In a previous blog entry on 10-12 about Guangzhou (aka Canton) "This is Greg's big meeting and it's a disaster. His vendor and the agent are lying through their teeth. Their stories change, their body language says anxiety, and they don't come clean. I pass Greg several notes warning him it's bad news on most counts but he's aware of it, just not how bad .... Glad it wasn't my meeting." Anyway that's just so you remember the post.
As you all know I despised Guangzhou because quite honestly, I don't like a city with smoke-stacks the bellow Mountain-Dew coloured smoke, nor do I like a city where "brown" is a valid description of the weather. Here's the rest of the story. Greg relayed the balance of this story to me today. When we left the meeting, one of Greg's associates, who shall remain anonymous, didn't particularly hate it and stayed behind for a few more days before directly returning to the USA. Turns out on his last day, he was being driven around in the corporate Mercedes, as is the custom in China, and they were pulled over by a guy in a motorcycle -- not sure how that works but I'm just relaying this -- and the guy promptly robbed the driver and the passenger before leaving.
Needless to say he's no longer a fan of Guangzhou. Carjackings, muggings, and robberies, Oh My!
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Sunday, October 22, 2006
More on Friendships and such
This must be my favourite topic, because I've written about it often enough. Well here's another rant of sorts:
I despair for the future -- not my future, but that of the world -- because I find younger people can't have intelligent conversations for the most part. They think they're intelligent to be sure, but they can't talk about a whole lot except in a cursory fashion. Even when I was younger I found people able to have deeper conversations. Maybe it was just me and my friends, but I don't think so. I think people are getting less intelligent as time goes on.
I've tried repeatedly to engage some of my friends in intelligent conversation but it fails, repeatedly. And some of these people are supposedly smart. They seem smart, they act smart, but if you try to talk to them about anything that requires a thought process, reasoning, and an ultimate conclusion, you're in trouble. I can usually terminate any conversation with a "... but why do you feel that way?" because they just can't answer. I understand that sometimes you really can't answer that question, however mostly you should be able to answer it. If you're having a reaction to a situation, you should know why you're reacting that way, what it is you're feeling, and you should be able to talk about it (or say "none of your damned business" or "I do not choose to share").
Because I don't want to make these aforementioned friends feel bad, I'll leave their names out of this blog post on the off chance they one day read this post. Among my older friends, there are some who can have these discussions (whether or not they choose to do so and with whom is a different discussion) and there are some who can't. But the younger the friend, the less likely they're capable. I know it's not age related because 20 years ago I had friends in their teens who could have these sorts of discussion without any problem. I'm not sure I can name anyone under 25 who can and that's bad news for everyone. I know the thoughts are taking place -- it's a human condition -- but the skills to relate them are gone. Vanished without a trace. I have no explanation for it but it saddens me and makes me feel, well, lonely.
Let me use one person as an example 'cause I know he won't come here and read. There's a guy named Josh and we were really good friends for years. We used to have lengthy, involved, interesting talks that were amazingly complex, detailed, and enjoyable on many levels (the subject of which are confidential as are all my conversations with friends). He's in his mid-to-late 20s now. We're not even friends any more but that was his choice. He may be one of the most brilliant people I have ever met, and I get frustrated because he's wasting his life. He should be running the world and instead he's just another employee at a national retail chain. He might be the only person I'd admit is more intelligent than me. (That sounds so egotistical I've almost offended myself, but it's true. I'm amazingly smart and I think he's smarter. I think I need a bigger box for my ego.)
To be fair, most of my friends are smart: I think I said that in a previous post, or maybe I didn't. I don't suffer fools gladly and I cannot stand morons. Smart and Intelligent aren't the same thing though. And although the people I hang out with are generally smart, they're not all necessarily intelligent, though most certainly are. Of course they all think they are but thinking something is true doesn't make it true. It's just really weird and I'm having a hard time expressing it here, but then again I am aimlessly ranting.
I was going to make a point here, but if you're intelligent you've got it figured out. If you're smart, you probably haven't. If you don't know, well that's a different story altogether.
I despair for the future -- not my future, but that of the world -- because I find younger people can't have intelligent conversations for the most part. They think they're intelligent to be sure, but they can't talk about a whole lot except in a cursory fashion. Even when I was younger I found people able to have deeper conversations. Maybe it was just me and my friends, but I don't think so. I think people are getting less intelligent as time goes on.
I've tried repeatedly to engage some of my friends in intelligent conversation but it fails, repeatedly. And some of these people are supposedly smart. They seem smart, they act smart, but if you try to talk to them about anything that requires a thought process, reasoning, and an ultimate conclusion, you're in trouble. I can usually terminate any conversation with a "... but why do you feel that way?" because they just can't answer. I understand that sometimes you really can't answer that question, however mostly you should be able to answer it. If you're having a reaction to a situation, you should know why you're reacting that way, what it is you're feeling, and you should be able to talk about it (or say "none of your damned business" or "I do not choose to share").
Because I don't want to make these aforementioned friends feel bad, I'll leave their names out of this blog post on the off chance they one day read this post. Among my older friends, there are some who can have these discussions (whether or not they choose to do so and with whom is a different discussion) and there are some who can't. But the younger the friend, the less likely they're capable. I know it's not age related because 20 years ago I had friends in their teens who could have these sorts of discussion without any problem. I'm not sure I can name anyone under 25 who can and that's bad news for everyone. I know the thoughts are taking place -- it's a human condition -- but the skills to relate them are gone. Vanished without a trace. I have no explanation for it but it saddens me and makes me feel, well, lonely.
Let me use one person as an example 'cause I know he won't come here and read. There's a guy named Josh and we were really good friends for years. We used to have lengthy, involved, interesting talks that were amazingly complex, detailed, and enjoyable on many levels (the subject of which are confidential as are all my conversations with friends). He's in his mid-to-late 20s now. We're not even friends any more but that was his choice. He may be one of the most brilliant people I have ever met, and I get frustrated because he's wasting his life. He should be running the world and instead he's just another employee at a national retail chain. He might be the only person I'd admit is more intelligent than me. (That sounds so egotistical I've almost offended myself, but it's true. I'm amazingly smart and I think he's smarter. I think I need a bigger box for my ego.)
To be fair, most of my friends are smart: I think I said that in a previous post, or maybe I didn't. I don't suffer fools gladly and I cannot stand morons. Smart and Intelligent aren't the same thing though. And although the people I hang out with are generally smart, they're not all necessarily intelligent, though most certainly are. Of course they all think they are but thinking something is true doesn't make it true. It's just really weird and I'm having a hard time expressing it here, but then again I am aimlessly ranting.
I was going to make a point here, but if you're intelligent you've got it figured out. If you're smart, you probably haven't. If you don't know, well that's a different story altogether.
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Kris Medina and IMDB
Many of you here know my friend Thomas. We've been friends since we were in Boy Scouts together -- way back in the late 70s and early 80s. I actually knew his brother Kris for a few weeks before I ended up meeting Thomas. I've always been in touch with Kris -- most of my friends know Kris and Thomas and many who hadn't met them before met Kris at my 40th Birthday party in Las Vegas. What you may not know is Kris is a professional stuntman in Hollywood. I was surprised today to find he's got his very own IMDB page*http://imdb.com/name/nm0575729/
It's not up-to-date. I know it's missing his appearances on the TV show "Las Vegas" in season 3 as well as his turn in the PBS presentation of "Hopfrog" among others. He also got blown up in a movie but the name of that film escapes me. Anyway, I think it's fantastically cool I actually know someone who's got his own page on IMDB. So I'm basically bragging here :)
* Which I found because Evan asked me how to spell Kris' name.
It's not up-to-date. I know it's missing his appearances on the TV show "Las Vegas" in season 3 as well as his turn in the PBS presentation of "Hopfrog" among others. He also got blown up in a movie but the name of that film escapes me. Anyway, I think it's fantastically cool I actually know someone who's got his own page on IMDB. So I'm basically bragging here :)
* Which I found because Evan asked me how to spell Kris' name.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Hong Kong & USA Sunday (End of Trip)
Sunday morning and I'm up with my 6am wake-up call (6pm Saturday back in the States) in Hong Kong after a very short sleep. Nice wake up call -- a real person who asks if you want a ring back in 15 minutes to be sure you're awake. I like that.
