Trip to New York for a Graduation

This past weekend we made the trip from Beijing to New York to see our oldest Son Matt graduate from the Masters program at Christies (you know the famous auction house). Well it was definitely an event that we couldn't miss!
I'll keep the text brief because we wanted to share a few pictures, and as they say a picture is worth a thousand words!

Here's the proud graduate the night before the ceremony standing in front of Christies

Graduation! You can see the delight and relief as he accepts the "sheep skin"

The proud parents (I know, I look like a priest, but it's actually a traditional Mandarin style Tux; what are you doing looking at me anyway check out that dress!)

The proud parents with the new graduate

The whole cast of supporters












So what do you do to fill the time while waiting for the ceremony? Well site see off course!
The Letterman Show was right around the corner from our hotel and this was taken from the balcony of the bar on the pent house level

Matt and I in the subway

A cool looking cathedral we passed while taking a cab ride

After the ceremony we returned to the hotel to find out it was Salsa Night, and this young lady was more than happy to try to teach "the priest" how to dance
The bartenders did their part to keep us entertained too

From here Lightnin headed back to Cincy and I boarded a plane back to "The Jing". I think I spent as much time in the air as I did on the ground, but I wouldn't have missed it in the world!

Congratulations Matt!

Kind Thoughts and Prayers are Appreciated

This is not a good week!
Just last night we were informed that my brother has suffered a head injury from a fall this past Sunday (US time) and is currently in ICU. He has been unresponsive for about the past 24 hours and they don't yet know the full extent of his injuries or the true cause of his dormant state!

Those of you that have known me for some time know that he and I do not exactly get along and that there has been some tension/friction between he and my wife and youngest son for quite some time. Well this is one of those times where you put those things aside.

On top of this I was also informed that one of my aunts and one of my cousins were also admitted to the hospital. My aunt for treatment of a heart attack, from which she appears to be recovering, and my cousin from lung disease with which he has suffered for years and full recovery is not exactly optimistic!

This is one of the frustrating things about having a foreign assignment. You cannot simply drop everything and hop in the car or on a jet and be there very quickly. With the new security measures the days of showing up to the airport and getting on a plane, without advanced ticket purchase is next to impossible! Don't get me wrong, I'd be in favor of even higher security if it truly helps make travel safer, but in times like this it can be a real pain!

So if you could take a few minutes of your time to think about these individuals and send any kind thoughts and/or prayers their way it would be very much appreciated!

Grocery Shopping in Beijing, It's a Good Deal

Today is Saturday and we had a mission!!! I bought a pair of boots three weeks ago and every time I've worn them I come home with another button missing! So, let's go back to Ya Show where we bought them (for next to nothing) and see how this complaint works out for us! Success!!! The sales girl right away recognized us and said, "Oh your son from New York, buy shoe here, these ones" (and yes she said "shoe" not shoes!)and pointed to the exact pair that Matt had bought over a month ago! Then she looks at my boots and said "I get repaired you come back tomorrow at 3 o'clock and pick up!"

Now David wants a Chinese hat to keep his head warm, OMG! For those of you familiar with his Canadian tuk, this is worse! Big, furry and had a big Chinese red star on the front!



So that much of our shopping done we head to Luga's for margaritas and guacomole. They prepare this fresh right at your table. Well Thunder had talked about lost in translation often, well it happened again! We ordered a pitcher of margaritas and instead got two peach margaritas. Aparrently pitcher and peach sound the same here! Oh well, they were good!

Now off to the markets for the groceries! Here is what we bought:
Kleenex 3 pack (yes real Kleenex, but no Puffs)
edamame, two bunches of asparagus, 3 onions, 2 potatoes, 5 packages of chicken wings, a nice steak, a half pound each of ground pork and beef, mayo, hot pickles, tobasco sauce, real lemon juice, 12 limes, 3 lemons! We always go to the same lady at the market and she always throws in extras goodies for us. Today we scored parsley, cilantro, garlic, green onions and ginger! Our total bill for all the above was $52.35 US dollars! It was a very good deal!

Saying Good Bye!

This week my old manager (well ok, I mean as in my previous manager because as you can see she's a bit younger than I am!) left Beijing to head back to the US. Her assignment here ended and her new one begins in another week or so.

I'll miss her because she was not only a good manager, but she was also my first friend here in Beijing. We shared many things in common and seemed to compliment each other well in those areas where we were different!

I think the thing that bothers me most right now is that it reminds me that my leaving date is quickly approaching and soon it will be me that has to say good bye to my friends here, and to the city itself. Well it's not time yet so I'm going to make the best of it!

