The day before heading back to Seattle, I took the train from LuoHu to the Shangri-La hotel. The Chinese border is so confusing here. I actually got lost, ended up in a maze of shops in LuoHu. I wandered back and found a sign that read “Chinese Immigration”. That confused me – “How did I end up here?”, I thought. I guess my academic nature confused me: I expected the word “emmigration”, because I was leaving China, not entering. Well, I decided I’d at least get in the line and someone would at least be able to help me (assuming someone spoke English). Well, it turned out, of course, I was in the right place. No big deal.

An hour later, I emerged in downtown Kowloon at the entrance of the Shangri-La (I like the train because it leaves you within a half a block of the hotel) and was greeted by the familiar sight of the carport filled with Mercedes, Porsches, Ferraris, and a Maserati this time.

The flight to the US was a piece of cake; going through Tokyo breaks up the trip nicely and I was able to adjust nicely with no jet lag. OK, I’m not going to describe the details of the activities in the US, that’s just the usual work – not blogworthy. Basically, I was ridiculously busy from very early to very late and ended up getting sick just in time for the lousy return flight home. I definitely don’t like flying from San Francisco directly to Hong Kong. 14 hours is too much for one leg. Anyway, here are some pics:

Some shots of Japan from the air (they’re big fans of golf courses):

I had dinner with someone every night, except for Friday, when I had to go to bed early ’cause I was getting sick. (l-r) dinner w/ Tiffany, feigning jet lag w/ Robert (check out the Fu Manchu ‘stache), “Rush Chow” with Kevin (I forgot to take pictures with others…sorry, fellas):

Got to have a pic of Georgia:

I had to take pictures of my work environs because the differences with China are shocking. This is a pastorale paradise compared to the loud, smelly madness of China. In fact, I couldn’t believe how silent Seattle sounded to me; the birds work me up a couple of times. Of course, being the northwest, the greens are refreshingly overpowering and the air is so fresh. Fewer people, but more cars (arr).

Pictures of work:

Here’s a silly picture in the bathroom of the San Francisco airport. You think they would have realized that it would have been better to conserve natural resources by not printing such inane signs and plastering them at every sink and at every paper towel dispenser:

The 14-hour flight from San Francisco to Seattle was lousy. My throat was painfully sore. It made speaking difficult. I watched “Casino Royale” again (an edited version which really messed up the movie) and “Happy Feet”, which was flat out terrible. I wanted to make it all the way back to Shenzhen this evening, but was unable to cancel my hotel (because of the guarantee). So, I spent a night in the nice hotel (had a sweet view this time, but the day was misty and rainy) and crashed early.

Getting back to China felt nice. I feel like I’m becoming a pro of getting around up here. As we rode into LuoHu, I could make out the skyscrapers of Shenzhen through the mist in the far distance, most notable was the tall Di Wang building. Much closer was an inhospitable fence complete with razor wire; no doubt this was the border. Before I could shoot a picture (was hoping for some armed guards too), we arrived at the station. I breezed through customs and exited into the madness of the commercial center. Ah, the smell. Not bad, not good, but distinctly China.

Cupla views from the train. (l-r) I took the first class compartment for the first time, random construction as we approach the border of China: