I flew to Sydney late Sunday night, spent half a day in the Sydney office, then flew on to Cairns for a management off site. Below is a quick video of my time in Cairns after we completed the work portion of our off site.
A brief video on the final two stops of my whirlwind Asia Pacific tour… seven cities in 6.5 days across greater Asia. The trip was a success and all is well, including me. A tad tired but happy to be home soon.
While en route from Bangalore to Tokyo we switched planes in the new Bangkok airport. That new airport is truly a bizarre place… beyond huge… futuristic… planned to surpass Singapore as a regional hub for South East Asia. Two things made the airport bizarre… arriving into the old airport at 3:45 AM one often got lost trying to find the connection desk. A traveller really needed to know what they were doing to find it and at that time of day there was no one to ask where to go. Believe it or not, the same is true for the new airport. A Thai Airways personnel told us where to go to transit, but gave us the wrong directions. My companions found a place for a quick nap and massage while I hunted down the transit desk. The deja vu was weird. I thought to myself, "new airport, same dilemmas, but wow, I’m not in Kansas anymore."
Second, the airport could only be described as a shopping Walt Disney. There are stores everywhere but not your usual lay-out… all the stores flow with the lines of the facility… futuristic art deco cafes and bars lay about with various types of science fiction-like mood lighting that all seem to come together as if one is inside a giant aircraft frame. Thanks to the transit issue I was unable to take pictures but next time through the airport I will capture the place in photos. Finally, while boarding, we were informed one of our bags was missing. (That turned out to be a clerical error and the bag promptly rolled off our plane in Tokyo.) After heavy security – the flight’s final destination was the US – we left the anomalous Bangkok airport. As we flew to Tokyo another phenomenon – at the other end of the spectrum from our Bangkok experience – was sweeping the planet: The Free Hugs Campaign. First, watch the video below and then go here to the Personal Democracy Forum to read the background. The articles author’s even reference back to the ground breaking Cluetrain Manifesto, which could only mean… somebody’s down-to-earth, grass roots idea has finally arrived. I watched it, read it and thought, "I’m not in Suvarnabhumi, anymore."
The marathon trip – to be truthful it is not a marathon, more like a sprint – around Asia started on Sunday afternoon. We are now en route to Tokyo via Bangkok. While in Bangalore, amazingly, I stayed at The Leela Palace. This is probably the best hotel in Bangalore. Normally the price would be through the roof but we only paid US$ 360. That’s correct, ONLY. The hoteliers in Bangalore have been taking full advantage of the IT boom to charge outrageous prices. In the last six months the average price for a reliable hotel room has been around US$ 400 per night. So, the Leela was a deal this week. The Leela is also gorgeous as can be seen from the pictures below. I like this first picture because it captures the contrasts in India… the palatial luxury of life being touched up by a painter. On that note, I watched a various interesting program while battling jetlag this week. Either CNN or BBC interviewed an political activist in Mumbai, who reported that 60% of the Mumbai population still lives in slums, with no access to reliable drinking water or toilets. Yet, this same group is building Mumbai – what some might call the migrant, construction workforce. The interview took place on top of a low rise building. With different camera angles used throughout, one could see both slums and modern condos in the background. At one point the interviewee exclaimed, “Who do you think built that skyscraper over there? A condo there costs US$ 5 million and yet my people cant even get drinking water and toilets!” Certainly stops to make one think, “What’s wrong with this picture?” Meanwhile, at US$ 400 every time I stay in Bangalore, I wonder if I am enabling the problem.
Today I turned 44. Whooosh… where did it go? Warning, this is a Poignant Young Man post, but as I approach my half century mark in six years, it doesn’t feel PYM. Never mind that 40 is the new 30, (which makes me about 35 in ‘new’ years?) and 60 is the new 40, I still feel like this will be a PMAM post or at times even POM. Here we all are in the cycle of life. (Pictured at left, the delicious birthday cake presented by the APAC HR Team in Hong Kong after my return from Beijing.)
With Tantalising Tess and the family back in Canada, what better place to spend my birthday than in Beijing, China. While I thought the day would be a quiet one, my colleagues and HR team surprised me.
First, on Wednesday night a US colleague and I had a drink (and me a cigar) as we waited for a late night global HR call to commence at 11 pm. Sitting there I knew, that while Charles’ wiring would have him hide his birthday, that would be unfair to those around me. Something about being willing to let acknowledgement in! So, after a few minutes I said to my colleague, "You know, I need to confess something to you because if I don’t and you find out afterwards, you’ll probably be disappointed with me." She asked "What’s that?" to which I replied, "Tomorrow’s my birthday!"
"Well funny you should mention that…" she laughed and promptly pulled out a hilarious birthday card and Borders gift certificate. How cool is that? She was more prepared than I! So there we sat in the Grand Hyatt lobby, talking about how much China had changed in the last ten years, the discussion shadowing how we’ve all changed in the last ten years. And speaking of ten, upon arriving to my room the hotel presented me with a leather picture holder, contained within a silk sachel, in honour of my tenth stay in the hotel. Wow… that was unexpected and delightful. (As an example of how modern China has become, especially in the major cities, take a look at the pictures below. On the left is a pic of a "metal canopy" between two buildings. The other pic is of two girls playing next to the water immediately beneath the "canopy." Click to enlarge the photos.)
Second, the China Sales VP bought me a beautiful, royal blue Chinese linen shirt presented to me at a dinner together. Third, today the China HR team took my US colleague and I out to lunch (left), presented we with a very unique and rare piece of China art and a birthday cake, too!
Fourth, Jet Airways (a terrific and growing airline in India) remembered my birthday. Sure, it was a computer custom-generated, automated e-mail, but neither United nor Air Canada remembered and they have my e-mail, too!
Fifth, Cathay also greeted me with a birthday message as I logged into their site to check the timeliness of my departure flight to HK. But folks, that was nothing compared to what happened at the airport. Approaching the check-in counter a CX employee greeted me by asking, "Hello, flying to HK… economy or business class?"
"Economy," I replied but then cheekily continued with, "but it’s my birthday so I want an upgrade!" They giggled.
I proceeded to check-in. The attendant kept looking at the screen and in Chinese asked his colleagues how to do something on the screen. I had no idea what was going on but suddenly a CX attendant appeared at my side, wished me a happy birthday and presented me with a beautiful silk pouch about the size of an evening purse. I thanked her profusely and inside my head thought, "Okay no upgrade but the purse is very sweet!"
The attendant checking me in continued to fumble a bit and then BINGO… next thing I knew a Business Class boarding card sat in front of me. I thanked him and went on my merry way. If one has to travel around your birthday, make it ON your birthday to angle for the upgrade. Now the thing is… the plane is practically empty. Therefore, they really did give me a birthday upgrade, not one because economy was overbooked.
And so here I sit in Business Class reflecting on my birthday, life in general, leaving for Canada next week to join the team, which will definitely be a reflective and introspective time because Fintry always is. And then there are all the things to do between now and then, including flying to India to take care of some HR items and a hundred things around the flat.
The main project Tess and I have tasked to yours truly is the CDs. We have probably 400 CDs that take up a lot of space in the flat. (We’re going through a big minimalist phase right now!) We rarely listen to these CDs. Doesn’t figure that prominently in our daily lives. In an effort to fully launch ourselves into the digital entertainment age we decided to get rid of our CDs. Using I-tunes we’re burning (I really mean importing) all the CDs onto our main computer and then we’ll sell the CDs. Imagine that… no CDs… I distinctly remember the shift from vinyl to CDs and now the CDs’ extinction is imminent.
Last weekend, after really getting myself organized, I hit a rate of burning 12 CDs per hour and completed 125 by Sunday night. I even scanned (or found on the Internet) the album artwork. Turning the corner into the work week I continued to import CDs at every opportunity.
Let’s take a moment to really grasp this project. I don’t listen to the CDs when burning (well some I do) but I am acutely aware of the songs floating past me. Songs I haven’t heard for years. We have lots of CDs that we come across dirt cheap during our travels… old Elton John, Billboard compilations from the 70s, the list is endless of creative, old and long lost collections found in Asia’s dusty corners.
Charles’ PMAM wiring would have him complete this project at a snail’s pace… stopping to listen and savour each CD and song, reflecting on where and when I first heard a particular tune. A while ago I wrote about how we measure time outside of minutes, hours, days or years and music definitely ranks up there as a time marker. It would be easy to procrastinate on this project but oh no… no no no no no no no… I am doing this project Tess style – get it done!