Joia - I'll drink one for you, but since Toper closed it just won't seem adequate! Good luck and I'll see you again when I'm stateside!

Thanksgiving Dinner in Beijing

Tonight we celebrated Thanksgiving with some of our other expatriated friends. It was a real feast with everyone chipping in with at least one dish that reminded them of home, and or a bottle of their favorite wine(or beer). ;-)
If you read Lightnin's post from the other day then you know what we brought with us!

The preperation


The spread


The people




It was a fun evening full of fun conversation, good people, good food and drink! It wasn't home, but it was as good as you can get without being there!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We just wanted to take a minute to thank all of you who read this blog from time to time!

We hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Much love,
Thunder and Lightnin


PS we'll be celegrating about 13 hours before most of you will!
Na na na na, Na na! ;-)

Preparing for Thanksgiving in the "Jing"

Yes we are celebrating Thanksgiving in Beijing, even though "the Pilgrams and the Indians, got nothin' to do with the Chinese". We are spending Thanksgiving with 19 of our new friends or "expats" as they are called here. We are having Turkey, mac-n-cheese, mashed potatoes, roast beef stuffed with dressing and who knows what else? Our contribution is calico beans with smoked sausage, corn bread, and Thunders famous sweet potato pie. Herein lies the problem. #1) We buy already made pie crust at Kroger's, #2) we don't have our recipe with us, #3) no ground Ginger and #4) What's sweet Potato pie with out Cool Whip! Good Luck!!! So a friend came over today and she and I went shopping to get what we could! Oh what fun! Hey, I did find what I think is similar to Reddi-whip! We'll know on Thursday. Got on my trusty computer and found a recipe for pie crust! I am so sure my poor deceased Grandma was watching and saying "What is that girl doing? That will never turn into a pie crust".


Oh, I failed to mention that we also couldn't find pie plates....Trusty Expat friends had just what I needed! So, we made pie crust and Thunder made sweet potato pie. Will let you know how this turns out. It smells good and looks like ours! So enjoy a few pictures of our amazing Thanksgiving experience here in the Jing!

Mission Accomplished!!!

Just a quick note for those of you that have been following....Thunder came through, with the help of his new friends, he completed the mission! He got the mother load tonight! STEB, I hope you are as stoked as we are!?!

Kobe, Japan From 30 Floors Up , and at Ground Level

As Lightnin let you know this week we're in Kobe, Japan because I'm on a business trip here, but I thought I'd at least share some photos that I was able to take while I was on a break and also after work!

This first set is from the meeting room, we're on the 30th floor of the Kobe Technical Center. What an awesome view! I don't think I'd get much work done if this was my office! ;-)





Lightnin wasn't feeling good after being exposed to some paint fumes during a shopping excursion earlier in the day, and I think also feeling a bit more culture shocked after just getting used to Beijing, China and then I drag her off to Japan. So I headed out to dinner on my own (It's my fault and I'll try to make it up to her)!

This next set of photos is of an awesome car that I saw on my way to dinner tonight(yes it's a Lotus). The owner was nice enough to let me grab a few shots before he headed home after a long day at work. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get his name, but he knew about my car and we had a good quick discussion on the comparison of the two vehicles(It's a guy thing!).




I went to dinner at a Spanish restaurant (yep, that's right) and then spotted a local place that I decided to stop at for a Sake and a beer. With the help of a few friendly locals (me being linguistically challenged) I think I figured out how to pay Lightnin back (of course I don't know how I'll ever be able to pay my new friends back, and being an idiot I didn't even get their names either, but they know who they are and hopefully they'll respond to this blog!) Doumo Origato!!!! (I hope I spelled that correctly!)

That's all I've got for now.

Kobe, Japan

Lightnin here....well we made it and it was an awesome trip! The airline we flew had a "dash cam" of sorts! Ever wondered what it looks like from the cockpit on a 767 during takeoff or landing? Well, we know now! All of the drop down TV screens played both the takeoff and the landing! It was really cool.

We landed in a place calle Kansai. Which to Thunder and I must surely translate in Japanese to "We're not in Kansas anymore". We took a shuttle ride, loooong shuttle ride to Rukko Island in Kobe. It was about a 55 minute ride on what we think must be the worlds longest bridge/overpass! When we finely arrived there was a sharp curve and the wall looked like it had been hit more times than the walls of Talledaga!

