Biking in Beijing

Yesterday was another great day in Beijing (the weather, that is). Saturday was golf and Sunday was biking around the death trap roads in Beijing. I didn't have a bike, until yesterday. I went to one of 1000 bike shops around Beijing and tried a few out. They don't really have any monster size bikes around here, but the one I got is big enough. A GIANT mountain bike with front shocks...very important for riding around Beijing.

So, after the purchase, a friend of mine and me headed off for a ride around the city. Started off at Ho Hai, then through the Forbidden City and back home. Was great. Almost got ran over a few times, but that's part of the experience.

Birthday in Beijing

Saturday was my bday, getting older. On Friday, my team had a little surprise for me. A cake & a video. Here's the video...sorry, can't share the cake.

Lenovo FY 2008 Kick-Off meeting - Beijing

Last week, Lenovo China had their FY2008 kick off meeting. My first "all hands" meeting in China. I've been to tons with IBM and a few with Lenovo in Raleigh, but those don't compare to this.

I can't say it was strange...but it was weird. At the beginning, the company song was placed. I've been here for almost 8 months, and I think that was the first time I've heard it. The first thing that caught me a bit off guard was that most of the meeting (almost 4 hours) was in Chinese. I should have assumed that going in, but Amelio and some other non-Chinese Sr. VPs were on the agenda too. We were handed headsets when we came in, used for an English translation during the meeting.

The translators were not good, at all. I'm sure it's not easy to interpret, real time, but it was bad. There were two interpreters switching on and off. They would come in and out of the booth, forgetting to close the door. Shuffling papers around, not able to keep up, skipping entire sentences, etc.... That part of the event just was not a good experience. I have a couple English majors on my team who could have done a much better job, I'm sure.

It was interesting to see how excited the employees here in China got. The employee recognition here also seems pretty good. I believe they had over 100 employees recognized at the event. All received flowers, a plaque or trophy and likely some cash too.

At the beginning of the meeting, I noticed some sections had large flags rolled up. I had no idea what they were going to do with them. At the end of the meeting, the leaders of each organization in China got up on stage one-by-one, chanted some stuff, rolled out some small signs in Chinese (I believe they were stating their commitments for FY2008). Then, they asked their teams to stand up in the crowd and repeat after them. That's when the flags came out (Lenovo flags) and people shouted back the statements to the people on the stage. Very interesting, never saw anything like that before.

The last part of the event had Chairman Yang and Bill Amelio on stage, in F1 racing jackets. They grabbed a couple of "gas pumps" and began pumping blue liquid into a clear Lenovo glass tank. When the tank was full, race car sounds began and a car appeared on the big screen. Finally, an F1 race car (AT&T/Williams car - Lenovo sponsored) came crashing through a paper wall and revved its engine for a while. Kind of cool, got people excited.

I'll get to experience a few more of these here, I'm sure the next will be more interesting than the last.

Beijing Construction Team

A friend of mine here in Beijing had a great idea over the weekend.

In most cases, every construction worker has a very specific job around here. One guy has a small phillips head screw driver, one has the big one, one has the hammer, on the drill, etc.... They use that one tool pretty much all day. So, on their next job, they can say "I'm an expert with the medium size flat head screw driver." We see these guys every day and it gets more and more hilarious every time we see them.

So, what are we going to do? Picture time! We're creating a collection of the Beijing construction workers. Over the weekend we captured one guy with 3 shovels! I think we got one with a welding mask too. Collection will end up on flickr. Stay tuned.

Beijing Paddy's Day - one of my favorite pictures

This is a picture I took of my cousin in the Forbidden City, on Paddy's day. It's a great shot. I need to get this one blown up and framed. I've got another picture of the same cousin, a couple hours after midnight on this Paddy's day...it's another favorite, though I'm sure his mother wouldn't be happy with the shot ;-). It'll make its way onto the blog or flickr account sooner or later.


I've got 3 months worth of posts and pictures to talk about up here... they'll come out one at time, maybe a few at a time, if I get really ambitious.

