What a trip! So many great experiences.. where do I begin? Of the three cities we visited I think Beijing gave us the best "taste" of China. Beijing seemed to have much more of a cultural element to it, with communist style government buildings, ancient temples, and hutongs (traditional communal housing centered around courtyards) throughout the city. I arrived a day early along with several classmates and spent my time visiting Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden City. I immediately noticed the smog in the air, it was as if the weather was always foggy. When I could escape the smog I would be struck by the cigarette smoke. It didn't take long to develop a sore throat. Despite the air pollution, there was virtually no litter or garbage anywhere on the ground. It was truly remarkable how clean the city was.
We soon made an important discovery: beer in China is cheap and you can drink it anywhere. I had only heard of Tsing Tao, however Beijing's most popular beer Yanjing quickly became my favourite. As part of our curriculum for this course, we met with a representative from The South African Breweries (SAB), makers of Snow beer. He gave a very interesting presentation, describing the dynamics of the Chinese beer market as well as the challenges of establishing and growing a business in China. New entranced mistakenly believe they can simply enter China and set up shop, not realizing that many local governments actively protect established firms. We were told one example of a new hotel that was to open in time for Chinese New Year, guaranteeing 100% occupancy. A week before opening, the new hotel was informed by the local fire marshal that the emergency stairwells had been painted wrong and would have to be completely repainted. Clearly this was an effort by the local government to protect the existing hotels in the city.
Shanghai was equally impressive, although very different. Rather than spread out, it grows straight up with new highrises sprouting up everywhere. Unfortunately we had no free time in Shanghai so I didn't get as good a sense of the city. On top of this I contracted some sort of flu that made me feel nautious and basically crappy in general, so I didn't do quite as much as everyone else. One really cool experience was a presentation in a meeting room at the top of the Bank of China building, with terrific views over the entire city. The presentation itself was quite good too, an Ivey alum named Jason Inch who wrote the book Supertrends of Future China.
Next was Hong Kong, and I have to admit it was nice to arrive in a more Western city. In comparison to Beijing and Shanghai, I enjoyed the "clean" air of Hong Kong. As the official study trip wound down we found ourselves with more free time again. We split off into smaller groups and explored various parts of the city. As I had just visited Hong Kong last year, I spent some time in some of the many shopping areas to do a bit of Christmas shopping before going home to Vancouver. We did a bit of partying too; we discovered an area called Lan Kwai Fong, an area lined with bars and clubs where you could buy a drink and stand with it right out on the street. There was a nearby 7-11 that sold booze and I swear it was the busiest establishment in the area. Several of us were there two consecutive nights, enjoying a few 7-11 bottled bevies before moving on to a finer establishment.
With a bit of time between the official end of the trip and my flight, I connected with my cousin Leslie and his family in Tai Po. I had visited them last year when Julia and I travelled to Thailand and seeing them again felt very familiar. We did a little sightseeing and then went out for dinner and drinks along with a few of my classmates. The last few nights in HK provided very little sleep. I must say "I left it all" in China.
Would I go again? To HK, definitely. I would return to Beijing or Shanghai on business, but if it was a personal trip I would try to visit some smaller cities and towns. Many cities of the world start to feel very similar, especially as they modernize and develop. To get a real sense of China's culture and history I would like to visit some rural areas off the beaten track. I hope to return to China one day.
We soon made an important discovery: beer in China is cheap and you can drink it anywhere. I had only heard of Tsing Tao, however Beijing's most popular beer Yanjing quickly became my favourite. As part of our curriculum for this course, we met with a representative from The South African Breweries (SAB), makers of Snow beer. He gave a very interesting presentation, describing the dynamics of the Chinese beer market as well as the challenges of establishing and growing a business in China. New entranced mistakenly believe they can simply enter China and set up shop, not realizing that many local governments actively protect established firms. We were told one example of a new hotel that was to open in time for Chinese New Year, guaranteeing 100% occupancy. A week before opening, the new hotel was informed by the local fire marshal that the emergency stairwells had been painted wrong and would have to be completely repainted. Clearly this was an effort by the local government to protect the existing hotels in the city.
Shanghai was equally impressive, although very different. Rather than spread out, it grows straight up with new highrises sprouting up everywhere. Unfortunately we had no free time in Shanghai so I didn't get as good a sense of the city. On top of this I contracted some sort of flu that made me feel nautious and basically crappy in general, so I didn't do quite as much as everyone else. One really cool experience was a presentation in a meeting room at the top of the Bank of China building, with terrific views over the entire city. The presentation itself was quite good too, an Ivey alum named Jason Inch who wrote the book Supertrends of Future China.
Next was Hong Kong, and I have to admit it was nice to arrive in a more Western city. In comparison to Beijing and Shanghai, I enjoyed the "clean" air of Hong Kong. As the official study trip wound down we found ourselves with more free time again. We split off into smaller groups and explored various parts of the city. As I had just visited Hong Kong last year, I spent some time in some of the many shopping areas to do a bit of Christmas shopping before going home to Vancouver. We did a bit of partying too; we discovered an area called Lan Kwai Fong, an area lined with bars and clubs where you could buy a drink and stand with it right out on the street. There was a nearby 7-11 that sold booze and I swear it was the busiest establishment in the area. Several of us were there two consecutive nights, enjoying a few 7-11 bottled bevies before moving on to a finer establishment.
With a bit of time between the official end of the trip and my flight, I connected with my cousin Leslie and his family in Tai Po. I had visited them last year when Julia and I travelled to Thailand and seeing them again felt very familiar. We did a little sightseeing and then went out for dinner and drinks along with a few of my classmates. The last few nights in HK provided very little sleep. I must say "I left it all" in China.
Would I go again? To HK, definitely. I would return to Beijing or Shanghai on business, but if it was a personal trip I would try to visit some smaller cities and towns. Many cities of the world start to feel very similar, especially as they modernize and develop. To get a real sense of China's culture and history I would like to visit some rural areas off the beaten track. I hope to return to China one day.
Tienenmen Square
The Great Wall of China
Pudong district, Shanghai
Suzhou, a city outside of Shanghai
Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong
My cousins Alecsandra, Thomas, and Les
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