That’s why I brought about 50 CDs to Beijing. Every spare moment I had in my hotel room I burned a CD into I-tunes. I was like a machine… then a light appeared at the end of the tunnel but the light was a freight train with a PYM payload.
This morning, as I rushed about packing, answering e-mails, taking phone calls, I continued The CD Project. At one point Moodswings sat waiting for import. I slipped the CD into the travelling docking station. Without even thinking I watched the song names download from the Gracenotes database, then clicked the Import button. For some strange reason Moodswings didn’t play. It was something else. At first I was frustrated. We have about twenty-five CDs missing from their cases and during the course of this project I have found lots of CDs in the wrong CD cases, too. I thought, "Drat, another wrong CD."
My mind fleetingly registered the moment but not as music, instead as a moment in time, as The Cycle of Life. Then the recollection vanished. "What was that?" I thought. I quickly settled in front of my laptop to read the CD. Not Moodswings. I picked-up the CD case… NOT Moodswings. "Wow," I thought, "talk about a bird in ‘the the’ hand, I didn’t even know what I was importing."
But that wasn’t enough as my mind struggled to pull from the past. "What are you trying to tell me," I asked, "why have you stopped me here, at this CD, at this moment?"
Slowly the fog cleared. My parent’s house came into view, in fact the living room where my father had a fancy new stereo. The year was 1990. (The year I came to Asia for the first time.) I remember playing this CD in that stereo on a sunny afternoon. I remember admiring how shiney and smooth it’s surface. I remember making a tape for the car.
I sat there in Beijing, my conscious mind frantically scanning for answers… "Why this CD, why now?" Then I figured it out. Somehow, for some reason, I’d been stopped at the first CD I’d ever bought. At the CD where I migrated from vinyl to CD. Here I sat thousands of miles away in Beijing on my birthday, and years away from that moment in Toronto, importing CDs as Tess & I transitioned out of one technology and into another… only to hold in my mind the first CD I bought. "Should I keep it?" I asked myself.
I stared at the CD in disbelief as all the years between now and then washed through my memory. "Full circle," I thought, "the Cycle of Life. Forty-four today, my friend. Happy Birthday and many, many more shepherd moons."
The artist was Enya. The CD was Shepherd Moon. What was your first CD?
Today marks my ten year anniversary in Hong Kong. I landed May 31, 1996 on a 90 day Visitor Visa. I spent a few days in Hong Kong then headed to Singapore for two weeks of training. Shortly after my return my visa was switched to employment. In honour of this occasion, today is a holiday in Hong Kong. Okay, maybe I am not quite that important… it is a Chinese holiday when the Dragon Boat Festivals are held.
Coincidentally, or maybe not, last Friday the Hong Kong Immigration Department issued me "Permanent Residency" status. The application was processed in record time… three weeks. This gives me the Right of Abode in Hong Kong. As long as I touch down in Hong Kong at least once every three years, from now to The End, I have a guaranteed safe haven on this Barren Rock. (Term used to describe Hong Kong to English Monarchs in 1800’s.) Also coincidentally, or maybe not, tomorrow I go into the Immigration Department again to handle all the formalities associated with receiving my PR Identity Card, which will also be a Smart Card… a piece of digital wizardy allowing me to enter in and out of Hong Kong by flashing the card and down the road will probably contain anything from my name to my DNA map.
Ten years… it has been quite a ride. I travel so much I am now on my fourth passport since arriving. (That will change as the passport no longer gets stamped going in and out of Hong Kong… the Smart Card gets zapped through a machine.) I have visited numerous countries in Asia. It’s getting to a point where I count the countries I haven’t visited, not the ones I have. Three jobs, four flats, one university degree, Tess, four kids, one handover, another one next door in Macau… the list goes on.
When I first landed in Hong Kong I really had no idea how long I would stay. I unconsciously thought I would be in Hong Kong for three to four years and then return to Canada. For now we have no plans to leave, although Jasper’s asthma is a little worrying. But we do have plans to re-assess our priorities as we embark on the next decade… slowdown, more time for family, more time for God, more time to stop and find these things called roses. Apparently they smell nice? I am sure, though, in no time it won’t look as if we’ve slowed! What do you have planned for the next decade?
