I start a two week trip through China today; mostly for business, and mostly not sharable in public (pesky NDAs again). However, I will post a bunch of things as I go.
We start in Beijing for a week. Since I was here two years ago, things have changed. Arriving last night into the new terminal at the airport was an experience of space and light. Two things missing during the construction going on during 2006. The new structure is vast and impressive, however does invite comparison to Hong Kong and Singapore airports. Not a bad thing, given those are two of my favourite.
After meeting with a colleague from HK, we grabbed a late dinner at a HK diner near the hotel. It felt good to taste HK food again, especially milk tea. Not really a China experience, but it reminds me of many trips to Hong Kong visiting friends and working with SCMP.
The flight over was long, but not too long. As always, Cathay makes for a pleasant flight. Dragon Air was a bit more chaotic to Beijing, but was at least on time unlike anything Qantas can do of late.
Trying to stay awake, I lasted through four films:
- Babylon AD - Good distopian future action romp. Nice sci-fi trappings, and good byplay between the characters. More than I was expecting from the trailer. Vin Diesel & Michelle Yeoh work well together. Reminded me a bit of a flashier Children of Men.
- Wall-E - Unhappy watching this film. I missed it at the cinemas and now regret it. Absolutely brilliant. Classic Pixar and well worth a watch. Amazing what happens when film makers take risks. A feature film with limited dialogue? Yes, it absolutely works.
- Kung Fu Hip Hop - Good filler on a plane, but not that great by HK film standards. An odd mix of the recent American dance type movies with a classic HK style kung fu movie.
- The Love Guru - Mike Myers has done better. Felt a little too much like his previous films, which made for entertaining filler but no real brilliance. Go watch an old Austin Powers movie instead.
Internet connects work, with obvious firewall fun. Might be good to skip Facebook for a week. My Australian mobile also works, although I’ll get a local SIM card today. Not sure if I get internet with a local SIM, so Twitter updates are likely to be more sporadic.