Paddy's Day in Beijing

For now...no words. Just pictures. More to come.

A first

Tonight was the first time in 5 months that I noticed the stars in the skies above Beijing.

I don't think this is an anomaly. Rumor has it that the "smackdown" is put on the factories here (i.e., use your filters) when the Olympic committee is in town. Oddly enough, they were here in the middle of January.

The real blue zoo

My apartment didn't come "fully stocked" with things like dishes, glasses, etc.... It had some, but not much and certainly not anything you'd be proud to entertain people with. Well, I decided I'd have some people over for dinner this Friday, so...time for some purchasing.

Where to go? I figured either Walmart or IKEA. I had been to neither thus far in my stay here in Beijing. I've heard stores about both. Particularly, IKEA...where people would hang out on the couches (which are in the furniture showrooms), go there just to eat the Swedish meatballs in the food court, over-crowded, etc... Based solely on those rumors, I decided I'd go see for myself....and, buy some stuff too.

I'll start off with the good stuff. All of the rumors I heard are true. The place is a mad house (hence, the blue zoo), people literally do seem to go there just to hang out. The top floor consists of many different style rooms (living rooms, dens, kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms). There were people just sitting around, chatting away in every one of these rooms. I didn't come across anyone sitting on a toilet, but I was hoping too (thankfully, they don't have squatters in the show rooms). The food court, it was packed...not an unhappy person in there. And the elevators, you could fit a mid-size car in those things!

All-in-all though, it's a great place to go shopping for "home stuff" here in Beijing. They have everything you need. I'd highly recommend it. Although, be prepared to get pissed off due to the over flowing amount of people wandering around.

BTW...I walked around just about that whole place. I think I was 1 of 10 foreigners in there. Thousands of Chinese.

Pond hockey at the blue zoo

On Sunday afternoon, I went and met some friends at a restaurant near the "Blue Zoo" and the "Worker's Stadium." The Workers Stadium is a huge soccer (futbol) stadium that is being renovated now for the Olympics. The first NFL game will also be held there in August, this year.

Anyway, the restaurant looks over a small pond in front of the blue zoo. It's frozen now...well, mostly frozen. There were quite a few people out there skating. Not only skating, but also scooting around on these small wooden stools with short wooden poles to push them along. Weird. I'll get some pictures next time. There were also a lot of old people out there, skating along in their "speed skates." Those are the skates with long blades and flimsy boots.

All of the sudden, I see a puck slide down the ice! Then, a group of four Chinese guys appear with some sticks and gloves on. I didn't think people would play pond hockey in China. It was pretty cool to see. Made me want to get out there with them....but...I can't find any sticks here! I also don't have the rest of my equipment. Sounds like a job for my cousin, when he comes here in March.

I'm not sure this ice would hold me too well though. My mom does say I'm a graceful skater, but I think this ice is a bit too thin for this big, graceful guy.

What is the "blue zoo" you ask? Come on!

Starbucks...maybe a bit too invasive

P1010233
Originally uploaded by MJM80.

While there isn't a Starbucks on every corner in China, they are certainly plentiful. In my recent visit to Shanghai, I came across a Starbucks that just seemed to be a bit out of place (pictured above). This Starbucks is located in the Yu Garden area of Shanghai. I don't know much about the Yu Garden, but I know it's a very old and historic place in Shanghai & maybe Starbucks shouldn't be there.

This morning on CNN, I heard Starbucks may get evicted from its Forbidden City location in Beijing. I kind of hope they do. There really is no reason for Starbucks to exist inside the gates of the Forbidden City. If us foreigners want some Starbucks, we can get it before we enter the gates. Read more here...

Time to move out Starbucks, there are plenty of other corners in China for you to park your over-priced beverage stand.

It's a small world

Buffalo is a fairly well-known city in the US (mostly negatively well-known, that is ... snow & the Bills ... also known as the home of the chicken wing & the Sabres are starting to add some positives to the city). Buffalo is also known for the huge number of people that leave the city each year.

