of the most surreal and alien experiences during my trip I enjoyed with Matt, Linnea and Hilary in a bar in Xi'an. After lounging upstairs and absorbing the older dance hits that pulsed from the speakers overhead, we all joined a dancing group fo what could only have been moms, or at least 40+ year-old Chinese women out for a night on the town. Aside from being thrilled, or at least bemused, to have the only foreigners in the bar join in dancing with their circle, they also sang out their own accompaniment to the dance melody in operatic form. Matt danced in their midst wearing his $2 Mao cap purchased from street vendors in Beijing, which only foreigners seem to appreciate. Bizarre, perhaps, but memorable, undoubtedly.

With winged feet

I make no excuses for my failure to blog in such a long time; it is totally unforgiveable, and for that, I am sorry.

Back to business.

I am leaving to China tomorrow. It will be my first time there, and the fact that I will get to see the country, let alone make my first business deal in the world's premier rising economy, is incredibly exciting. Fingers crossed, I will also have time to do something cultural, and perhaps hit upon some of the polished stepping stones of the tourist track. Bizarrely, I found out about this deal only 2 days ago, and will be in Beijing at around the same time as Matt, who I will have the fortune to see only a couple of days after he does something pretty major (details to be disclosed at a later date - return to my blog in suspenseful anticipation!)

Unfortunately, what was shaping up to be the best holiday fo my life, is no longer going to take place. I was to spend a week and a half in Hawaii with Whan and Reid, misbehaving and, when too tired to misbehave, doing absolutely nothing. Obvioulsy, it's impossible to be in China and Hawaii at the same time, so there you have it. Sorry bros. On the flipside, I might still be able to catch Whan in Seoul, and of course Reid will be more accessible once he moves to LA in his new office.

And I'm tired. By all indications, I have impressed everyone with my performance here. That has involved a great deal of work, and Hawaii was going to be a cherished opportunity to replenish my energies before entering once again into the fray. Without that, I only hope that deal cycles will cool down a little as the summer progresses and I'll get some breathing room. Yes, that would be nice.

In any case, it's nice to be escaping from DC as the summer heats up. Although, apparently the pollution in China's major cities is eye-opening. Guess I'll have to wait and see.