Christmas!

Typical really. Ever since we bought an expensive air purifier the air quality has been really good. I suppose I shouldn't complain (and should remember even the very best days here, as stunningly blue as the sky seems, are still rated 'bad' by US standards) but the machine is sitting in the corner somewhat unused. I think the most action it has seen is when a 14 month old toddler tried to smash a plastic toy against it 10 days ago at the baby shower.

I avoided most of the baby shower since its really a girly (American) thing but I did turn up at the end to eat the cookies and brownies the girls had cooked and the 4 year-old had decorated. I also made myself useful dashing after the kids and their mother with the purple tights that somehow the toddler had managed to leave behind buried under the toy box (yes, we have a toy box- so very prepared!). Meanwhile the toddler was wearing Andrea's socks as a stop-gap measure since it was freezing cold. Miraculously the socks stayed on (even the kid-size socks normally fall off and get lost it seems) which may have been thanks to the 4-year old being tasked to look after them. Or not. I believe the 4-year old got distracted with the playground and abandoned her duties. Ah, kids...

In other news, it's christmas apparently. What this means is music, lights and tiny christmas trees. At least in many shops it does. In the shopping malls it may mean a whole festival of lights, a plastic Santa and some fake snow. One could think its all a commercial drive to increase domestic consumption except noone buys presents. They wish you merry christmas and that is it. Its really just part of the government's efforts to sell more christmas decorations and take people's minds away from protests in villages like Wukan (the village won), Academy Award winners trying to talk to a human rights activist who has not been charged with anything but who is not allowed to speak to anyone (the security/government won and Christian Bale lost) and other matters.

Meanwhile, of course, Britain is trying to jump out of a sinking ship, North Korea is trying to keep its ship on the same path despite a new Captain/figurehead and the US still barely has control of its ship since both the oarsmen in both sides are rowing against each other. In other news, BSR is hiring people, I'm back occasionally exercising (and making hilarious jokes about nutmegs whilst playing football), Christmas dinner has been cooked and the leftovers eaten and Chunukah is about to finish. Well next year things may be different as might New Year's Eve. But despite this I'm still so old that I don't think there will be any big last night out. But then there is a reason why babysitters are so-called. We've sussed out some already.

Enjoy the New Year's celebrations everyone!

6 weeks to go - it's shopping time

So recently Andrea and I have been shopping; not for Christmas of course (or even Chunukah) which is a mere 2 weeks away, but for the baby (of course, what else would be on my mind?) which is due in 6 weeks. Today the cot arrived and now sits in the corner of our living room, alongside a desk that will be used for diaper changing. So now, i have some time to continue to adjust to what may be sleeping in that corner rather soon.

The cot also came with a mini-cot that rocks, with the idea that the baby may spend a good deal of time in that in the early days sleeping by our bed and thus making Andrea's job easier when it comes to breastfeeding every 3 hours. This seems to be a good idea, and comes recommended from various friends who we've been meeting with to get their buying and baby-raising tips from. Weirdly all the friends we know who have given birth recently had boys, and all their friends who they know also had boys. There are 112 boys born in China for every 100 (due to selective abortions by parents who want boys not girls) meaning in the future there will be a hundred million more boys than girls soon. The government is well aware of the social implications of that, along with the general issue of not having enough young to support the aging population (from the 1-child policy, though that is now mostly a 2-child policy) and thus is likely to try various things to address it. I'm not able to comment here on what this means for our baby since one family member does not want to know what sex the child is at the moment!

Anyway, back to the issue at hand--baby shopping. We bought a bunch of stuff in (and from) the UK over the summer, and this weekend will be a baby shower so that might fill in the other gaps (we have a list of what we need) and hopefully we can avoid the problem of everyone buying clothes for a 2 month old baby that are outgrown very quickly. A few weeks ago we attended a birthing class which certainly brought the reality of birth home. The pregnancy stage has been draw out and fairly boring (a good thing really) and all my attention has been on the following x years. Of course there is going to be a 2-3 day period (or so) in between which may be stressful, frightening and rewarding. For someone else, of course, it may be very painful. So Andrea continues to cycle 2 hours to and from the office most days which most people think is good (though when I have to cycle with her it is increasingly painfully slow) in an attempt to not gain too much weight. Apparently the baby's size is already equal to a baby 2 weeks older than "normal". On other baby-related matters, there has been less kicking, since there is less space to kick, and some hiccuping. But that's about it so far. The baby seems quite docile and I seem to have a magic hand. As soon as I touch the belly, the baby stops whatever it was doing. Could bode well for the future!

Apart from the baby, it's been a busy month since San Francisco including a trip to Shanghai, Guangzhou and Hong Kong for work; there was a football injury that forced me to accept taking drugs at 4am after 4 days of not sleeping from pain in my shoulder; and there has been a bunch of milestones at work from the team -- finishing certain reports, toolkits etc and also proposals for some new work, that if we get will be extremely exciting. Meanwhile we need to hire more people!

Another big purchase recently was an air purifier. I'm sure everyone knows about the generally awful pollution in Beijing and we figured we'd try to have some clean air in the apartment for the baby. Generally the pollution is bad 2/3rds of the time and the other 1/3rd of the time Beijing is just beautiful with clear blue skies. The clearer the skies, though, the colder the weather. It's below zero most days now, and will remain so for the next 4 months. It's going to be a long 4 months, though somehow I feel like the next 6 weeks are going to fly by!

San Francisco - good beer, tall trees and nice beaches

What a wonderful weekend! After a few very intense weeks at work I am in San Francisco for BSR's annual conference of a thousand people. But first I've spent Saturday at a microbrewery drinking some very good beer along with the BBQ and enjoying the very informative tour from the owner. 21st amendment is the place to go. The beer goes down very well in the beautiful warm weather and blue skies.

Next, a quick trip to Golden Gate park to stretch the legs and stave off jet lag as well as overcome the alcohol before the evening's halloween party. Fun but not crazy I won the award for most 'thrown together costume'. I was wearing a shrek mask and a green t-shirt with a jacket stuffed in. Typically I hadn't even made the effort to buy the mask -Andrea had got it for me! Others made much more effort and try to outwit you too. Cleverest costume went to 'aerobic decomposition' of all things.

Today my cousin who lives here took me to Muir Wood - where the tallest trees in the world grow (Redwoods). Very impressive, very informative tour, and great hiking trails. Afterwards we spent an hour on a beautiful beach near by though I had not even brought shorts let alone swim gear. Still - a great nap, snack and banter before a good dinner beside the beach and we caught the end of the wonderful sunset as we head back into town across the Golden Gate Bridge. So majestic earlier in red sunlight I was fast asleep on the retun!

What a relaxing weekend with exercise, beer, sun and more. A fantastic break from winter in Beijing where the pollution has been at record highs. On another note... one of these photos is Andrea with 11 weeks to go and one is me as Shrek:-)

2 months of marriage, but will it all be over in 3 and a half more months?

Wow, 2 full months being married and look what's happened - no blog posts! Well, that is more a coincidence than a cause. There have been other causes: work, travel, relaxing and shopping.

Work is busy, due to some staff leaving, and as a lot of work comes in before the end of the year across the organization. It has taken me to Shanghai and Hong Kong, both cities I like in their own ways, and particularly like being able to explore. This time in Shanghai, Andrea and I were able to visit some wetlands on an island near Shanghai that is a mere 80km long. Trust me, it is a damn big island. Anyway the wetlands were well worth the hour bus ride across massive bridges and under massive tunnels (all new of course). There was a lack of birds there, since we were a month or two too early for the migration season, but it was peaceful, green and pleasant.

In Hong Kong, I was flat out at meetings and conferences, but did manage some social time with work-related people (which unfortunately ran until past 3am), and some reflection. One part of my work is trying to influence the evil world of finance to be somewhat less evil along the lines that if people invested money for long-term growth, then surely they'd care about the long-term health of the companies they invest in, and the long-term sustainability of the people that work for those companies, the people that buy from those companies, and the environment that supports the company's ability to manufacture (etc etc). Unfortunately most of the markets are dominated by short-term thinkers and it is hard to set any system up that really values and rewards companies based on positive social, environmental, governance and even economic performance. In the long-term. And that is kind of the problem with sustainable development. It is about the long-term and many people just think about the short-term. Meanwhile the world is getting nowhere nearer to developing the will (politically, individually, corporate or otherwise) to apply the solutions (or the restraint) which we already have (though potentially more expensive than current activities which are too cheap) to solve the many problems we face.

Anyway, aside from some reflection and ramblings on what BSR can or should be doing, let alone everyone else, I've been back in Beijing plugging away at various other things, working on some newsletters at work (e.g. here and here), finally reviewing wedding photos (up on facebook somewhere, and will be on flickr *soon*) and thinking through the implications of the baby that is due in 3 and a half months time. This is not just about thinking (or shopping, or visiting the doctor, or working out how to rearrange the apartment), but it is also about mental preparation. Clearly there are stages - many stages - and all have their pros and cons. In the early months, for example, the baby will be mostly sleeping and so won't require constant attention, but in the early years, the toddler will be speaking and all sorts.

So that is somewhat simplistic and more thoughts have gone through my head than that, but there is no need to write them down yet. I'm yet to read a baby book yet, nor really grill my parent-friends. I am though enjoying time with some of the kids of our friends, and definitely enjoying the last of the Autumn in Beijing outside where, despite other people's noisy kids, it is just Andrea and I. The two of us. I joked today that it is a very short marriage. Pretty soon it will be over, gatecrashed by a third person!

Anyway, on that note, it's time to get over celebrating China's National Day that led to a week vacation and get back to work. Unfortunately we need to work on the weekend to make up for some of the vacation time (this is a national policy, and it must be unique to China) which means I can't go to the pub to watch the Rugby. Thankfully there is always the internet at work!

Adam

Life as a married man

Well the first thing, after leaving my wife to go look after her family, was to walk back to the restaurant where i'd managed to leave my spare clothes. It felt like the walk of shame... a morning walk in the same clothes as the night before! And it was not to get much better as i got to the restaurant and found i had not left any trousers there, so i had to spend the rest of the day wearing trainers, a t-shirt and my suit trousers! Oh well, with a heavy head and having found Ian, the two of us made it to a pub near Euston for some decent British Pies and Ale. Although it was nice to be at a pub with all the Uni mates, I was not with my wife, I was nursing a hangover and I was on apple juice for the first couple of hours.

Finally, with the sun shining, and similar memories from the day after the "stag party", it was time for a beer and then to return home saying goodbye to friends I wouldn't see again for a year or more, to prepare the BBQ for the Krause's, and to see my wife again. I'm still getting used to using the word. I feel it will take a while longer. Though I have had some practice in the last 10 days, being without her, but talking about her and the wedding to everyone. See, after the BBQ dinner and then an English breakfast the next day, Andrea returned home, leaving me to spend a couple more days with my family and mission impossible to get everything into a single suitcase.

Mission impossible was achieved and the nice Russian lady from Aeroflot didn't charge me for excess baggage. Two flights and an 8-hour layover in Moscow later and I was back in Beijing, without electricity (it had run out), at 1am. And then several hours later I was at work. And life was back to normal. Except I was alone. Which was normal. Not in the last 6 weeks when I had been surrounded by various family members or friends (in the UK or in Germany) or my wife and not in the few years before then, when I've been living with Andrea. Rarely have we been apart more than a week (maybe 3 times in 3 years). So that is life as a married man, alone.

Thankfully, those 10 days end on Sunday, and then I may be able to give a better view on what like is like being married. And it might not just be about getting used to wearing a ring. Which I am still wearing, and have not lost. Yet.

How was the big day? Part 3

With the music from the guitarist indoors drifting out through the doors to where we were all chatting and drinking by the river Thames (and taking photos of course), all of a sudden some latecomers turned up, but bearing news. The Hof (aka. David Hasselhof, he of Knightrider and Baywatch fame, as well as a popular singer in Germany) was down the road. And indeed he was, as a few of my friends returned with photographic evidence after they had sprinted of to find him. Aah, memories of the 80s and 90s.

With barely a glass of champagne drunk it was already time to move inside and upstairs to eat. With pockets bulging with envelopes and the seating area a little too crowded to be honest (meaning the waiters had a hard time squeezing past everyone to take orders and deliver drinks), Andrea and I were clapped up the stairs and through the tables. In hindsight it reminds of the AIESEC conferences where we would have elections and as you walked up to give a speech (and back) or to find out the decision, it would be to the same deafening noise. And it was wonderful. To see everyone, to see the restaurant looking so nice after the previous day's efforts decorating, and to sit down and finally eat something (having not eaten since breakfast).

We knew the food was amazing: Belgian food from a fantastic chef. We also knew the drinks were fantastic. Belgian beer, of course. 30 on the menu to choose from. I got nowhere close to trying them all, but a few tables were trying out something of a beer bingo it seemed! After the starters began the speeches. My dad got somewhat emotional, which was very touching. My Best Man kept things suitable for the 6-year old that was there. And I finally explained to everyone the mystery surrounding the table names (one of my friends had asked one of the Chinese guests what the name of his table meant and told me there was no meaning). Indeed, the names did not have meanings, literally, as they were the names of our favourite parks in Beijing. All with a slightly different atmosphere and meaning to them: From the sporty one to the young one to the old one to the romantic one to the pretty one and various others in between.

It went down a treat. Probably no-one else remembers what else I said. Actually, that's not true. I know at least one person who remembers the closing paragraph: My favourite quote:
"Life is not about the destination, but about the Journey".

Which for me provided the segway into explaining how lucky I am to be with Andrea for the rest of my journey. And it's true. Though there were no tears or anything.

Then, running late, due to the kitchen being somewhat unprepared to deliver so many meals at once and finding it tough to squeeze through everyone to take orders and deliver drinks, before the main course arrived, more guests had arrived. And then the whole night seemed to really speed up. I recall talking to them, being dragged upstairs to eat my wonderful lamb, storming off downstairs to talk to them and others, wondering back upstairs to get a drink, shoving some desert in, talking to more people and then it seemed like it was time for the Jewish chair dance thing (where the wife and husband are hoisted up, separately, on chairs to music, waving a handkerchief, and with people going around in circles).

There were no injuries, thankfully, which meant all of a sudden it was past 10.30pm and we were upstairs cutting the cake (the absolutely, insanely calorific, triple dark and white chocolate cake my mum had made), congratulating the guitarist and then, suddenly, apparently it had reached almost the end of the night. I don't know where the time had gone, but I remember being distinctly disappointed, not the least in how little beer I had managed to get hold of, and then once everyone was all outside, trying to light and set-off some Chinese lanterns, in the strong wind, with only a few lighters and matches. 6 seemed to have made it before everyone returned indoors. As I walked back indoors, knowing the end was nigh, I do remember being somewhat sad it was all over. It seemed like it was just a few minutes ago it all started. Anyway, there was time to convince the barman to hand out a few last beers despite it being after last orders, say the goodbyes, help pack up various bits and pieces and run to and from the car (it was at that point I vaguely recall thinking I must be a little drunk... why am I running?) - and finally fall into a taxi for the 400m ride to the hotel.

Unfortunately, for most of the evening, I feel like I had barely seen my wife. So, finally, as we walked into the hotel, clearly looking like a married couple (she was still in her wedding dress, me in my suit with waistcoat and flower), I looked at her at the reception desk, shoved a credit card at the reception for a deposit, grabbed the key card, thanked the lady for the free upgrade to the Suite, and took my wife upstairs.

How was the big day? Part 2

Wow indeed. The night before, at dinner between the Krause's and the Lane's, Andrea had been worried about her hair (I suppose this must be fairly common) as the German barber in her village had cut it too short (or something...). Anyway, that day, as I found out later, Andrea had Kitty to help her and had managed to get to a hair salon at midday, a nail salon at 1pm and get to the wedding place by 3.30pm. Impressive. And not just about that German efficiency! (or it typical Lane last-minute?) She looked stunning, of course. So stunning I would spend the next 8 hours with a big wide grin on my face ruining all the photos!

In fact everyone looked good. Everyone was smiling. And then it began: the welcome from the registrar, a few "repeat after me's", my sister's reading, my other sister video-ing the whole thing, some pretty awful German vows from me (following the English ones), then the witnesses were up and then down again, the wedding registrar was signed, the cameras kept clicking and rolling, there was a kiss and some clapping and then it was over. Almost before it had started, it was over. From the walking-in tune (Shania Twain - From this Moment) to the walking-out tune (The Calling) it seemed to take 5 minutes, but somehow it took 30. The walk back through the room was way too short to savor the moment (and I think we probably should have walked slower)!

And then we were outside the room, alone for a few seconds. It was so surreal. It was only a short time ago I'd been shouting at Andrea to tell her to go away so I wouldn't see her whilst I was waiting for the registrar. And then, all the planning, the decisions over what to say and what music to have came to be. That methodical choosing process (which ceremony, A, B, C, or D; which reading etc) had become a highly emotional, somewhat romantic (I mean, there were 50 people watching, so it was not THAT romantic), incredibly special and very meaningful half an hour. I won't forget looking at Andrea, then at the registrar, and back at Andrea again non-stop for the whole time. I won't forget the slight awkwardness of reading out the German and having to transfer the paper with the vow on whilst trying to put on a ring as well! And the rings fit.

We had been declared Husband and Wife, and as we walked down to take photos on the beautiful marble staircase, apart from a few friends who wondered out, most people stayed in the room. Must have been something fun happening there or something! And so there were some photos and there was some chaos. There was a dress that I kept standing on and there were attempts to organize people in various languages. And then there was the effort to direct people across the street to the beautiful St Pancras station for some more photos which was of mixed success. We managed to get a few group shots before security forced us to leave.

And then we were in front of the Routemaster -kissing again. The famous double decker London bus. The kind my dad drove in one his first jobs out of school. It was a pleasant surprise since my dad had loaded it with Prozecco and most people piled up onto to the top to enjoy the 1 hour tour around London as we weaved our way, slowly, over to Canary Wharf. I recall finally getting the chance to say hello to people who had come from across the World and across the country, some drinking, some awful tour guiding, and then finding my mum's glasses on the floor as we got off the bus outside the restaurant. Everything continued to fly by. After visiting the restaurant a few weeks earlier, and then the day before to drop things off and decorate and check the plans and arrangements, I was now back, holding a flag saying "Just Married" (Andrea had one too) with 50 people training behind us, a married couple.

How was the big day? Part 1

It's been almost two weeks now, so enough time to reflect and try to remember what happened. And a lot happened, but it seemed to happen at Light Speed.

The morning that was supposed to be longest wait ever (as I'd count down the hours until we finally left home) seemed to fly by. The drive into London went so smoothly I forget London even has traffic - we even had time to detour into Soho to pick up a camera part my sister left behind. The wait at the pub outside Camden Town Hall (a pub that probably does good business in that location) seemed to fly by. Supposedly we were there 30 minutes, but all I recall is greeting cousins and friends, having a flower pinned to my jacket, downing a quick half pint, taking a few photos with the Best Man and then getting the phone call.

Yes, the phone call, the one that said the Bride was about 50m away and I had to get out of there fast. So those 30 minutes were done and I was all of a sudden hiding in a dark room in Camden Town Hall where I thought the registrar would be. Except there was no-one there. I was in the right place of course. I was just early. So when Andrea walked into the same room 3 minutes later, i went to hide in another room so I wouldn't see her, and then she found the registrar - who was wondering where I was. Hiding. Behind him. Anyway, after Andrea had been hidden away in a room upstairs next to where we would get married, I was able to leave the dark room, go find the registrar and get led back into the dark room.

And then it began. The lights went on and I had to double-check the information on the wedding certificate. And then I had to inform the registrar we'd decided not to do 1/2 of the ceremony in both german and english. Instead we'd just do the vows in both languages. Otherwise, without practice, we feared not only would I sound like an idiot, but all of us would get confused about who was saying what, when, in what language. So the thirty minutes I was supposed to be in that room ended up flying by and as we walked upstairs I didn't feel ready at all. I was sure there was supposed to be some real instructions, some counseling... something.... but not, I walked upstairs thoroughly unaware of where I was supposed to stand, who would play the music (if the music would work!), or what the room would even look like (since the previous glimpse we'd had of the room it was set-up for a meeting, not a wedding).

Walking into the room, as 40 people were packed in (seems the final 10 scraped in after me), I didn't really know who to talk to. Surely there was not time to say hi to 30 people? So I ignored everyone, walked to the front, spoke to my parents, panicked over the music and videographer and then asked where to stand. And then, a few nervous minutes later, we played the music and Andrea walked in with her dad. Wow.

Wow.

Married! :-))))))

That is with a very big smiley grin. In fact embarrassingly big smiley grin as you will see in the photos (or saw, if you were there).

A very big thank you to everyone who came (and for your generosity) as it was an incredible day - everything Hollywood has decided a wedding should be! Fun, beautiful bride, friendly, crazy, inspired, emotional ... even the hangover afterwards!

Unfortunately time sped up during the event (was there a weird astrological occurrence?) and I was unable to spend as much time talking to everyone as I wanted to. For which I apologize and warmly welcome everyone to come and visit in Beijing!

Videos and photos will go up eventually i hope; but in the meantime, i have had little time to reflect. I do know I am incredibly luck to be able to spend the rest of my journey with Andrea. Happy!

A week in Eastern Germany

At 2am, after a 90 minute flight, a 90 minute train ride (of which the connecting train left 45 minutes late – so much for German efficiency!) and a 45 minute car ride I arrived in Doberlug-Kirchhain. A small town, or a large village, it is where Andrea calls home and where I was to spend 6 days and get to finally meet her family.

Unsure what to expect, the next day I quickly got to know the local area: there is a main high street with cobbled streets and nice buildings particularly around the main square which has a solitary café providing outdoor seating. There are few shops or buildings of note, but those that are in Kirchhain (Doberlug is the other side of the train tracks 2 km away) give a good representation of life in rural Eastern Germany: a few bakeries providing the bread fix that Germans need for breakfast and dinner, a few butchers providing the meat fix, a small games room for gambling and drinking as well as around 4 or 5 pubs of which only 1 is actually welcoming (with a nice beer garden too), a couple of cafés selling doner kebabs (a german institution thanks to the Turkish immigrants), a bank, a town hall, a bicycle shop (most people cycle around the town as it is small), a financial services shop (actually a self-employed guy who opens up his house and puts up lots of signs and a small information booth outside), a barber and a dress-maker amongst other things.

In addition, there are 3 supermarkets which also have bakeries and butcheries thus making life tough for the local independents, and 3 discount stores: one for clothes, one for household goods and one that sells all sorts (basically anything under 5 euros). Surrounding the town are fields, fields and more fields. Dotted between the fields are other small villages, but only a couple of towns bigger than Doberlug-Kirchhain of any note within 20 km, and wind turbines.  In fact there are a lot of wind turbines and even a fair number of houses with roofs covered in solar panels.

Most people own their own fairly large house, which they would have built once upon a time, though a three bedroom detached house with large garden goes for about 50,000 euros here which is a sign of the lack of demand to live in the area. Once children leave the local schools they rarely return leaving most of the population in the latter end of their lives but for those that are here it is a nice, quiet, convenient life.

The Kirchhain church traces its beginnings back over 400 years whilst in Doberlug there is a castle and historic town centre with several functional shops and a few others such as a jeweler.  The town clearly has history and there is culture too in some respects – a nearby village, Lindena had its annual summer festival when we were there. Unfortunately it rained most of the night. In fact both Doberlug and Kirchhain have a restaurant specializing in ice creams. I had not realized the germans liked their fancy ice creams so much!

My first few days were spent in the local area checking out the back streets and countryside (particularly the lakes nearby from disused coal pits that were flooded) and finding one of the pubs with a nice beer garden. We also prepared for the "polter abend" which took place on the Saturday night with family and friends. It is a traditional german pre-wedding party whereby guests bring old crockery to smash when they arrive. Other than that it was really just a good old BBQ and the weather managed to hold up.

On one day Andrea and I drove to a fairly famous area only an hour away called the Spreewald, named after the river Spree which runs through here (it also runs through Berlin 100km away). What makes the area a tourist hotspot is the hundreds of rivers and the villages built alongside them which are very pretty. Although fairly touristy (most of the houses actually along the rivers are for rent as holiday homes since it is not that convenient if you don't have road access, which some do not) it is pretty and kayaking around was fun, despite the intermittent rain. We even had to operate a lock ourselves, and pull our kayaks along some rollers here and there whilst trying to navigate around the rivers and avoid sluices (the signage was awful).

Another day, along with her parents, we went to visit one of the largest pieces of mining machinery in the world, called an F60, which is basically a massive horizontal crane with wheels under both ends so it could roll along on top of the coal pit, scooping up the earth on top of the coal, transporting it to the other end of the pit and dumping it. The length of the crane is longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall and it was a very interesting couple of hours walking through the machine and learning how it works and the history of coal mining in the area. The machine has been disused since 1992 after reunification led to a change of energy policy and a lack of demand for the type of coal that was in the pit. A bit of a shame for the machine which had only been built a couple of years earlier!

Other highlights of time in the countryside was a wonderful run through the back streets when there was blue sky, visits to local bakeries (as well as the ice cream shops), walking the dog, eating some german food (including plinzer, which are basically pancakes with sugar and butter on top, but are eaten as a main meal) and trying to speak some German!

check, check, check

One by one, going through the list to prepare for the big day on Saturday. Although organizing a wedding in 3 months certainly has its advantages by making deadlines shorter and choices more limited. With support from family there has been less hassle than expected though there is still a number of headaches that we had to deal with; from the legal side of being in the country the appropriate number of days to working out what the German guests will do over the weekend!

Most things are now organized or done (from a stag/hen night to the decorations and even to a pre-wedding honeymoon!) and all that awaits is the big day itself.

Three weeks in London flew by with a lot of work and social engagements; a lot of decent beers; and a lot of consideration for the future. Some of the highlights include:

• Flying over London with the plan turning on the wing over which I was seated providing an amazing view of the Olympic Park, Canary Wharf, Millennium Dome and most of central London along the Thames.
• A BBQ on the evening we arrived with the long daylight hours and even some sunshine (the last sun we would see for about two weeks!)
• Getting to see a lot of my parents and my sisters, getting to know the new puppy, seeing my sister's wonderful new-ish house, and driving (for the first time in 18 months)
• Going shopping in real shops that have my size shoes and provide customer service that is helpful without being nagging!
• A fun treasure hunt and comedy night with old friends complete with plenty of alcohol though somewhat surprise and indignation at the behavior of many of the people that were at the comedy club and that wonder the bars of London at night
• Having a day by an outdoor pool in 30 degree weather (the 2nd day in the first 2 weeks to see the sun) and walking around great british countryside drinking great british beers (though i left London the day the great british beer festival started unfortunately!)
• Buying wedding rings - so much easier to buy an engagement ring for someone else to wear than it is to buy a ring for me to wear since i have never worn a ring in my life - and sorting out the details of there ceremony in both languages. 

And the low-lights? well, on the bright side there was not much pollution but there was not much sun. There was a convenient transportation system that was like having a burning cigarette in one's pocket (having a bus system with a standard fare no matter whether you go 3 stops or 30 stops seems stupid especially when the oyster card means the underground is able to work out a variable fare by distance).  And there was Ryan Air. Well, enough said. It's not cheap, it's not cheerful, it's just an example of how to make money every second of the entire customer experience from the orange juice radio advert as soon as you get on the plane to the newspapers you have to pay for and the litter that you need to pick up from the floor yourself and the insane luggage restrictions. If only i'd known beforehand!

On the other hand, the British rail system tends to get fixed before it breaks (though clearly it requires a lot of fixing) unlike the Chinese one, the British media do turn-up some interesting and meaningful stories (on page 19 or something) unlike the Chinese one, and the UK is so incredibly diverse and London so incredibly attractive and vibrant, unlike China.

Homeward bound

I'm sitting in the Beijing airport at 1am about to board my first Russian airline flight (though I hear it is a Boeing or an Airbus plane). Meanwhile my antivirus software has just told me someone has tried to attack my laptop (I am using the free airport wi-fi) which is interesting. Wonder if it is the government (smart idea to give free wi-fi and then use it as a gateway to get information from businessmen and government staff passing through) or some talented hacker... Not been a great day computer-wise as i got to work and found my computer loving the "blue screen" look due to a broken hard drive.

Last time i had backed up my work files was about 3 months ago, which is a bit of a pain. Maybe they'll rescue the files somehow whilst I am using the backup laptop in the UK. In which case they may also be able to rescue some of the files tracking who is coming to the wedding and who is not! Speaking of weddings.... that is something on the mind which is ramping up somewhat; although right now I am more worried about how cold and wet the weather forecast for the UK is for the next 15 days. My luggage is full of sweatshirts!

The last few weeks have been a bit lonely since Andrea has been in Europe and work has piled up before leaving (although i'm still going to be working for 2 of the 5 weeks I am away) with a couple of last minute projects, as well as plenty of training for the new hires that are on board. However a lot has got done (not withstanding this afternoon's laptop problems!), Beijing managed to find a couple of blue-sky days amongst one of the smoggiest summers for a while, and only some of the biggest thunderstorms ever managed to shift the smog (including one taking place tonight which now seems to be delaying the flight). I did manage to pick a good day last saturday to do an 11-mile run with Chris, who is promising to run under 3.30 for the marathon this year and expecting me to be alongside him (rather than behind, in front, or watching on the tele). Only time will tell where i do end up on that one!

Last time home was 18 months ago - what has changed? a new government and 1 less newspaper; but the economy still seems to be shaky and the Olympics far away. This time i won't be venturing up north (forcing friends to come down to London for a stag party and wedding) but will be wondering around Germany for a week. Looking forward to meeting many of you (three) readers in the next few weeks!

It's all relative

Previously I commented on how the Chinese see (and are led to see) hope for the future, particularly compared to their rather miserable recent past, as a reason why there is no real threat for social stability in China compared to what has been happening in the Middle East. Now, despite the hundreds of thousands of minor protest a year, and a paranoid government that takes rather extreme preventative measures to maintain social stability, this still holds true.

If there were a protest, it would likely focus on a short-term problem which could either be solved, promised to be solved, or ignored. It is unlikely to turn into a wider movement against the government itself - and in the issue of corruption, the government continues to happily get rid of the guilty, or create fall guys if necessary, and make sure the public know the government is doing its utmost at all times. In general, then, there is not so much to fear.

However, when one considers the issue of relativity (and I am not talking about Einstein's theory here), then it's possible to reconsider this. Because ultimately human nature is selfish, and yes, we like to think we have hope and our lives will get better, but if we see other people's lives getting better faster than ours, without considering that they deserve that, then we might think that the hope we see is not enough. That we deserve more, and that someone else deserves less. There is of course the perception and reality of endemic corruption that is mostly small-scale but which still allows society to function (and maybe even more efficiently than if there was no corruption).

Recently an internal government report was mistakenly released online that revealed that:
"more than 10,000 corrupt Chinese officials collectively spirited £80 billion out of the country in a 15-year spree of embezzlement, bribes and defections" and "The research, with revelations of corruption that are breathtaking even by Chinese standards, estimates that between 16,000 and 18,000 officials may have fled the country with monumental hoards of ill-gotten money between the mid-1990s and 2008".
That is pretty incredible. Clearly the government is aware of the problem of corruption and is sort of dealing with it, slowly... just as rural incomes are slowly increasing. But as rural incomes increase, urban incomes are increasing faster and the gap continues to grow. Meanwhile more and more Chinese are flaunting their wealth. So far there has been minimal crime in China, and limited attention in the media that might make regular people feel like they are owed better. But it could change and if there is not more progress soon on ensuring that the people think that those who are successful deserve it then it just might change.

2 months to go and reflections on earlier "upheavals"

So, with most people aware of the news, Andrea and I have (with a lot of help of family at home) start working out the details for the wedding. Progress has been smooth and things are on track. In fact as I write this Andrea has just bought her wedding dress at a market in Beijing that does wholesale wedding dresses. So at least this is one benefit of living in China and getting married in London - the ability to buy a quality wedding dress insanely cheaply (although I heard plenty of rumblings by SMS about there being too many big fluffy wedding dresses to choose from and not enough of the style Andrea was looking for, whatever that may be).

A lot of other things have happened in the last month. The football season has ended, giving a few months respite from late nights watching games online although with Spurs qualifying for Europe once again, come September the late 3am mid-week games will start again. The weather has now truly settled into Summer with 30 degree weather every day (dropping to about 20 at night) and the occasional rain storm. About 1 in every 2 days is bright blue skies (the others can often be muggy from pollution of varying levels) and where we live looks beautiful with water in the lake, kids playing in the playground, and the trees bright green. It makes Beijing a wonderful place to live and especially to cycle around at weekends. At lunchtime we can sit in one of the many restaurants close to work in the Central Park complex that is also green with outdoor seating which is a nice change from the office.