I would have never thought that I'd run across someone from South Buffalo, living in China. Well, on Wednesday night, I did! I was out at the Goose & Duck in Beijing with a guy from North Carolina (he's a friend of my Uncle's). Ed (the guy from South Buffalo) was rifling through some DVDs and as we were asking him about the titles, we found out he & his wife were from South Buffalo. I forgot his last name, but we didn't seem to know any of the same people (which is strange), but I'm sure we'll meet up at the G&D again.

Weird!

Sense of Pride (Part I)

Last Friday, December 1st, I was on my way into the office when some sort of feeling hit me. I wasn't sure what it was, but I think I knew what caused it. I always gaze out the car window on my way to work, to see what's going on in Beijing.

I was listening to some Dave Matthews Band that particular morning (on the iPod, of course). I typically try to listen to some mellow, relaxing music at the start and end of each day; for reasons I think one could only understand if you were working in Beijing. Music (like beer), sometimes sparks my thoughts, ideas & imagination.

This particular Friday was one of the most clear days I've witnessed in Beijing since I've been here. I could see the mountain ranges that surround Beijing (Beijing is basically in a bowl) in the distance, noticing some of the temples that sit top of the bare mounds of rock. The bone chilling wind was blowing, the leaves were churning & thousands of people were making their way to begin another day.

Beijing is booming, obviously. I can't even imagine how much manpower & money is behind the construction & cleanup boom going on in Beijing; and all over China for that matter. This was the first thing that "hit" me on this particular Friday. I noticed some construction workers hanging off the side of a newly constructed building putting some finishing touches on the windows. Three months ago, this building was a long way off from finished. Now, it's a masterpiece in the Beijing skyline. What must go through their heads when these guys, many earning only a few dollars a day, finish these huge structures of steel & concrete? Do they feel proud of what they did? Do they get any sort of "reward" upon completion? Do they tell their kids about it...point it out to them as they ride their bikes by? These blue collar workers are changing this country just as the blue collar workers in the US did after WWII.

In addition to the hundreds of construction projects I see each morning, I see the people of Beijing out on the streets & in the parks. Mostly I see the "older" generation of Beijing'ers. There are many small parks around Beijing, most of them contain some exercise equipment & ping pong tables. It's now December, with morning temperature highs close to 20 F. This is not stopping these people from rising early (I see them around 7am each day) and getting outside to start their mornings right. From the groups of old ladies doing tai chi, to the old couple playing a game of ping pong against each other, to the old man keeping his flexibility in tact on the aerobic
exercise equipment. These are for the most part, the "Mao era" generation sticking to some of the ways many Chinese began their days with back then. Why aren't the younger generations participating? They're out changing this country in a different way.

The 20 & 30 somethings of China are a powerful group of people. They are ready to take on the the world and make their country the best. I first began to really notice this first hand as I was conducting interviews for my first time in China back in July. At some point in the interview, I would try to get a feeling for just how energetic a particular candidate was (it's very hard to tell personality types due to the language barrier). I ask..."Why do you want to work for Lenovo?" I would guess that 80% of the responses were along the lines of ... "I am proud of Lenovo for moving beyond the walls of China. I want to be part of this great company who is helping China to become an international business power." Other responses... "I like ThinkPads." "I like Lenovo computers." This is a very open ended question, but the answer I am always looking for and interested in hearing about is the "I want to change China like Lenovo has" answer. The days of international companies only coming to China for unskilled cheap labor are over. Yes, companies do still and will still come here for that. However, more & more companies are coming to China for skilled labor. While still comparatively cheap, these are not factory jobs. These are real world, global, make or break the bottom line jobs. The days of companies hiring locals to manage only their "China branch" are also over. Companies are flocking to China to hire engineers, designers, programmers, business-types; to help & run pieces of their global company. The Chinese working for these companies do not want "boring" jobs. They don't want the "shit" work that westerners don't want to do. They want to get their hands dirty; increase productivity, come up with break-through ideas, release products faster, become the "big boss" and make more money. The one major downside to the "hungry Chinese professional" ... turnover. On average, turnover in China is at about 30%. People here jump from job-to-job, mostly just looking for the bigger paycheck, some looking for more responsibility and some to just try different things. This is scary for companies investing in China, especially when you invest in a lot of training (both on-the-job and curricular). How to get by this? I haven't fully figured it out, but I've been working on it. My team is still new enough that I won't see the turnover itch for another 4 months or so. You can never manage to retain 100% of your employees all of the time, no matter where you are. However, I don't want to be losing 30% of my team come April (new fiscal year begins, yearly bonuses have been awarded). Do you?

How do you manage all of this growth? Is it possible? Well, it must be, but there will surely be a lot of problems. From scandals to failure, they all exist in China. But where don't those things exist? In any country and in any company, those things exist.

So, what did cause that "feeling" on Friday morning? It was the people of Beijing. Seeing them changing this country made me feel good about being in this country with them. Seeing them continue on with some of their traditions made me hope, for them, that they continue to keep this country with thousands and thousands of years of history going along so they can all achieve a little piece of what we in America call "The American Dream." Have a job, have a family, have a home. I think anywhere you go in the world, "American" can simply be replaced.

Try this if you come to Beijing

Doing my part to support the North Korean economy

This afternoon, I met up with Lina (girl I met Halloween weekend). I decided we would go ice skating over at one of the many malls that dot the Beijing streets. It was pretty funny to walk into the rink and see only Chinese people. Mostly little kids out there having a good time, there were also a lot of figure skaters out there practicing. I saw one little girl, likely 5 or 6, that could be an Olympic hopeful in another 10 years.

This was Lina's first time skating, she was actually pretty good, just a little nervous. I didn't show off my skills too much, didn't want to intimidate her ;-). I was followed around the rink by a little boy who was just learning how to skate. He was pretty funny, I tried to help him a little bit, but I think he was scared of me. Skating around definitely made me feel like playing hockey. I've got to find or get the rest of my needed equipment over here soon, maybe when my brother comes.

A couple friends of mine wanted to meet up for dinner. So, from the rink, it was on to a North Korean restaurant near my apartment. Ray has been talking about it for about a month now, so I figured I'd give it a shot. He's told me about the Saint Bernard he had there a few weeks ago, made me sick to my stomach. He promised he wouldn't order the dog this time around... though I am sitting here wondering about one of the dishes we had.

The atmosphere of the place is pretty much like a typical Chinese restaurant in Beijing, nothing special about it...other than the constant stares, the guys in leather coats keeping track of us & the waitresses wearing some weird North Korean costumes with Kim Jong Il pins on. All of the waitresses there were also very cute. I wonder if they're allowed to date Americans? Doubt it.

The restaurant is owned/run by the North Korean Embassy in Beijing. I am told the girls and other workers there commute back in forth in groups and cannot travel by themselves, must always be with at least one other North Korean.

It was definitely an interesting experience, will go back for sure. The food was really good; still wondering about that one dish though...

Beijing Happy Valley

I had heard about some amusement parks in Beijing, but had no idea what to expect. Would it compare to places like Six Flags or Cedar Point? I doubted it...I was right.

A few weeks ago, I told a girl (LinLin) that I would take her to Beijing Happy Valley, an amusement park on the west side of Beijing that just opened this year. So, yesterday afternoon, I picked her up (in a taxi, of course) over at the Drama College of Beijing, where she attends (OK, she's 22 ... it's not that young). She is a phenomenal singer, plays some weird Chinese stringed instrument and is an aspiring actress. Her English is about as good as my Chinese...so, I'm sure you could imagine all of the in depth conversations we had throughout the day. I was quite happy though, because we only had to pull out the electronic Chinese/English dictionary one time. However, the more I have to "dummy up" my English over the next year, the more I worry what I'll sound like when I get back to the US. I can't imagine it will be too much different.

Anyway, we arrived to no lines at the ticket counter and as we walked into the gates, it seemed like we were the only ones there. I'm thinking we'd have the freedom to hit the rides within minutes...rather than hours. Boy was I wrong. As we rounded the corner to the first "ride area," I saw the masses.