On a side note, this last week had an added note of sobriety due to the passing of numerous distant people. At our Union Church Small Group last night we counted five deaths within the group’s extended circles. The first happened last Thursday night when a distant drinking buddy, Richard, (about 37 and by all outward signs looked in excellent physical condition) dropped dead during a work-out at The Footbal Club after suffering a massive heart attack. Tess knew his wife and two kids (2 & 5) from one of the triplets’ playgroups. We learned of further deaths throughout the week. Then yesterday while exchanging e-mails with a colleague (Dawn) in Singapore, she told me of a missionary friend who had just been killed. Her friend had been walking through one of South East Asia’s many jungles when she was hit and killed by a small boy learning to ride a 350 cc motorcycle. Didn’t mean to put a damper on my auspicious holiday… er, the Dragon Boat Festival, but I’ll sign-off now to go find those roses.
Well, here is an interesting online quiz… The Life Quiz. No surprise, I scored high on Spirituality. I also scored low on "Body" so I guess the message is, I need to pray that I start exercising more! Click on the link above and do the quiz yourself… then please come back and let me know your high and low!
Meanwhile, Jasper is sick but believe it or not, he actually slept quite well last night. Or maybe I just didn’t hear him. The doctor did an in-office test (kinda like a pregnancy test) for Scarlet Fever because he was so certain this is the bug JJ is battling. The test was negative but has a 15% margin for error. Therefore, the doc also took a throat swab to get more conclusive results. (Isn’t the definition of insanity going down the same tunnel over and over again while expecting a different result?) Last night JJ looked a little better and his rash subsided. This morning he didnt look so good, rash was back on his face in full force and temperature raging away. Hard to say if JJ is vomitting from the illness – we still dont know for sure what he has! – or from coughing because excessive coughing will certainly cause him to throw-up. Jury’s out on that one. But as Tess would say, "Poor little button."
Fortunately, none of the other kids seem to have picked up this bug. But, one wouldnt know this judging by the sounds they were making this morning before leaving the flat. The Terrific Trio were whinging and whining away left, right and centre. Also, Sebastian is constantly complaining about various ailments but I think that is because he’s trying to get out of going to school! Sebastian is now a walker. This means we drive him to school instead of him taking the bus. We chose this approach since De started driving to save on the bus fees while maximising the investment in driving lessons. However, Sebastian is quite conflicted about this latest development. He’s asked us several times if he can start taking the bus again. We tend to get a different opinion from him depending on his mood of the moment. Kinda like him being "sick."
Seb: My throat is hot… I am sick!
Parent: Really!? Then I guess you’ll need to have a nap and go to bed early tonight, too.
Seb: I’m not sick I just need a drink of water.
Hmmm…
Just returned from India and I cannot tell you how happy I am to be at home… PLUS, it is a FOUR DAY holiday weekend in Hong Kong for Easter… wooohooo… I LOVE EASTER and not just for spiritual reasons.
The flight home was naturally brutal… just before leaving the office we were supposed to have an All Employee meeting (300+) where I would give the team an update on the company and we’d launch a new HR initiative. Suddenly India media announced the passing of Raj Kumar, famous Bollywood actor. Senior managers went into frenzy, telling me that Mr. Kumar’s passing could result in rioting on the streets as Indian citizens mourned for a much loved Bollywood icon. They immediately devised a plan to release employees early from work and sent me off to the airport very early. Of course my flight was late so I had a long wait. I arrived in Mumbai from Bangalore to be greeted by a huge traffic jam. Talked on a global conference call in the back of the hotel car with cars and taxis beeping in the background. Had another call once arriving in the hotel with my awesome new boss. (He is great and will be very good for my company. Plus he uses sailing analogies when describing business situations and actions so really; he’s made to measure for me!)
Here’s the bad part. By that point it was 11:30 PM and I had to leave the hotel at 2:30 AM to catch my flight to Hong Kong. I had enough work to do that I had to weigh whether or not to sleep for a few hours or work right through. I chose the latter and by 1:30 AM was choking. I set my alarm for a one-hour nap. Halfway through that nap I woke-up suddenly, completely and totally disoriented, knowing I was supposed to be somewhere but not remembering any of the details. I’ve been living in a paradigm where this whole India trip needs to end with me arriving in Hong Kong by Thursday night to be with the family for the whole weekend. I didn’t know the details but I was certain I just overslept and messed something up.
SMACK! My rational side gave me a good one across the face. I squinted at my watch and realised I had another 30 minutes to nap. Whooosh. I was about to reach for my Blackberry to check for details when once again my rational side said, “STOP THAT!” Instead I slept for another 30 minutes.
The flight left Mumbai early morning, one hour and fifteen minutes late. That was very, very painful. In the upright position my seat really bothered my back, which has yet to heal 100%. Normally I am one of those rational people who understand there is a reason for a flight being late, and that I am unlikely to change the situation. But by this point I was in so much pain I was ready to say to one of the flight attendants, “LOOK! You have GOT TO get this plane off the ground. My back is killing me!” Finally we left and I slept all the way to Bangkok where we had a one-hour layover – passengers like myself going on to HK stay on the plane. Finally we arrived in HK.
Sebastian and De met me at the Airport Express. We went to the chiropractor, who fixed my back from the messy travel and then came home. (Ah yes, outside the drs office we found a street stall selling cool Spiderman windbreakers dirt-cheap. Had to buy a few of those.)
Upon arriving home three little critters flung themselves at me in the dearest way. Kids had dinner. Afterwards I presented the kids with treats from India… a gorgeous little red car for Jasper, little purses for Sela & Carys, and a red plane for Sebastian.
I cannot tell you how happy I am to be home and that it is the weekend. Four days with Tess and the kids! And, almost better, my work To Do list is only twelve pages long, so I won’t even be swamped with things to do on Tuesday. God be praised!
Attached are two pics I’ve been meaning to post. One of the kids riding on the trike on Bowen Road (with Sebastian and Jasper sporting their Kennedy Space Centre flight suits) and the other of our new Renault that we got about six months ago. I blogged about it at the time but never posted a pic. Happy Easter everyone!
Some of you may remember the gorgeous view we have from our balcony. On clear days in both the mornings and evenings we get quite a selection of wonderful vistas. All that is about to change thanks to the monstrosity pictured here. Some friends of ours researched this new building’s plans at the Building Department: zoned for three floors. But in typical Hong Kong fashion, the owners are building to 21 floors (according to the security guard at the site entrance) and will beg forgiveness later.
Meanwhile, illness and injury continue to plague our home. Tess was ill earlier this week. Things are settling down for her this weekend but she is still very tired. Jasper has a nasty case of chicken pox – almost a full blown adult version – and I have a very bad pulled muscle in my back. This actually happened over a week ago and I have been in excruciating pain ever since. The muscle is the one that runs from behind the left shoulder blade around to the front of the chest. According to the doctor, the muscle is kinked in the back and spasming in the front. His exact words were: "A massage won’t help you unless the masseuse focuses on your chest. As the muscles heal they are loosening in the back but are still tight in the front. Good luck, have a good weekend and see you on Monday!"
"And the pain killers?" I asked quietly.
"Ah, come on Charles… you’re getting better. The worst is over. You don’t need drugs!" the doctor replied.
During all this I have been praying like mad and God has been sending very strong signals down to my spiritual antenna. I read a fantastic article the other day of which I extract the following quote: "If you were Satan and your job description was to keep people away from Christianity, you’d look at Western culture and say you’d done a pretty good job."
I’m telling you, the Holy Spirit is moving within me. Wow, I am in awe and humbled. What’s in store for little ol’ me?
Originally from Canada and lived in Hong Kong for fifteen years. Married to the terribly talented & gorgeous Tess.
I doubt my father will be thrilled with my inaugural entry into the blogging world. But read on anyway… In my younger, pre-parenthood and much
Many read Tess’ post on Sebastian’s knee. I will now tell you what ended up happening at the Tuesday morning follow-up appointment. This is Hong
I am writing from Bangkok. I am on a business trip and staying in the same hotel from my first trip to Asia in 1990.
new pictures posted on tess’ blog of the triplets and Sebastian… click here!
Tantalizing Tess left today for her grandfather’s funeral. Sombre moods. I am sitting at our computer sipping a glass of white wine. It’s about 11