chinese wisdom, from suzhou. i thought that chinglish would probably be a “language” soon to be extinct, as the dictionaries and automatic translators got better. but after almost 2 years of living here, i don’t think that’s the case. chinglish is alive and well, omnipresent in every restaurant menu, advertising banner, school book, product description… sometimes it’s funny, sometimes cryptic, sometimes technically correct but not so polite… but definitely here to stay!
simple, isn’t it? says p. :)
ah, portugal. i’m missing your blue skies and cozy food already, but it’s good to be back to our shanghai headquarters, with two spoiled cats under our blankets.
the flights were long but thankfully uneventful, and i think i might have stumbled on the trick to flying reassurance – get the seats in front of the air hostess. they always smile to you and their air of someone who has done this a million times will do wonders for takeoff/landing stress. coincidently, they’re usually the best seats on the plane, so it’s a lovely two-in-one.
between our trip to portugal and the one back, ba changed their flight entertainment system to include many more programs that you can start/pause anytime you want. they now include tv series like dexter, the big bang theory, flight of the conchords, etc. which make a 11 hour flight much more pleasant.
also on way home, i’ve shot my first video with the neat little camera i got for xmas! it’s a tiny sony that makes me feel like the intrepid reporter i always dreamed to be :)
anyway, the video is from the maglev ride here in shanghai: a 30km stretch between the shanghai pudong airport and longyang metro station, in 7:30 at a top speed of 430km/h. it’s the fastest i ever traveled on earth, so i thought it might be fun to share!
ps – at 2:45, another maglev train crosses the one i am riding, so watch out for that. also, my editing skills are non-existent, since it’s the first time i actually “make” a video, so bear with me :)
by the end of this year i will have been on a dozen different flights – none of which with a safety video as cute as the one from virgin america airlines. :)
Happy Valley Racecourse: It was first built in 1845 to provide horse racing for the British people in Hong Kong. Before it was built, the area was a swampland, but also the only flat ground suitable for horse racing on Hong Kong Island. To make way for the racecourse, Hong Kong Government prohibited rice growing by villages in the surrounding area. The first race ran in December 1846. Over the years, horse racing became more and more popular among the Chinese residents. (from wikipedia)
one of the highlights of hong kong was the happy valley horse races (how come lonely planet doesn’t mention them?!). tons of dressed up expats in the ground near the track, cheerfully socializing with beers in hand, discussing horses and jockey performances, while the stadium balconies were brimming with chinese people, carefully watching the screens and checking their notebooks and newspapers for guidance. despite the contrast in attitude, everyone seemed really into it – her majesty would be really proud!
for us newbies to the sport, it was great! the atmosphere was really enthusiastic, exploding into cheers during the race itself, and then relaxing again during the betting time, with lots of drinking and smaller events going on. we didn’t place any bets (the system is a bit tricky) but still had fun just immersing ourselves in this environment. in don’t miss it if you get the chance to go there!