I forgot to mention, this was the first time LinLin had ever been to an amusement park. She's from north-east China. All I knew was that she would try all of the rides, and wanted to go fast. First up was a roller coaster. This was one of those coasters that hangs from the track, and you ride belly-down, like you're flying. So, after standing in line for about an hour, and getting stared at every other second by the many young Chinese, we were strapped in & ready for the ride. She loved it, and now wanted to hit faster, more exciting rides (not sure if there would be any more).

We did find one ride that topped the coaster. It resembled a huge pendulum. It swayed back & forth, getting faster and higher each time. At the max height, you were just about upside down, then it would drop and swing you across to the other side. I don't think my hand had ever been gripped so hard before. It was thrilling for her, but she was a little queasy afterwards...there wouldn't be a second ride on this one for her. Like in the US, they snap pictures of the riders. I purchased one for LinLin...it was only then that I realized how bald I'm actually getting.

In all, the rides were OK...the atmosphere was very similar to parks in the US, just not as nice. They had the same cheesy games, that are almost impossible to win. The workers at the rides spoke over a loud speaker, trying to get everyone pumped up (I only knew that because people would cheer & clap). I would actually compare the atmosphere at Happy Valley to a state fair, rather than an amusement park in the US. It was a nice place though, and very clean.

It was a fun day at the park and LinLin definitely enjoyed it. It was cool to provide a new experience for her.

A few pictures from the camera phone...

LinLin amused by the mist...

The huge pendulum

Half way through the line for the coaster

Signs winter is coming to Beijing...

1. Belly shirt season is officially over
2. Winter coat sales (you know, the "real ones") at the Silk Market are booming
3. The kettle corn & yam vendors are starting to appear on the streets
4. The cold seems to be making people grow more impatient, line cutting is increasing
5. The Mongolians are hitting the vodka harder to stay warm
6. The girls in Beijing are starting to appear in their short skirts & black tights (I'm told the Korean girls especially like to dress like this in the winter) ... I'm not complaining
7. It's getting cold

Lost in Beijing

On Friday, my friend Will and I will embark on a journey around Beijing. Our means of travel...subway, buses & rickshaws. We don't know where we'll end up or what we'll see, but we do know that if at any point we are seriously lost, we simply get in a taxi and tell him where home is.

It should be an interesting journey, with many pictures and stories about what we saw. Stay tuned.

BTW...still no phone or internet connection, so I find myself in SPR coffee again and having to take a call via Skype here for work.

Bikes everywhere!

I'm not sure how many bikes there are in china, but I bet there are more than cars. Most are very old, beat up bikes. As long as it works, people don't seem to care. Plus, if you're peddling around on a new bike, it is likely to be someone else's bike soon enough. Tons of bike repair guys line the streets...fixing/replacing tires, greasing chains, selling locks.

It's estimated that there will be 3 million cars on the roads, sidewalks, grassy areas (they driver anywhere) of Beijing by 2008. I also read today that Beijing is going to prohibit all personal vehicles from being on the roads of Beijing during the 2008 Olympics. However, those people who do own vehicles will have free access to public transportation during that time. This is a good move by Beijing officials. Traffic here is already a mess, hopefully they will see an improvement with this move during the games.

Came across this article on nytimes.com....in the Netherlands, most people ride bikes. Only, they likely aren't covered in dirt or bruised from car bumpers like the people of China. They also pay big money for bikes there, that will likely never happen in China.

Friday in Beijing, take a look

Here are some pictures of Friday evening in Beijing...

"Getting ready to peddle my ass off"

"Just a little cat nap before I go party it up"

"I'm sleeping too, but you can only see my toes"

"Bicycle races!!"

"What a mess...don't worry, the guy in the blue hat will fix it!"

"No fruit for you!"

OK, I'll let you see

So, some people have been asking for a picture of the "girlfriend." She's not really my girlfriend, but I have been spending a lot of time with her in the evenings...we'll see how it goes!

BTW...I am not drunk and I do not photograph well and the painting in the background is classy, huh?