Yesterday's breakfast was so smashing, I am up at 6am just so I can do a repeat. It started well with an awesome breakfast which was, this being Hong Kong, insanely overpriced. This time it was English style scrambled Eggs, Ham, and Toast with coffee for around US$40.
I take one last look out the window of my room as I pack my last few bits, and sigh. As much as I am thrilled to be leaving the Orient and as much as I am not a fan of mainland China, my departure from Hong Kong leaves me very sad.
The Airport Express MTR line is as easy as we remember it, and surprisingly packed for a 745am Sunday departure. Everything at the airport runs smoothly and the lines are relatively short and move quick owing to the large number of employees. Hong Kong's airport is one of the most beautiful in the world, it's very efficient, and has plenty to do.
We're returning on Continental. They had their Peter Max designed 777 -- and as much as I like Peter Max this wasn't what one would call an 'attractive' aircraft by any standard. Normally to Europe I fly Delta which as "business first" -- and it's fine. Continental has a product by the same name but the seats are much closer together which greatly diminishes the experience. It was one of the most uncomfortable flights in recent memory mostly due to the seat. I am sore everywhere and I think I left my ass-print for all eternity in seat 8E. The service and food were fine and the staff were great. I am not knocking anything but the seat which is simply not acceptable for a flight of that duration. And we had a tailwind that put us in nearly one hour early.
So we get to Newark about 50 minutes early, breeze through immigration (not one person in line and eight stations open). Our bags take a bit, but to be fair our plane comes in way at the end and there's a lot of baggage. Customs is a breeze taking under 5 minutes. We encounter a long line at baggage re-check but it's moving and we're through in 15 minutes. We take the train from "B" to "C" instead of walking because we aren't sure how far it is. That will prove to be a saving grace.
We get to "C" and have to go through security. We can't even find the end of the line but people are complaining they've been in it for over 1 hour and they aren't even near the front. That's a problem as my plane boards in an hour. People are really unhappy. We finally make our way to another checkpoint which also has a horrible line, but it's moving due to apparently more organized people. We get through in 40 minutes. Only then do we find an "elite access" line with less than 50 people in it. Oh well -- so much for the lounge before my flight.
My flight departs without incident and arrives without incident. My luggage arrives in 20 minutes which for Miami is lightning fast. I get to my car only to find someone's run into it. Back tail light and fender are dinged. I am really pissed. I load up my stuff and go to get in, and wonder of wonders, there's a note in my door with a phone number for the person who hit it. I'm still not happy but will call in the morning.
I am home 27 hours from the moment I left the hotel in Hong Kong.
Yesterday's breakfast was so smashing, I am up at 6am just so I can do a repeat. It started well with an awesome breakfast which was, this being Hong Kong, insanely overpriced. This time it was English style scrambled Eggs, Ham, and Toast with coffee for around US$40.
I take one last look out the window of my room as I pack my last few bits, and sigh. As much as I am thrilled to be leaving the Orient and as much as I am not a fan of mainland China, my departure from Hong Kong leaves me very sad.
The Airport Express MTR line is as easy as we remember it, and surprisingly packed for a 745am Sunday departure. Everything at the airport runs smoothly and the lines are relatively short and move quick owing to the large number of employees. Hong Kong's airport is one of the most beautiful in the world, it's very efficient, and has plenty to do.
We're returning on Continental. They had their Peter Max designed 777 -- and as much as I like Peter Max this wasn't what one would call an 'attractive' aircraft by any standard. Normally to Europe I fly Delta which as "business first" -- and it's fine. Continental has a product by the same name but the seats are much closer together which greatly diminishes the experience. It was one of the most uncomfortable flights in recent memory mostly due to the seat. I am sore everywhere and I think I left my ass-print for all eternity in seat 8E. The service and food were fine and the staff were great. I am not knocking anything but the seat which is simply not acceptable for a flight of that duration. And we had a tailwind that put us in nearly one hour early.
So we get to Newark about 50 minutes early, breeze through immigration (not one person in line and eight stations open). Our bags take a bit, but to be fair our plane comes in way at the end and there's a lot of baggage. Customs is a breeze taking under 5 minutes. We encounter a long line at baggage re-check but it's moving and we're through in 15 minutes. We take the train from "B" to "C" instead of walking because we aren't sure how far it is. That will prove to be a saving grace.
We get to "C" and have to go through security. We can't even find the end of the line but people are complaining they've been in it for over 1 hour and they aren't even near the front. That's a problem as my plane boards in an hour. People are really unhappy. We finally make our way to another checkpoint which also has a horrible line, but it's moving due to apparently more organized people. We get through in 40 minutes. Only then do we find an "elite access" line with less than 50 people in it. Oh well -- so much for the lounge before my flight.
My flight departs without incident and arrives without incident. My luggage arrives in 20 minutes which for Miami is lightning fast. I get to my car only to find someone's run into it. Back tail light and fender are dinged. I am really pissed. I load up my stuff and go to get in, and wonder of wonders, there's a note in my door with a phone number for the person who hit it. I'm still not happy but will call in the morning.
I am home 27 hours from the moment I left the hotel in Hong Kong.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Hong Kong Saturday
It's another Saturday night and here I am in Hong Kong after a very long day. It started well with an awesome breakfast which was, this being Hong Kong, insanely overpriced. English style Eggs, Bacon, and Toast with coffee for around US$40.
Our first meeting was pretty much pointless for me but it was Greg's big meeting and I attended for the hell of it. After that the Maks came and took us to the Central Escalators a wonder of the modern world which is rather hard to describe.
We did a bit of shopping, sightseeing, and such before running back for a meeting we were highly anticipating. Sadly it was a no-show and we weren't happy. That left time for a bit more shopping though Greg was the big spender this trip and I didn't really buy much. We ate dinner at the Union Café which was pretty good and relatively cheap with dinner for two with dessert coming in at around HK$605. In Hong Kong that's a bargain.
I went to a local grocery store for fun and bought a Lime flavoured chocolate bar. It sounds rather interesting.
We walked around the mall a bit more and now I'm in the room to pack and go to bed before the long, gruelling flight home. We plan to take the airport express MTR line to the airport. Yay.
Our first meeting was pretty much pointless for me but it was Greg's big meeting and I attended for the hell of it. After that the Maks came and took us to the Central Escalators a wonder of the modern world which is rather hard to describe.
We did a bit of shopping, sightseeing, and such before running back for a meeting we were highly anticipating. Sadly it was a no-show and we weren't happy. That left time for a bit more shopping though Greg was the big spender this trip and I didn't really buy much. We ate dinner at the Union Café which was pretty good and relatively cheap with dinner for two with dessert coming in at around HK$605. In Hong Kong that's a bargain.
I went to a local grocery store for fun and bought a Lime flavoured chocolate bar. It sounds rather interesting.
We walked around the mall a bit more and now I'm in the room to pack and go to bed before the long, gruelling flight home. We plan to take the airport express MTR line to the airport. Yay.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Macao/Hong Kong -- Friday
I am now at the Four Seasons Hong Kong. Friday was packed -- it's about 650am Saturday as I finish this post. Woke up early, got out of bed, dragged a comb across my hair* -- met the Maks for breakfast. A real buffet at any rate with lots of meat and stuff. Tasty stuff. Went to the Casino before breakfast to change my remaining RMB to HK$ -- apparently one of the notes was no good. That was a very unpleasant scene. I ended up getting a receipt and will pick a fight with my bank upon return -- I do not intend to be out RMB100 because of this. Anyway, I also got a Wynn Macao casino card just because I thought it would be cool to do. I used it a bit but for the trip I'm out a few hundred bucks -- nothing serious. We got the grand tour of Macao which is still very Portuguese much like Hong Kong is still English but we enjoyed it thoroughly. Lots of pictures of course.