I went out for awhile to look for the best Bourbon in the world, but without success. I hope to have Thunder go with me one afternoon after he is finished with his classes, but so far it looks like I'll have to buy it here at the hotel. I will keep you posted for this has been my mission for two years. This particular bourbon is brewed in Kentucky but you can only purchase it here in Japan, as it is owned by a Japanese company. Wish me luck!

Time Out

For those of you who keep checking in to see if there are any new post, I'm going to try! We leave tomorrow for Kobe, Japan for a week.

Not making any promises, but I will try to post and maybe with some good luck even some pictures. If this doesn't work Thunder will have to catch ya'll up later next week.

Sayonara,
Lightnin

A Day At The Great Wall With The Boys

Friday we headed out about 9:30 am for the almost 2 hour ride to the Great Wall. We dropped the boys off at the beginning and we headed to the end.

Lightnin and I had a bit of lunch before we made our way up to the ending point. We figured it would take the kids about three hours since the last time I made the trek it took 3 hours and 20 minutes. Lightnin looked up and said "no way is my titanium leg gonna make this!" But I urged her on and we made it. It was now that I allowed myself one of the cold Tiger beers that I had packed.


Having walked the wall from Jinshanling to Simatai (10 K) twice, I felt it was okay to sit and wait for the kids this time.




To our amazement they showed up after a mere 2 hours and 15 minutes! As a reward for their efforts they took the zip line down instead of walking.

How Lay-Back is Your Boss?

These past 8 months I've had the pleasure of having one of the most laid-back bosses in my career! Despite her youth, she has been a constant source of insight, inspiration, and knowledge, but she also knows when the work day is over.

Several of our friends went to lunch with us and then to a place called the Pavillion. Outdoor seating on couches, margritas, beers and snacks. A great afternoon in Beijing amongst friends.


A few days later I went to her place to teach her how to ride her new electric bike! Too much fun....and we wish her luck going to Kroger on it once she gets back to Cincinnati!


All I can say is that my new boss has some big shoes to fill! ;-)

Rickshaw's at HouHai

Last week Shan Dian (Lightnin) and I took a short trip out to HouHai with a new friend (Noash) who was visiting from Brussels. We ate lunch at a Vietnamese resaurant named "Little Siagon", great food! As you can see by this first picture it was sunny, but extremely windy!

After lunch we took a quick tour of the Hutongs which is where we ran into the "Rickshaw Gauntlet". There were hundreds of these things and the drivers swarmed on our taxi like cockroaches trying to get us to come out and take a ride!

After seeing the frightned looks on the faces of the folks that decided to give them a try, we decided we were just fine in the taxi or on foot! ;-)

The Great Wall Revisited

About three weeks ago I got a visit from my director and he wanted to see some of the "real" China, not the standard tourist sites. So I thought it would be a good idea for us to visit The Wall.

We drove to JingShanLing and then climbed the wall to SiMaTai. This is the same 10K route that I took this past spring and it was nice to see how different it was at this time of year. It was also good to see it for a second time from a different perspective after living here for over 7 months.


The beginning of the trail (I think the banner says something to the effect of: "You are about to experience the ultimate "Stairmaster" workout!" ;-)

There are really no flat spots just a massive roller-coaster of stone




The view from here is breathtaking
This is the lake at the end of the trail

I will tell you that even though I had lost 15kg in body weight the wall was still every bit as difficult as it was the first time! We did however complete the route in nearly half the time that it took the first trip, 3hrs 20min compared to 6hrs!

Be Careful What You Ask For

Some of you have complained that you are tired of looking at the tree on that car. You know who you are! So here's a new blog minus photos...I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have wanted photos for this story!

Thunder and I just got back from the emergency room, and no it wasn't for me!!!! While Thunder was home a few weeks ago he had a cebascious cyst removed from his back. (Too much info so far?) Well he wasn't exactly the ideal patient. He was back on his motorcycle the very next day. So here we are three weeks later in Beijing and yep, he woke up this morning and knew he had to go to SOS the medical services for us here. No waiting lines, no forms to fill out and within an hour we had ten new stitches and were back on our way home! It was pretty interesting to have this new experience.

The other new thing that we tried was here in David's building. They have a complimentary breakfast that was really quite good. We had bacon, eggs, rice, some awesome pickles and peach juice. I added some sprite to this juice and David now thinks that a little rum was needed in it.

So I have to go take care of my patient now and trust me he is going to behave himself this time around! He will be working from home this week so that he doesn't have to carry his backpack and so we will have some extra time together. I'll let you know how that works for us later.