We took the hydrofoil from Macao to Hong Kong around 1230 and it was a cool experience and was $142 Macao Dollars per person (a Macao Dollar is worth about 5% less than an HK$) -- customs was again slow and ponderous but we were in the hotel at 1410 and had a 1500 meeting. I unpacked and showered only to find no more clean shirts except the one long sleeved one. Not good. Ran to the nearby mall, got sweaty in the process, found only one store with a short sleeved shirt (Burberry) and spent HK$850 as not to die of heat stroke. Ran back, changed, and was ready at 310pm then we got lost on the way to the meeting and finally got there at 1540 but they were very impressed we walked. Meeting went until nearly 1810 and then we went back to hotel and dropped off our stuff, and then hopped the MTR (subway) to Jordan where the Temple Night Market is. Spent a bit of money on crappy stuff for fun. Took the MTR back noticing it's got AC! Ate in the hotel lounge and discovered a new drink called a Lime Blush and had 4 at HK$80 each. I am such a pig.
I went to a Boots and Pret-A-Manger today -- just like being in England. Didn't buy, just looked. And I got a Mars bar at 7-11 -- the UK kind and not the US kind. If you're familiar with the Mars and Milky Way chocolate bars their names are swapped in the US as opposed to the rest of the world. Not sure why. But at any rate the UK variety uses proper chocolate and not that crap they pass off in the US.
The final word on this hotel: our rooms have the most spectacular view of one of the most amazing cities on the planet. I would pay triple the rate to stay here again for this view. Even my pictures will not do this justice.
On my way to breakfast, I think I'll drop off one last round of laundry. As if you care.
* if you don't get this I am disappointed
We took the hydrofoil from Macao to Hong Kong around 1230 and it was a cool experience and was $142 Macao Dollars per person (a Macao Dollar is worth about 5% less than an HK$) -- customs was again slow and ponderous but we were in the hotel at 1410 and had a 1500 meeting. I unpacked and showered only to find no more clean shirts except the one long sleeved one. Not good. Ran to the nearby mall, got sweaty in the process, found only one store with a short sleeved shirt (Burberry) and spent HK$850 as not to die of heat stroke. Ran back, changed, and was ready at 310pm then we got lost on the way to the meeting and finally got there at 1540 but they were very impressed we walked. Meeting went until nearly 1810 and then we went back to hotel and dropped off our stuff, and then hopped the MTR (subway) to Jordan where the Temple Night Market is. Spent a bit of money on crappy stuff for fun. Took the MTR back noticing it's got AC! Ate in the hotel lounge and discovered a new drink called a Lime Blush and had 4 at HK$80 each. I am such a pig.
I went to a Boots and Pret-A-Manger today -- just like being in England. Didn't buy, just looked. And I got a Mars bar at 7-11 -- the UK kind and not the US kind. If you're familiar with the Mars and Milky Way chocolate bars their names are swapped in the US as opposed to the rest of the world. Not sure why. But at any rate the UK variety uses proper chocolate and not that crap they pass off in the US.
The final word on this hotel: our rooms have the most spectacular view of one of the most amazing cities on the planet. I would pay triple the rate to stay here again for this view. Even my pictures will not do this justice.
On my way to breakfast, I think I'll drop off one last round of laundry. As if you care.
* if you don't get this I am disappointed
Thursday, October 12, 2006
China/Macao -- through Thurs PM
Here I am at the Wynn Macao where the internet isn't censored. I can send e-mail, visit websites and be normal (as normal as I can be anyway). When we last left our intrepid traveller I had arrived at our hotel in Ningbo where my computer was under constant attack.
The next day we had a 9am meeting which was, quite honestly, a waste. Later we decided to walk around Ningbo a bit, and besides the usual ladies throwing themselves at us for the obligatory massage, there was little else of note. Everyone was staring at us because Westerners are clearly not a common sight there. Nobody was overtly hostile but it was very uncomfortable in one sense. We when to a quick-mart and I bought some chocolates and a pack of throat lozenges that I would later find out expired over a year ago. Well, they worked so what difference.
For RMB 600 we were able to extend our checkout until 4pm -- the best money we ever spent. We had another brief meeting which went better. After that, we didn't do much until we checked out at 4pm. They tried to bill me for my mini-bar tab twice but that wasn't particularly troublesome I thought. I'm sorry I complained after all at a paltry RMB 41 it wasn't worth the headache -- then the manager came over and said a laundry bag was missing but I tried to explain I gave them two laundry bags and that went nowhere. A good example of why sometimes you just pay and shut up.
We arrived at the Ningbo airport, and like most places in China there was no A/C and the of the lights were off because you could still see a little bit. All five flights at the airport were delayed and we would later learn the Chinese air traffic control system was out that day and they were running manually. Anyway, we're told check-in is at 5pm so we wait and kill time. Finally we check in and go to the gate where we find there is an unspecified delay. Naturally they just announce there's a delay without any details as to why or how long. I am not picking on the Chinese -- the US Airports aren't any better and at least they apologized for the inconvenience.
Finally we board. There is no first class cabin which is why Karen couldn't find seats. If you've ever been on a plane in coach, you know there is one row for each set of windows. China Southern's intrastate flights have three rows for every two windows. I had trouble even getting in the row to get to my seat. It was the most uncomfortable 2.5 hour flight I have ever taken. Of course there was a full meal service, which I declined.
We arrived in Guangzhou (aka Canton) and what a hard landing. Apparently it was our pilots first time behind the yoke of a plane. My cat could have landed the plane better. We were wondering where the terminal was. Why? It was night and we couldn't see the well-lit terminal through the smog. When they opened the plane door the stench was unbelievable. Years ago if you ever went to Jacksonville and smelled the paper mills, it was reminiscent of that only 100 times worse. My ability to describe this cancerous malaise is beyond belief. That old expression "air so thick you could cut it with a knife" is quite appropriate if the knife is sharp enough -- makes the air in Shanghai seem pristine. Disgusting.
We drive to the hotel with our host who actually picked us up and he took us to the hotel. We had booked a hotel but he insisted we cancel and stay at this hotel. I believe I may have mentioned that before. So we get there except apparently he didn't really book the room and didn't believe us when we said our travel agent said the hotel was full. We had no rooms. Being Chinese he had to save face so he did they only thing he could do, which was to rent us a villa. Greg and I didn't realize that when he said we had to share a room and we gave each other the "whatchoo talkin' 'bout Willis" look. Turns out we had a four bedroom house for the night which was nearly RMB10000 a night -- and we let him pay, something we're normally loathe to do.
Now, since earlier Wednesday I had been, let me put this delicately, suffering severe intestinal distress. I was told that we had to go to dinner -- and they brought me what was supposedly a "burger" but it had the consistency of mashed potatoes, the colour of pinkish-white, and the taste of a pepper-cream béarnaise sauce (if such a thing exists). Two bites and I almost heaved. The worst burger of all time and almost as bad as the Sea Cucumber from my last trip to China.
Off to bed. I decided to use the shower (after testing the toilet several more times). I was going to wash my hair but after seeing the colour (and smelling) the water, I take a record-speed shower. You think a villa at a "five star" resort would be nice and it was. You think it would be clean and but it wasn't. I look at my socks and the bottoms were black. Icky. And the bed was the hardest bed -- beating out even the Tayhih Landis -- I've ever been on. I sleep until 6am anyway.
Thursday I am up and decide to go for a walk. It's humid and the weather is brown. Yes, you read correctly. The weather is brown. Later that day it would be yellow-brown. I eat breakfast at the main room and return to the hotel. Our ride is a bit late but we're out the door at 10.
This is Greg's big meeting and it's a disaster. His vendor and the agent are lying through their teeth. Their stories change, their body language says anxiety, and they don't come clean. I pass Greg several notes warning him it's bad news on most counts but he's aware of it, just not how bad. We're talking the body language of: wring hands, massaging thumb into the forefinger web, looking downward, furrowed brows, avoiding eye contact. The guy's a bad lair and is very uncomfortable because he realizes we aren't gullible plus about 1/2 hour into the meeting our guy from Hong Kong walks in so he can't even talk in Chinese to his partner without us being privy. Glad it wasn't my meeting. They send us back to the hotel in the car and invite us to lunch to appease us but we decline and meet our hosts from Hong Kong for our ride to another factory way to the south. Parts of the ride are nice, but I am confident that a factory billowing mustard yellow smoke is a really bad thing.
This factory visit goes swimmingly well. Yay. Then we're off to Macao (Macau to some). We go through the exit process. Leaving China proves to be a chore -- there is almost no English instruction so our host proves helpful -- and the immigration officer is yelling at Greg about something but we don't understand. We begin to worry we won't be allowed out and someone else comes over and finally lets us through. Then we walk about 50 metres to the entrance to Macao, China, SAR but that runs much more smoothly since though there's not much English I can muddle through the written Portuguese instructions. We're in Macau and take two taxis since we all can't fit in one to the Wynn Macau. It's just like Vegas only smaller.
The casino is way different though. Blackjack allows you to bet not only on your hand, but on anyone else's hand on the table -- there are hash marks below each hand for this purpose. And even people standing and watching can bet on your hands. It's very odd. You can also bet a "pair" bet at 11-1 which means if the person gets a pair, you get paid 11-1 -- and you can bet on any or all players whether or not you're actually playing. Also you play your hand out and then the dealer plays his/her hand and draws the second card. Weird. And now you're up to date through Thursday night.
The next day we had a 9am meeting which was, quite honestly, a waste. Later we decided to walk around Ningbo a bit, and besides the usual ladies throwing themselves at us for the obligatory massage, there was little else of note. Everyone was staring at us because Westerners are clearly not a common sight there. Nobody was overtly hostile but it was very uncomfortable in one sense. We when to a quick-mart and I bought some chocolates and a pack of throat lozenges that I would later find out expired over a year ago. Well, they worked so what difference.
For RMB 600 we were able to extend our checkout until 4pm -- the best money we ever spent. We had another brief meeting which went better. After that, we didn't do much until we checked out at 4pm. They tried to bill me for my mini-bar tab twice but that wasn't particularly troublesome I thought. I'm sorry I complained after all at a paltry RMB 41 it wasn't worth the headache -- then the manager came over and said a laundry bag was missing but I tried to explain I gave them two laundry bags and that went nowhere. A good example of why sometimes you just pay and shut up.
We arrived at the Ningbo airport, and like most places in China there was no A/C and the of the lights were off because you could still see a little bit. All five flights at the airport were delayed and we would later learn the Chinese air traffic control system was out that day and they were running manually. Anyway, we're told check-in is at 5pm so we wait and kill time. Finally we check in and go to the gate where we find there is an unspecified delay. Naturally they just announce there's a delay without any details as to why or how long. I am not picking on the Chinese -- the US Airports aren't any better and at least they apologized for the inconvenience.
Finally we board. There is no first class cabin which is why Karen couldn't find seats. If you've ever been on a plane in coach, you know there is one row for each set of windows. China Southern's intrastate flights have three rows for every two windows. I had trouble even getting in the row to get to my seat. It was the most uncomfortable 2.5 hour flight I have ever taken. Of course there was a full meal service, which I declined.
We arrived in Guangzhou (aka Canton) and what a hard landing. Apparently it was our pilots first time behind the yoke of a plane. My cat could have landed the plane better. We were wondering where the terminal was. Why? It was night and we couldn't see the well-lit terminal through the smog. When they opened the plane door the stench was unbelievable. Years ago if you ever went to Jacksonville and smelled the paper mills, it was reminiscent of that only 100 times worse. My ability to describe this cancerous malaise is beyond belief. That old expression "air so thick you could cut it with a knife" is quite appropriate if the knife is sharp enough -- makes the air in Shanghai seem pristine. Disgusting.
We drive to the hotel with our host who actually picked us up and he took us to the hotel. We had booked a hotel but he insisted we cancel and stay at this hotel. I believe I may have mentioned that before. So we get there except apparently he didn't really book the room and didn't believe us when we said our travel agent said the hotel was full. We had no rooms. Being Chinese he had to save face so he did they only thing he could do, which was to rent us a villa. Greg and I didn't realize that when he said we had to share a room and we gave each other the "whatchoo talkin' 'bout Willis" look. Turns out we had a four bedroom house for the night which was nearly RMB10000 a night -- and we let him pay, something we're normally loathe to do.
Now, since earlier Wednesday I had been, let me put this delicately, suffering severe intestinal distress. I was told that we had to go to dinner -- and they brought me what was supposedly a "burger" but it had the consistency of mashed potatoes, the colour of pinkish-white, and the taste of a pepper-cream béarnaise sauce (if such a thing exists). Two bites and I almost heaved. The worst burger of all time and almost as bad as the Sea Cucumber from my last trip to China.
Off to bed. I decided to use the shower (after testing the toilet several more times). I was going to wash my hair but after seeing the colour (and smelling) the water, I take a record-speed shower. You think a villa at a "five star" resort would be nice and it was. You think it would be clean and but it wasn't. I look at my socks and the bottoms were black. Icky. And the bed was the hardest bed -- beating out even the Tayhih Landis -- I've ever been on. I sleep until 6am anyway.
Thursday I am up and decide to go for a walk. It's humid and the weather is brown. Yes, you read correctly. The weather is brown. Later that day it would be yellow-brown. I eat breakfast at the main room and return to the hotel. Our ride is a bit late but we're out the door at 10.
This is Greg's big meeting and it's a disaster. His vendor and the agent are lying through their teeth. Their stories change, their body language says anxiety, and they don't come clean. I pass Greg several notes warning him it's bad news on most counts but he's aware of it, just not how bad. We're talking the body language of: wring hands, massaging thumb into the forefinger web, looking downward, furrowed brows, avoiding eye contact. The guy's a bad lair and is very uncomfortable because he realizes we aren't gullible plus about 1/2 hour into the meeting our guy from Hong Kong walks in so he can't even talk in Chinese to his partner without us being privy. Glad it wasn't my meeting. They send us back to the hotel in the car and invite us to lunch to appease us but we decline and meet our hosts from Hong Kong for our ride to another factory way to the south. Parts of the ride are nice, but I am confident that a factory billowing mustard yellow smoke is a really bad thing.
This factory visit goes swimmingly well. Yay. Then we're off to Macao (Macau to some). We go through the exit process. Leaving China proves to be a chore -- there is almost no English instruction so our host proves helpful -- and the immigration officer is yelling at Greg about something but we don't understand. We begin to worry we won't be allowed out and someone else comes over and finally lets us through. Then we walk about 50 metres to the entrance to Macao, China, SAR but that runs much more smoothly since though there's not much English I can muddle through the written Portuguese instructions. We're in Macau and take two taxis since we all can't fit in one to the Wynn Macau. It's just like Vegas only smaller.
The casino is way different though. Blackjack allows you to bet not only on your hand, but on anyone else's hand on the table -- there are hash marks below each hand for this purpose. And even people standing and watching can bet on your hands. It's very odd. You can also bet a "pair" bet at 11-1 which means if the person gets a pair, you get paid 11-1 -- and you can bet on any or all players whether or not you're actually playing. Also you play your hand out and then the dealer plays his/her hand and draws the second card. Weird. And now you're up to date through Thursday night.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
China -- through Wed AM
Let's see. All about China from my hotel room at the NanYuan Hotel in Ningbo, China about 40 minutes south of Shanghai by air. It's 805am Wednesday here so it's 805pm Tuesday there.
The flight from MIA to ORD was uneventful. Everything was on-time -- something unusual for any flight I am on. The flight from ORD to PVG (Shanghai's Pudong Airport) was also uneventful although unspeakably long. It's just too damned far too travel. Way too far. Although this flight was shorter than the LAX to China route we took last year, I think I prefer the LAX route. Why? Well the ORD route gets you in around 2pm instead of 7pm so you can't really go right to bed and your body clock is even worse than normal on such a long flight.
At any rate, there isn't much to report about the in-flight service. The food was okay, the seats were okay, the films left a bit to be desired but that's my personal tastes and is no reflection on American Airlines (who I normally don't like).
We arrive in PVG about 1 hour late due to a strong headwind that made the flight a bit bumpy. I don't sleep much either. We land and are among the first off the plane which is great. We breeze through Health Control -- and they're even friendly! There's none of the white coated medics patrolling the line, we get to passport control (immigration) and even tough they're friendly it's slow. Really slow. Obscenely slow. Nearly 90 minutes in line for us and by the time we were done I'd imagine the people behind us had to wait 3+ hours. Entering a communist country is no piece of cake, let me assure you. They want to study everything. My officer was friendly and even almost smiled :)
Our bags were already at the claim and in a pile on the floor because it took so long. The problem was that we were so busy watching the carousel we didn't realize our bags were already there. That killed a half-hour for no reason at all. We finally figured it out. Customs was a breeze really -- perhaps 60 seconds. Our ride wasn't there -- Karen had warned us the hotel hadn't confirmed our reservation. We found someone from the hotel who arranged a car for us (another 30 minutes) after some language issues. The car ride to the hotel from PVG took nearly 90 minutes due to the Shanghai's traffic. China is reporting the population of Shanghai at nearly 20 million people now (a big increase since my last trip a year ago) with nearly 10,000 cars per day being added to the road -- most in front of us. [This was in the China Daily I read -- they must have anticipated this blog post.]
We finally arrive at the hotel. It's very nice and overly obsequious service which most people (but not Greg and me) like. You can't even press an elevator button without someone running to do it for you. Check in was a breeze (Le Royal Meridian Hotel) and the hotel is only two weeks old with some very cool rooms. I have pictures which I will post on my Flikr Blog when I return. Nice views, etc. I must report that the food at the hotel was VERY sub-par and Greg agrees with me on that. The JW Marriott Shanghai has much better food. I fight to sleep that night with little success.
The next morning (Monday) we hire a car to take us to our first visit and that was RMB2400 -- wow! The exchange rate is about 8 to 1 so divide by 7.78 to convert to dollars. Interesting ride but idiot me left the camera in the boot so no pictures there. We're warmly greeted by our host after we navigate the private security force at the main gate. Boy are they a huge company -- nearly one MILLION square foot facilities. Like all Chinese companies, everything is hot because due to electricity shortages nobody is running the AC because they'd rather have it for their operating machinery. I will skip the factory visit details because you don't care. We take the car back to the hotel and are barely in time for our next meeting.
There is a nice table and chair that look inviting so Greg and I decide to sit there and wait for our host to arrive. Well I'm talking to Greg and don't notice the chair is on an island and has a small shallow lake around it with very very very very very still water about 1/2" deep. Of course I stand in it to the amusement of everyone. This proves the Chinese CAN laugh at you despite their culture. The next meeting was only a few miles away but still a 45 minute car ride. I will spare you those details. We go back to the hotel, eat, and decide to take a walk down Nanjing Road. After being accosted by pimps and prostitutes so many times in the first three blocks, we give up and go back to the hotel because we're so not enjoying it.
What follows Monday night may be one of the worse nights of sleep I ever had when I wasn't sick. It was horrible. Although in bed around 1030pm, I don't fall asleep until after 2am and by 315am I am up for good.
I should mention I am unable to send email properly and this has been a problem the entire trip. Bellsouth doesn't allow email relays from Chinese ISPs. My work ISP is having trouble too but I file a tech support ticket and they find a way for me to use Webmail. Even AOL's webmail is mostly accessible: webmail01-03 don't work but I did manage to find out webmail04 is not blocked in China right now so that's how I've been sending e-mail. Also try to view a GoogleVideo Dave sent me but that's blocked in China and clearly says so. My laptop has Norton Firewall installed and I am constantly getting intrusion alert warnings. Scary stuff. BBC News website is totally censored and not accessible. Google's 'view cached' is off. Even the TV news is censored by moments of silence in certain stories, especially those involving Chinese news.
We take a taxi Tues AM to the airport (the local Honqguiao airport and not Pudong) and are very apprehensive about it, but it turns out to be a breeze and even some limited English signs. Boy, are these local flights crammed. I am unable to fully sit in my chair it's so small, narrow, and close to the one in front of me. I use my mobile and try and get Karen to change the flight Wed to business class but it's full because of the Chinese holidays. Ah well, we arrive in Ningbo's beautiful new airport and it's uneventful. Except our ride isn't there. I am unable to get my mobile to connect to anyone -- ultimately learning you need an extra '0' to dial a Chinese mobile.
A nice Chinese lady uses my mobile to call the factory and find out where our ride is. The guy said I didn't answer his email (not true because I even have his reply) but if we take a Taxi to Yuyao he will pay. RMB300 out of my pocket as he doesn't even greet us at the gate. The meeting is not auspicious and we leave for the hotel not long after knowing we won't do business with these people. Our second appointment is on-time and goes much better. We return to hotel, have an Italian (yay) dinner, go for a walk and buy chocolate (double Yay!) and reutrn to the hotel where I sleep from 9pm through 6am -- a long time for me.
It's Wed AM and I decide to type this blog entry despite the repeated attempts (according to Norton) to hijack this computer. I also am curious at the fact that Blogger is giving me fits and won't allow me to post. Not sure if it's real or temporary block. In a few moments I have an appointment so I'll finish here.
The flight from MIA to ORD was uneventful. Everything was on-time -- something unusual for any flight I am on. The flight from ORD to PVG (Shanghai's Pudong Airport) was also uneventful although unspeakably long. It's just too damned far too travel. Way too far. Although this flight was shorter than the LAX to China route we took last year, I think I prefer the LAX route. Why? Well the ORD route gets you in around 2pm instead of 7pm so you can't really go right to bed and your body clock is even worse than normal on such a long flight.
At any rate, there isn't much to report about the in-flight service. The food was okay, the seats were okay, the films left a bit to be desired but that's my personal tastes and is no reflection on American Airlines (who I normally don't like).
We arrive in PVG about 1 hour late due to a strong headwind that made the flight a bit bumpy. I don't sleep much either. We land and are among the first off the plane which is great. We breeze through Health Control -- and they're even friendly! There's none of the white coated medics patrolling the line, we get to passport control (immigration) and even tough they're friendly it's slow. Really slow. Obscenely slow. Nearly 90 minutes in line for us and by the time we were done I'd imagine the people behind us had to wait 3+ hours. Entering a communist country is no piece of cake, let me assure you. They want to study everything. My officer was friendly and even almost smiled :)
Our bags were already at the claim and in a pile on the floor because it took so long. The problem was that we were so busy watching the carousel we didn't realize our bags were already there. That killed a half-hour for no reason at all. We finally figured it out. Customs was a breeze really -- perhaps 60 seconds. Our ride wasn't there -- Karen had warned us the hotel hadn't confirmed our reservation. We found someone from the hotel who arranged a car for us (another 30 minutes) after some language issues. The car ride to the hotel from PVG took nearly 90 minutes due to the Shanghai's traffic. China is reporting the population of Shanghai at nearly 20 million people now (a big increase since my last trip a year ago) with nearly 10,000 cars per day being added to the road -- most in front of us. [This was in the China Daily I read -- they must have anticipated this blog post.]
We finally arrive at the hotel. It's very nice and overly obsequious service which most people (but not Greg and me) like. You can't even press an elevator button without someone running to do it for you. Check in was a breeze (Le Royal Meridian Hotel) and the hotel is only two weeks old with some very cool rooms. I have pictures which I will post on my Flikr Blog when I return. Nice views, etc. I must report that the food at the hotel was VERY sub-par and Greg agrees with me on that. The JW Marriott Shanghai has much better food. I fight to sleep that night with little success.
The next morning (Monday) we hire a car to take us to our first visit and that was RMB2400 -- wow! The exchange rate is about 8 to 1 so divide by 7.78 to convert to dollars. Interesting ride but idiot me left the camera in the boot so no pictures there. We're warmly greeted by our host after we navigate the private security force at the main gate. Boy are they a huge company -- nearly one MILLION square foot facilities. Like all Chinese companies, everything is hot because due to electricity shortages nobody is running the AC because they'd rather have it for their operating machinery. I will skip the factory visit details because you don't care. We take the car back to the hotel and are barely in time for our next meeting.
There is a nice table and chair that look inviting so Greg and I decide to sit there and wait for our host to arrive. Well I'm talking to Greg and don't notice the chair is on an island and has a small shallow lake around it with very very very very very still water about 1/2" deep. Of course I stand in it to the amusement of everyone. This proves the Chinese CAN laugh at you despite their culture. The next meeting was only a few miles away but still a 45 minute car ride. I will spare you those details. We go back to the hotel, eat, and decide to take a walk down Nanjing Road. After being accosted by pimps and prostitutes so many times in the first three blocks, we give up and go back to the hotel because we're so not enjoying it.
What follows Monday night may be one of the worse nights of sleep I ever had when I wasn't sick. It was horrible. Although in bed around 1030pm, I don't fall asleep until after 2am and by 315am I am up for good.
I should mention I am unable to send email properly and this has been a problem the entire trip. Bellsouth doesn't allow email relays from Chinese ISPs. My work ISP is having trouble too but I file a tech support ticket and they find a way for me to use Webmail. Even AOL's webmail is mostly accessible: webmail01-03 don't work but I did manage to find out webmail04 is not blocked in China right now so that's how I've been sending e-mail. Also try to view a GoogleVideo Dave sent me but that's blocked in China and clearly says so. My laptop has Norton Firewall installed and I am constantly getting intrusion alert warnings. Scary stuff. BBC News website is totally censored and not accessible. Google's 'view cached' is off. Even the TV news is censored by moments of silence in certain stories, especially those involving Chinese news.
We take a taxi Tues AM to the airport (the local Honqguiao airport and not Pudong) and are very apprehensive about it, but it turns out to be a breeze and even some limited English signs. Boy, are these local flights crammed. I am unable to fully sit in my chair it's so small, narrow, and close to the one in front of me. I use my mobile and try and get Karen to change the flight Wed to business class but it's full because of the Chinese holidays. Ah well, we arrive in Ningbo's beautiful new airport and it's uneventful. Except our ride isn't there. I am unable to get my mobile to connect to anyone -- ultimately learning you need an extra '0' to dial a Chinese mobile.
A nice Chinese lady uses my mobile to call the factory and find out where our ride is. The guy said I didn't answer his email (not true because I even have his reply) but if we take a Taxi to Yuyao he will pay. RMB300 out of my pocket as he doesn't even greet us at the gate. The meeting is not auspicious and we leave for the hotel not long after knowing we won't do business with these people. Our second appointment is on-time and goes much better. We return to hotel, have an Italian (yay) dinner, go for a walk and buy chocolate (double Yay!) and reutrn to the hotel where I sleep from 9pm through 6am -- a long time for me.
It's Wed AM and I decide to type this blog entry despite the repeated attempts (according to Norton) to hijack this computer. I also am curious at the fact that Blogger is giving me fits and won't allow me to post. Not sure if it's real or temporary block. In a few moments I have an appointment so I'll finish here.
Book of Horrible Questions
The actual link to the Book of Horrible Questions at Amazon which I discuss here:
This book is not suitable for minors and contains graphic and sexually explicit material -- though none is included in this post.
This is from Book of Horrible Questions (ISBN 0-312-20434-5) by Smith and Doe. I highly recommend this book because you can learn a great deal about your friends.
The rules are simple: "The key to your success in using this book is the degree of total honesty with which you answer the questions. Take each question seriously. Imagine the amounts of money you will make or give up as really belonging to you. Imagine the often painful discomforts described herein as actually happening to you (... or the poor sap you sacrifice...)"
Remember: NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW YOUR ANSWER (unless you chose to share)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
These randomly selected questions are from various pages of this book.
1. $10,000,000: If you accept this money you will die of natural causes on your birthday at age 70. You won't live a day longer than that and you will die in your sleep, peacefully, guaranteed.
2. $5,000,000: Same as above, except you'll live to be 75.
3. $1,000,000: Same as above, except you'll live to be 80.
4. $100,000,000. You will die at age 100, but it will be a hideously painful, long (two straight days) and tortuous death.
5. $7,500,000 Your mate will be kidnapped and held like the kid in Ransom (a filthy bed and only the most basic of foods) FOR ONE YEAR. There is a guarantee of no physical harm as well as no sexual contact. When the year is up, YOU will rescue the mate that you profitably condemned and reap all of the loving benefits of doing so. No one will ever know you had anything to do with it, and you just made 7.5 million, although you risk the chance that he/she may suffer some degree of recurring trauma (ie: waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, screaming).
6. $100,000: A funeral is taking place. You do not know anyone at the funeral or anyone involved with it. As a family member is making their heartfelt, teary spech, you must run into the midst of the crowd and yell "I'M GLAD HE'S DEAD! HA HA HA HA HA!" and then run away.
16. $250,000: Think of the most physically repugnant person you know. Say their name aloud. Now, to get paid, you must let that person squat above you and release a large helping of diarrhoea on to your chest. You must then wait for five minutes, breathing only through your nose. Then, you may get up, get showered, and get paid.
17. $500,000: Same as above, except a good portion of the diarrhoea will splatter on to your face.
18. $750,000: Same as above except the person has just returned from an all you can eat corn and nut eating contest.
19. $5,000,000: WOMEN ONLY: You will never be able to have a child, but you may adopt.
20. $10,000,000: WOMEN ONLY: You must give up your firstborn child for adoption. Double the amount if you keep it for a year first.
21. $5,000,000: MEN ONLY: You will never be able to have a child, but you may adopt.
22. $50,000: MEN ONLY: You must give up your firstborn child for adoption.
27. $500,000: A human pancreas is put on a plate in front of you. You must eat it. When it's gone, you get paid.
28. $750,000. Same as above except it's a two foot section of a large intestine. (Double if the offer if it's uncleaned)
Here are some of my answers
1. 7% said Yes
2. 8% said Yes (CMOT also says Yes)
3. 54% said Yes
4. 46% said yes (CMOT thinks they're insane)
5. 48% said yes
6. 85% said Yes (CMOT says NO)
16. 77% said yes (CMOT NO)
17. 38% said yes (CMOT NO)
18. 38% said yes (CMOT NO)
19. 50% said yes
20. 0%* said yes
21. 45% said yes (CMOT YES)
22. 9% said yes
27. 69% said yes
28. 38% said yes
* This is the only question in the book which not one single person said yes. It says a great deal about people's standards that at least one person said yes to every other question in the book, some of which are so morally repugnant I can't even begin to tell you.
This book is not suitable for minors and contains graphic and sexually explicit material -- though none is included in this post.
This is from Book of Horrible Questions (ISBN 0-312-20434-5) by Smith and Doe. I highly recommend this book because you can learn a great deal about your friends.
The rules are simple: "The key to your success in using this book is the degree of total honesty with which you answer the questions. Take each question seriously. Imagine the amounts of money you will make or give up as really belonging to you. Imagine the often painful discomforts described herein as actually happening to you (... or the poor sap you sacrifice...)"
Remember: NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW YOUR ANSWER (unless you chose to share)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
These randomly selected questions are from various pages of this book.
1. $10,000,000: If you accept this money you will die of natural causes on your birthday at age 70. You won't live a day longer than that and you will die in your sleep, peacefully, guaranteed.
2. $5,000,000: Same as above, except you'll live to be 75.
3. $1,000,000: Same as above, except you'll live to be 80.
4. $100,000,000. You will die at age 100, but it will be a hideously painful, long (two straight days) and tortuous death.
5. $7,500,000 Your mate will be kidnapped and held like the kid in Ransom (a filthy bed and only the most basic of foods) FOR ONE YEAR. There is a guarantee of no physical harm as well as no sexual contact. When the year is up, YOU will rescue the mate that you profitably condemned and reap all of the loving benefits of doing so. No one will ever know you had anything to do with it, and you just made 7.5 million, although you risk the chance that he/she may suffer some degree of recurring trauma (ie: waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, screaming).
6. $100,000: A funeral is taking place. You do not know anyone at the funeral or anyone involved with it. As a family member is making their heartfelt, teary spech, you must run into the midst of the crowd and yell "I'M GLAD HE'S DEAD! HA HA HA HA HA!" and then run away.
16. $250,000: Think of the most physically repugnant person you know. Say their name aloud. Now, to get paid, you must let that person squat above you and release a large helping of diarrhoea on to your chest. You must then wait for five minutes, breathing only through your nose. Then, you may get up, get showered, and get paid.
17. $500,000: Same as above, except a good portion of the diarrhoea will splatter on to your face.
18. $750,000: Same as above except the person has just returned from an all you can eat corn and nut eating contest.
19. $5,000,000: WOMEN ONLY: You will never be able to have a child, but you may adopt.
20. $10,000,000: WOMEN ONLY: You must give up your firstborn child for adoption. Double the amount if you keep it for a year first.
21. $5,000,000: MEN ONLY: You will never be able to have a child, but you may adopt.
22. $50,000: MEN ONLY: You must give up your firstborn child for adoption.
27. $500,000: A human pancreas is put on a plate in front of you. You must eat it. When it's gone, you get paid.
28. $750,000. Same as above except it's a two foot section of a large intestine. (Double if the offer if it's uncleaned)
Here are some of my answers
1. 7% said Yes
2. 8% said Yes (CMOT also says Yes)
3. 54% said Yes
4. 46% said yes (CMOT thinks they're insane)
5. 48% said yes
6. 85% said Yes (CMOT says NO)
16. 77% said yes (CMOT NO)
17. 38% said yes (CMOT NO)
18. 38% said yes (CMOT NO)
19. 50% said yes
20. 0%* said yes
21. 45% said yes (CMOT YES)
22. 9% said yes
27. 69% said yes
28. 38% said yes
* This is the only question in the book which not one single person said yes. It says a great deal about people's standards that at least one person said yes to every other question in the book, some of which are so morally repugnant I can't even begin to tell you.
Friday, October 6, 2006
A Briggs Redux
I have to report that Mr. Briggs himself wrote me a very contrite apology after he read my comments. It was a very honest and contrite apology of the best kind -- no excuses.
He asked me to call, and I did so. I am now satisfied. It doesn't mean I am happy with what happened but he was apologetic and is taking steps to make sure nobody else is going to go through this hell. I really believe him when he says it was an honest mistake.
I don't know where the communications in his office broke down, but I am confident he's fixing them. He's agreed to refund the expediting portion of my fees which is a nice token of his remorse. I will donate the refund to my favourite charity -- that way there's something positive out of all of this.
So after all that, I have to say I would, indeed, recommend A. Briggs. I will use them again for my next visa.
He asked me to call, and I did so. I am now satisfied. It doesn't mean I am happy with what happened but he was apologetic and is taking steps to make sure nobody else is going to go through this hell. I really believe him when he says it was an honest mistake.
I don't know where the communications in his office broke down, but I am confident he's fixing them. He's agreed to refund the expediting portion of my fees which is a nice token of his remorse. I will donate the refund to my favourite charity -- that way there's something positive out of all of this.
So after all that, I have to say I would, indeed, recommend A. Briggs. I will use them again for my next visa.
Thursday, October 5, 2006
A. Briggs Passport Service Really Sucks
Why A. Briggs Passport & Visa Expediters sucks the big, fat furry one. Use them at your own peril. On 18 September 2006, I sent two passports and two visa applications in via Fedex. They were signed for 19 September 2006. I was called on the 19th saying a form was missing. I dispute that because I personally checked all documents for both applications before I sent it in. No matter, I sent that form out Fedex the same day and it was signed for 20 September 2006.
The instructions clearly stated my passport was to be renewed and to do the renewal with extra pages, as my current passport was full. I also included an extra $145 for the rush renewal. I did this because, until it was renewed, the Chinese Business visas could not be applied for. The letter also instructed A. Briggs that we were travelling together and the Visa process was to be done simultaneously.
For the Chinese Visas we also paid the expedited fees. We did this because our departure date was 6 October and we didn’t want any sort of delay. We’ve obtained Chinese Visas before and know the process and procedures and time required.
Anyway, on 27 September 2006 -- this was a full week afterwards -- I e-mailed them to ask about the status. It was bounced back "mailbox overflow" -- this is always a terrible sign at any company. So, then I used their "online chat" feature and was told to call. As instructed, I called to check on the status of our applications. Evelyn answered and I told her the e-mail box was full and she thanked me for letting her know. Then she said their computer didn’t have any information and it appeared my documents were lost. She said the “Passport Director” would call me back shortly as he was on the way into the office.
The next day I called again because I hadn’t received a call back and some lady whose name I can’t recollect, but not Evelyn, answered. She said Chris Estes was going to call me right back. Anyone taking wagers? I called again that evening -- because I hadn't received a call back -- and he said he’d be taking it right over then he changed his story and said he meant it was already there and they were taking their times based on our departure dates.
I reminded him that we paid a great deal of money (hundreds of extra dollars) to have expedited service and our Chinese Visas done together. He said he would personally make sure the passport was renewed by 2 October (several weeks after my application had been sent in). He also promised he’d make sure the Visas were done and he promised they would both be in my hands on 4 October.
I had asked Chris for a refund of all the expediting fees we had paid but he wouldn’t even acknowledge my request saying “these things take time” – even though the whole purpose of an expeditor is to expedite. His company failed in that. And we’ve done this before with other companies so we know what can and can’t be done.
On 4 October my passport arrived without the extra pages. Yeah, my passport only. Greg’s was nowhere to be found. I called and asked for the name of the owner of the company. I was refused that information. I was told I could speak to the local branch manger Pete Davidovich in Washington DC. I pointed out I had called the DC number (202 area code) but was told I was talking to someone in Cincinnati. I said I would talk to Mr. Davidovich but he wasn’t in and would be in “after 6” and I left a message. That’s right. No call back.
I called Greg and let him know the situation. He called and got a horrible run around first being accused of having an application with errors. That wasn’t true because except for the name, his application was identical to mine. And they managed to process it without Greg having to send any more documentation.
Today is 5 October 2006 and Greg still doesn’t have his passport though they assure him it will arrive tomorrow (the 6th) – so now we’re leaving the 7th because of A. Briggs incompetence (assuming they’re even telling the truth, which is in doubt based on their actions to date).
So, just to sum it up, don’t ever use this company because they really suck. Actions speak louder than their website.
6 October update: I tried to e-mail them and it's still bouncing so I just went on-line and told them using their chat service that it's still broken. You gotta' wonder about a company who hasn't cleaned out its mailbox in over two weeks. A high quality outfit to be sure (voice dripping with sarcasm).
They have fixed the problem. Please see my new blog entry.
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Date: Thu, 05 Oct 2006 19:36:55 -0400
Subject: Adjustment Request
From: Eric Seiden
To: <info@abriggs.com>
Message-ID: <C14B0F57.AA7C5%eric@interstate-screw.com>
The instructions clearly stated my passport was to be renewed and to do the renewal with extra pages, as my current passport was full. I also included an extra $145 for the rush renewal. I did this because, until it was renewed, the Chinese Business visas could not be applied for. The letter also instructed A. Briggs that we were travelling together and the Visa process was to be done simultaneously.
For the Chinese Visas we also paid the expedited fees. We did this because our departure date was 6 October and we didn’t want any sort of delay. We’ve obtained Chinese Visas before and know the process and procedures and time required.
Anyway, on 27 September 2006 -- this was a full week afterwards -- I e-mailed them to ask about the status. It was bounced back "mailbox overflow" -- this is always a terrible sign at any company. So, then I used their "online chat" feature and was told to call. As instructed, I called to check on the status of our applications. Evelyn answered and I told her the e-mail box was full and she thanked me for letting her know. Then she said their computer didn’t have any information and it appeared my documents were lost. She said the “Passport Director” would call me back shortly as he was on the way into the office.
The next day I called again because I hadn’t received a call back and some lady whose name I can’t recollect, but not Evelyn, answered. She said Chris Estes was going to call me right back. Anyone taking wagers? I called again that evening -- because I hadn't received a call back -- and he said he’d be taking it right over then he changed his story and said he meant it was already there and they were taking their times based on our departure dates.
I reminded him that we paid a great deal of money (hundreds of extra dollars) to have expedited service and our Chinese Visas done together. He said he would personally make sure the passport was renewed by 2 October (several weeks after my application had been sent in). He also promised he’d make sure the Visas were done and he promised they would both be in my hands on 4 October.
I had asked Chris for a refund of all the expediting fees we had paid but he wouldn’t even acknowledge my request saying “these things take time” – even though the whole purpose of an expeditor is to expedite. His company failed in that. And we’ve done this before with other companies so we know what can and can’t be done.
On 4 October my passport arrived without the extra pages. Yeah, my passport only. Greg’s was nowhere to be found. I called and asked for the name of the owner of the company. I was refused that information. I was told I could speak to the local branch manger Pete Davidovich in Washington DC. I pointed out I had called the DC number (202 area code) but was told I was talking to someone in Cincinnati. I said I would talk to Mr. Davidovich but he wasn’t in and would be in “after 6” and I left a message. That’s right. No call back.
I called Greg and let him know the situation. He called and got a horrible run around first being accused of having an application with errors. That wasn’t true because except for the name, his application was identical to mine. And they managed to process it without Greg having to send any more documentation.
Today is 5 October 2006 and Greg still doesn’t have his passport though they assure him it will arrive tomorrow (the 6th) – so now we’re leaving the 7th because of A. Briggs incompetence (assuming they’re even telling the truth, which is in doubt based on their actions to date).
So, just to sum it up, don’t ever use this company because they really suck. Actions speak louder than their website.
6 October update: I tried to e-mail them and it's still bouncing so I just went on-line and told them using their chat service that it's still broken. You gotta' wonder about a company who hasn't cleaned out its mailbox in over two weeks. A high quality outfit to be sure (voice dripping with sarcasm).
They have fixed the problem. Please see my new blog entry.
User mailbox exceeds allowed message count: info@abriggs.com
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Date: Thu, 05 Oct 2006 19:36:55 -0400
Subject: Adjustment Request
From: Eric Seiden
To: <info@abriggs.com>
Message-ID: <C14B0F57.AA7C5%eric@interstate-screw.com>
Wednesday, October 4, 2006
Foley, Hastert, and Fordham, Oh My!
In my last post Mark Foley IMs which is conveniently right below this one, I gave my two cents and although we've had a number of visitors, very few people have actually commented and those that have done so have resorted to email.
I only have a little to add, but it's becoming more and more clear that Hastert knew there was a problem.
Chicago Tribune: House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Rep. Thomas Reynolds, R-N.Y., have said they were aware of one e-mail exchange in late 2005 and that Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., was notified, which Hastert has said he does not specifically remember. Foley was told to cease the communications, whereupon the issue was dropped at the request of the boy's parents, Republican leaders say.
ABC news: A senior congressional aide said Wednesday he told House Speaker Dennis Hastert's office about worrisome conduct by his former boss, Rep. Mark Foley, toward teenage pages more than three years ago, long before officials have acknowledged becoming aware of the issue. Kirk Fordham made his comments to The Associated Press in an interview as a Kentucky Republican cancelled a campaign fundraising event with Hastert. Rep. Ron Lewis said he wants to know the facts behind a scandal that has roiled Republicans since last week.
So Hastert is as guilty as Foley, maybe moreso because he had to have known it was a problem. And worse there was a pattern of abuse. And he did nothing. That's just messed up.
I only have a little to add, but it's becoming more and more clear that Hastert knew there was a problem.
Chicago Tribune: House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Rep. Thomas Reynolds, R-N.Y., have said they were aware of one e-mail exchange in late 2005 and that Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., was notified, which Hastert has said he does not specifically remember. Foley was told to cease the communications, whereupon the issue was dropped at the request of the boy's parents, Republican leaders say.
ABC news: A senior congressional aide said Wednesday he told House Speaker Dennis Hastert's office about worrisome conduct by his former boss, Rep. Mark Foley, toward teenage pages more than three years ago, long before officials have acknowledged becoming aware of the issue. Kirk Fordham made his comments to The Associated Press in an interview as a Kentucky Republican cancelled a campaign fundraising event with Hastert. Rep. Ron Lewis said he wants to know the facts behind a scandal that has roiled Republicans since last week.
So Hastert is as guilty as Foley, maybe moreso because he had to have known it was a problem. And worse there was a pattern of abuse. And he did nothing. That's just messed up.
Tuesday, October 3, 2006
Mark Foley IMs and what the real issue is
I have been silent on this issue in my own blog but have been commenting up a storm on other people's blogs as well as on various message boards. It's finally time to weigh in myself.
What is pretty sick is that this person is in a position of authority. He is by some definitions the person's employer. This would be sexual harassment by anyone's standards regardless of whether the victim is a minor or not. The minor clearly objected because he complained. Though after reading the entire IM discussion (thanks Rob for the link) I didn't see much evidence that the minor was objecting, but we don't know the whole story.
There is absolutely, positively no instance in which a 50+ year old guy should be putting the moves on a minor. I'm not even sure what motivates someone to do that. Yeah, sometimes you hear guys joking about "I wish I had a 16 year-old" but most guys wouldn't actually carry through on that.
Foley did the right thing to resign. Ironically his own law my do him in. Though in many states the age of consent is 16, which complicates the issues. I really don't care that he's gay -- makes not one whit of difference to me. What I do care about is that he's a paedophile. That's just gross. What's worse is the fact that higher ups may have known about it and done nothing. And there worse than Foley is because ultimately Foley had no sexual contact but he could have and someone could have prevented all that.
I'd love to hear what you all think about this. (I may add to this and will note changes by colour coding them. My thoughts aren't done but I feel the need to throw this out there.)
- First: the gender of the minor is utterly irrelevant. I'd feel the same way if it was a guy or girl.
- Second: the conversation itself is pretty typical of "phone-sex" or "IM sex" -- the fact many media outlets are labelling it "shocking" because of content is silly. That isn't why it's shocking, because it certainly is.
- Third: there is one and only one issue here and that is the fact this involved a minor and someone nearly 40 years older than that minor. If this same conversation took place between two adults, two 16 year olds, or even a 19 year old and a 16 year old nobody would give a shit. Honestly, it's not much of a turn on for anyone to read except the participants.
What is pretty sick is that this person is in a position of authority. He is by some definitions the person's employer. This would be sexual harassment by anyone's standards regardless of whether the victim is a minor or not. The minor clearly objected because he complained. Though after reading the entire IM discussion (thanks Rob for the link) I didn't see much evidence that the minor was objecting, but we don't know the whole story.
There is absolutely, positively no instance in which a 50+ year old guy should be putting the moves on a minor. I'm not even sure what motivates someone to do that. Yeah, sometimes you hear guys joking about "I wish I had a 16 year-old" but most guys wouldn't actually carry through on that.
Foley did the right thing to resign. Ironically his own law my do him in. Though in many states the age of consent is 16, which complicates the issues. I really don't care that he's gay -- makes not one whit of difference to me. What I do care about is that he's a paedophile. That's just gross. What's worse is the fact that higher ups may have known about it and done nothing. And there worse than Foley is because ultimately Foley had no sexual contact but he could have and someone could have prevented all that.
I'd love to hear what you all think about this. (I may add to this and will note changes by colour coding them. My thoughts aren't done but I feel the need to throw this out there.)
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