On another note, there have been several personnel changes at work which means new colleagues to get to know and work with, a promotion, and the end of one project (that was looking at labor issues in manufacturing suppliers in Beijing). Other projects have started, BSR's annual report has come out (so if you are still unsure as to what BSR actually does, have a read on www.bsr.org/report).

A few months ago I meant to write about the difference between China and the Middle East in regards the upheavals happening. Alas, I never put pen to paper (so to speak) and plenty has been written by others since there were vague attempts to foster some upheavals here too. Of course, nothing is likely to change when, fundamentally, a large majority of the country, and especially those with power and/or in the cities, see their country making progress and see a brighter future ahead of them. Of course, some of this is true and some of it is inspired by a government-controlled media which is not like North Korea but certainly is much more optimistic about the country than, say the British media is about Britain! The stories of those suffering under a legal system that is not independent or a series of laws that are ill-defined or a lack of implementation of a constitution that does provide for certain rights and freedoms tend to not get mentioned so much (and there are lots of them) whilst the government tries to balance out the good news with selected bad news that supports the belief that the country is well run. So, since everyone knows there is lots of corruption, the government makes sure to punish some people every now and again, as it does some industrial polluters or criminals. And there is some real innovation, with local police forces using Chinese Twitter to engage the public and report on the results of incidents investigated and so on. So change continues... at a pace that continues to be at just the right speed to keep things changing enough without things changing too much.

There is no major threat to the Communist party or the government and as soon as there is a tiny hint of one it is removed forcefully. This is a shame. One of the many ironies of this country is that the government does not trust its own people and does not want to them to think or to express themselves or to find solutions to problems. They want them to trust that the government has all the solutions and is working on the many problems China faces (as expressed in detail in the latest five-year plan). The government is inherently suspicious of anything it does not trust, cannot understand, or is unable to control. So are most governments, yet some of these things offer meaningful and worthwhile alternatives that need to be explored. And some here are. But a very few, and nothing dramatic. But, there is more happening that before. The bureaucrats are smart, many are educated overseas, and they recognize the incredible changes taking place and the incredible environmental, social, economic, cultural and other changes taking place that need to be addressed. Behind the scenes, pilots and plans to iterate continue and it is very interesting to experience this firsthand living here, and of course, working in the field of sustainable development, philanthropy, responsible business practices and the entire ecosystem around this.

So there are a just a few thoughts. I had to say something at some point and now, finally, I have. Much more to say, but this is a start. Meanwhile, flights are booked now: so from 15th July-16th August I'll be in the UK (or Germany)!

From Singapore to Hong Kong and back to Beijing to get engaged!

It's been a busy couple of months since Singapore - the last day in Singapore we went to the impressive botanical gardens with a beautiful restaurant inside. After 24 hours in Beijing I was off to Hong Kong and Guangzhou for work - though there was also time for a day at Cheung Chau island. A car-less island just a short ferry-ride away from Central Hong Kong with wonderful easy walking trails around the island and deserted beaches. After a fantastic trip to Lamma island a couple of years ago, I am very impressed with the smaller islands around Hong Kong and will make sure the others get on my list too.

Andrea and I have been to Chengde (I know I have been in China a long time when I start going to places for a second time!) where we had an entire forest and its deer to ourselves as we managed to sneak under the barrier forbidding tourists to enter the forest until June 1st due to risk of forest fires. There were no fires, just peace and quiet and lots of sun for a few hours that we enjoyed before forcing our way through the hordes of tourists by the lake area. With the temples nearby (one of which is a replica of the famous Potala Palace in Tibet) also worth visiting, Chengde is definitely a good option for Beijingers.

And last weekend, after visiting the Botanical Garden in Beijing, Andrea and I went to one of our favourite lakes in the Old Summer Palace, where, alone and at sunset, I proposed and Andrea accepted. So I suppose that is the biggest recent news... now we're deep in planning whilst also trying to enjoy Beijing's Summer. Spring has come and gone, and Summer is well and truly here with 30 degree temperatures most days, nice evenings where we can sit outside, and bright blue skies regularly.

War bunkers and impressive museums in singapore

On day 3, we had a coffee by the river and found a fault in Singapore's armour - some poor service. It took a reminder from us before the barista realised there was an order on his screen that our waiter had electronically taken. We decided not to pay the 10% service charge that is automatically added!

We also walked around Clarke Quay, benefited from the cheap lunch sets the many restaurants do there and strolled around Fort Canning Hill. At the top was some interesting archaeological excavations and The Battle Box. This is the bunker where the British military command was based trying to co-ordinate the defence of Malaysia and Singapore when Japan attacked during World War 2. The museum in the bunker recreates the last few days with models, audio-visual etc. Nicely done it was interesting and I learned that even before the military had been defeated, the British had to surrender because the Japanese had seized control of (or destroyed) the reservoirs that provided drinking water and the the food supplies. It would be three years that Singapore was occupied for and 50,000 were killed during the occupation.

My mum (who was in Singapore on vacation and the reason I came here) and I also went to some of the galleries ('Singapore Living') in the National Museum and were blown away with the design, layout, content and technologies used to make the exhaust truly interesting and a joy to view, read, listen to or watch. Rooms on fashion, cinema, family and others were very well done (and free in the evenings). There was even a special exhibit on black dresses which was interesting (at least for me, that not being a topic I am overly familiar with). In short it was everything almost all Mainland Chinese museums are not (HK has some good ones). The only half decent museum I've come across on the Mainland is the Overseas Chinese Museum in Xiamen which of course is funded and created by Singaporean Chinese (mostly)!

Efficient, clean, multicultural, river-side bars... It must be Singapore!

Singapore may be different to China: 4m people instead of 1.4bn, but 70% of its people are Chinese and it shows that not only is there a way for a Chinese country to be run as a democracy whilst being an autocracy, but that a Chinese city can be clean with its citizens learning to respect strangers and public goods. It is the kind of city where people immediately rush to help others (I saw a young lady slip and fall in the rain and 3 other women helped her up)!

Arriving in Singapore, I headed to my friend (Kitty)'s who I'd be staying with. She lives with a family in typical HDB housing (built by the government) which has everything within the estate including supermarket, food court, clinics and so on. Practical and surprisingly spacious, and of course in great condition, they seem nice places to live. Most only seem to be 12 stories high - Hong Kong's local residential buildings are much taller, in worse condition and not as conveniently designed. Somehow Singapore has ensured some space is set aside for greenery everywhere in residential communities including having grass on the pavements!

Nearby we walked past some of the fancier condos, all of which looked nice and new with beautiful balconies. The third level of accommodation in Singapore are houses. Many of these (and the cars in their driveways) are opulent to say the least. It is funny walking around residential Singapore as parts can feel very British (well, compared to some of the nicer parts of the UK that are clean and with nice houses) which you don't feel as much in Hong Kong. Everything there is more Chinese: chaotic, messy, crowded, run-down and of course full of Chinese writing everywhere along with English. In Singapore, you'll often only see English including on road signs, shops etc.

My breakfast that morning was kaya and butter bread with eggs - very Singaporean I was told, and quite tasty. As was lunch of Laksa (coconut flavoured shrimp noodles), Otah (BBQ'd fish cake served in a leaf) and Rojat (crazy mixture of vegetables, tofu and things covered in peanut flavoured sauce) for lunch

On a very Singaporean day, Kitty and I strolled along the East Coast Park, a long strip with bits of beaches and plenty of people cycling, roller blading and jogging. We then went to join the weekly Dragon Boat training. It was a sweaty 2 hours paddling in the boat along with 15 others but a great way to see downtown Singapore for the first time as we paddled all the way to the heart of the business district to the mouth of the Singapore river. It's a popular activity here with well over 15 teams, many of which had 2 boats out. Awe finished at 6 just before the thunder, lightening and rain and huddled under the boatsheds drinking beer. This week it was the Aussies who'd brought along a BBQ and tents. I heard the previous week the Spanish team I joined had done the same. A great social event.

Its quite a shock coming from Beijing, and not just because they drive on the left here. Taxi drivers won't stop to pick you up anywhere near a bus station, drivers stop at zebra crossings and at junctions to let you cross, taxi drivers force front passenger seat drivers to put seatbelts on and of course no matter whether the Chinese speak mandarin or English their accents are hard to understand!

On day 2 in Singapore we watched frogs being skinned in the Chinatown wet market and saw humorous T-shirts on sale joking about all the fines in Singapore. We found one -and only one- piece of litter (a scrap of tissue on the pavement). We enjoyed walking around the smattering of skyscrapers which are much fewer and less architecturally interesting than Hong Kong but were suitably impressed by the crazy boat that stretches across the top of all 3 buildings at the casino/hotel by the harbour. We also saw a few nice Chinese temples and churches (though no nice Mosques, must have missed them) between the nice older Singaporean buildings and some wonderful colonial buildings including the famed Raffles Hotel that was suitably impressive even down to its shop although the famous Long Bar where the Singapore Sling was created was a bit disappointing. I'm sure it was still authentic. The nobility and wealthy that stayed there in the past must have preferred a less regal drinking environment.

We ate at a Chinese hawker centre and gazed at the attractive Chinese buildings in Chinatown. We took buses and subways and walked along the river which had many tasteful bars and restaurants along it. Before the very interesting Singapore River History exhibit in the Asian Civilisations Museum, we even squeezed in time to watch the end of the formula one as we sheltered from the daily 4pm or 5pm downpour. The exhibit began with a great sentence along the lines of 'Though not as long as the Nile or Amazon, the 4km long Singapore River, has played a crucial role in the development of Singapore from a fishing village to one of the world's premier trading centres'. Classic.

We grabbed Indian food in Little India on a Sunday night where it felt like a football match had just finished with thousands of men just mingling and sitting around-though we still felt safe. Singapore is almost like a virtual city with everything you could ever want to put in a city. There is no expense spared on railings, ramps, crossings, dog runs, signage, public facilities and so on. There is a seedy underside that we saw on Joo Chiat Road but the city certainly lived up to its reputation. It is multicultural and efficient.

Photos and secret gardens

Some of the great photos of Indonesia are now on the blog (adam.nomadlife.org) and the hundreds others, including some cool videos, are on the flickr site (www.flickr.com/adamsphotos) along with over 10,000 other photos. Eat your heart out!

It has been over 3 weeks since Chinese New Year - it ended with a bit of a bang, and not just the fireworks. Andrea and I went out to the countryside to visit a friend's friend's family who lived in a fairly poor, rural village of just a handful of small traditional houses. We set off the obligatory firecrackers, watched a local comedy performance, ate fairly unedible local food, drank plenty of alcohol and then clamboured up the hillside behind the house to a watchtower that is what remains of the Great Wall. It was a fairly memorable experience and nice to get into the local chinese way of life, even if it is painful on the liver!

Beijing finally broke its precipitation duck getting some snow around two week ago. It went 110 days or so without any rain or snow; which was pretty impressive, and certainly not enough to solve the drought situation which threatens to raise food prices even more. On Saturday it started snowing again and I got on a plane to come to Hong Kong for a couple of days. It was warm enough to wear a t-shirt and relax in the sun. I ventured to Hong Kong Park where I found an aviary, which is an undiscovered secret garden. a few minutes walk from downtown, literally, there is a tiny piece of rainforest with 600 birds from across Asia. The sounds of the birds, the joy of the children, the flowing water, and the fresh air from the trees made it a wonderful afternoon. And it was free. Another great legacy from the British. Hong Kong does make me feel proud. London too.

Today, at lunch in between meetings, I say overlooking the ocean at a trendy cafe, eating fancy (i.e. small portions of) food and enjoying the warmth and sunshine. A few more weeks to wait for the sun in Beijing; but there is no ocean or breeze. There is not quite the intimidation you feel in HK, dwarfed by the size of the buildings and variety of architecture that are everywhere, with the dramatic backdrop of the hills and port. Of course Hong Kong also has a huge number of very nice bars and cafes, conveniently quite close to the office. I recommend Life especially their African Stew and Carrot Cake. Not particularly cheap, but fantastic!

Newly planted vegetables amongst the ash-covered fields

Newly planted vegetables amongst the ash-covered fields
Originally uploaded by adam lane

A nice contrast

Ash billowing from Bromo at dawn 1

Ash billowing from Bromo at dawn 1
Originally uploaded by adam lane

At dawn, as the sun rose and we waited, shivering, we were rewarded with this impressive view.

Ash billowing from Bromo at dawn 2

Ash billowing from Bromo at dawn 2
Originally uploaded by adam lane

Plumes of ash billow out of a volcano and drift overhead. Nature rules.

Ash erupting from Bromo 4

Ash erupting from Bromo 4
Originally uploaded by adam lane

Seeing an erupting volcano is pretty impressive. Thankfully it was just ash!

Black dominates everything making it look like hell around Bromo

Black dominates everything making it look like hell around Bromo
Originally uploaded by adam lane

When 2-3 feet of ash covers everything on the floor and growing and in the air; one considers if hell might look similar. Dark, black and depressing.

Mast in the ash cloud

Mast in the ash cloud
Originally uploaded by adam lane

Sunlight through the ash clouds aligned with the top of the Mast makes this a scary image.

Landscape around base of Bromo mars-like

Landscape around base of Bromo mars-like
Originally uploaded by adam lane

With the ash floating above the edge of the crater, one could be forgiven for thinking this was shot on another planet

White houses in black landscape amid ashfall around Bromo

White houses in black landscape amid ashfall around Bromo
Originally uploaded by adam lane

Incredible comparison between the white buildings covered in ash and the sun scraping through the ash clouds that dominate everything.

Kawah Ijen 2

Kawah Ijen 2
Originally uploaded by adam lane

The sulphuric lake that rewards a tough trek up to the top of the volcano in Eastern Java

Ijen panorama

Ijen panorama
Originally uploaded by adam lane

An incredible steaming volcano from sulphur bubbling to the surface of the lake in the crater. Locals collect the sulphur blocks and carry them down the mountain. It is back-breaking work in every sense of the word.

South side of Gungung Batur strewn with old lava flows

South side of Gungung Batur strewn with old lava flows
Originally uploaded by adam lane

Up close lava viewing opportunities-a-plenty along with fun motorcycling through the dried up lava flows and around and around the volcano through idyllic villages and fields.

Gunung Batur and Danau Batur panorama

Gunung Batur and Danau Batur panorama
Originally uploaded by adam lane

An amazing Volcano in a massive Crater of another Volcano. The lake in one side of that crater as well as the other Volcanoes in the background just add to the extraordinary view.

Kids in Penginapan Village

Kids in Penginapan Village
Originally uploaded by adam lane

A nice photo of some Indonesia kids that we came across in the amazing "village of two halves" which was split between a densely packed agricultural half and a beautiful model village that was full of quaint little houses with gardens and paths between them.

A Ghost Town

It's Chinese New Year. Of the 20 million people in Beijing probably a third have left town to see their families and the other two thirds are holed-up inside eating, drinking and watching TV for several days. This means the roads are pretty empty, a rarity that is worth enjoying on our bikes! Most restaurants have closed for 2 days, and a lot of shops too. It just shows how seriously the Chinese take tradition -visiting friends and family, giving gifts and feasting.

Some anecdotal proof that China is getting richer: there are way less firecrackers this year and much more actual fireworks (which are more expensive). Further proof comes from the stacks and stacks of fruit in fancy boxes that are piled up in supermarkets and on carts on street corners ready for purchase - fruit is one of the various things (along with money, alcohol and sweets) that are given as gifts when going to friends for meals at this time, but since winter is not a good season for fruit, a lot of it is imported and thus expensive but this is not a barrier any more. Further evidence comes from the huge amounts of wine that the Chinese are buying from supermarkets for the occasion as well. Though much of it is still cheap, there is still the strong desire to buy the most expensive (or expensive-looking) bottle to impress business partners (who it is also customary to visit over the week-long festival).

The one time people leave their houses is to go to Fairs, which in theory are called Temple Fairs, and are supposed to take place at Temples, but now tend to take place in parks and revolve around eating snacks, playing games (the kind that you can win prizes from) and buying stuff (mostly crap). Tens of thousands pile into these outdoor fairs every day leaving an insane amount of rubbish. Most of the food is fairly mundane, though some concoctions are a bit strange. Most of it comes on sticks or in plastic bowls. I hate to think how much the environment suffers, or the waistlines of the kids. Andrea and I quite enjoy seeing the awful attempts of boys to impress their girlfriends at the various stalls. Almost all fail miserably as the chances of winning anything apart from the tiniest teddy bear is insanely low. Doesn't stop them though...

How long until one misses the rain?

Precipitation is down 90% from average levels and there has been no rain or snow for months, literally -over 3 months now, and closing in on 100 days!

Every day is clear with blue skies and temperatures between minus 10 and zero. At what point does one miss the rain? I am not a farmer, so I don't mind -though I do consume food and prices continue to go up due to droughts. It certainly makes it nice and easy to cycle to work and even back from bars late at night.

Today, finally, Andrea and I went to Tesco. In the opposite direction to our nearby Carrefour, it is only a few seconds further in traveling time, but it is not a place I will be going back to. The bakery was absolutely appalling. It had only a measly 6 products that were supposedly freshly baked, yet, at midday today, 5 of the products were from yesterday, apart from the french bread. There was only one aisle of imported goods, which is not very helpful; and there was not a big collection of vegetables though. There were not many signs in English, and none of the products had any English names (Carrefour does). In fact, it is not just me that is not impressed; the store was practically empty compared to Carrefour which normally is packed on a saturday. Clearly the people are voting with their feet. And Tesco on the East 4th ring road is not a Tesco many people want to go to. Having said all this, there is also a Wal-Mart 200 meters away, and that is just as bad as Tesco. At least Tesco has some of its own-label products which is something that Carrefour does not have.

The last few weeks have been pleasant enough; dominated by the cold, a cough I picked up, and work. Soon Chinese New Year will take over, with fireworks and red all over the place. It also means some time off, though when it is this cold, we're not sure what to do! Maybe, just maybe, the weather will get a little warmer for a day or two, as the forecast is hinting at. Still, though it is called the 'Spring Festival', this is a misnomer. Spring is still a month or two (or more!) away yet!

By the way, lots of my photos are up online now from Indonesia. Some good volcano ones too. Check them at at www.flickr.com/adamsphotos

Want a mushroom?

That was one of the first questions i was asked a few nights ago as I walked
into one of at least fifty bars and cafes in Gili Trawangan, a 2-hour boat
ride east of Bali. Gili T as it is known is one of three beautiful, tiny,
islands that are just 10-minutes from Lombok, another large (Bali-sized)
island full of countryside and volcanoes. After turning down the man's offer
from some 'shrooms as they are known, I got a beer and chatted to some Irish
guys who were drinking some concoction of mushrooms. I saw them the next day
when I was scuba-diving and received confirmation they had a pretty powerful
effect!

Despite the large number of tourists packed onto the island and filling out
the multitude of guesthouses, none of which had more than ten rooms it
seemed, the island is beautiful, the rain held off, and there was a lot of
fun to be had in the evenings after enjoying the beach and underwater
sights. Unfortunately underwater Gili is no big deal -but then my standards
are high after being fortunate enough to dive at some of the World's most
beautiful places in Asia. If you want a nice beach, some great bars, and
some cheap accommodation (even the super luxurious was only 100 dollars a
night) then head to the Gili islands. If you do you might well catch some
Australians, who dominate the Bali area, and tend to have a beer in hand at
8am in the morning, no matter whether they are getting on a boat, or in a
clinic!

A brief stint in the Gilis led to a last day on vacation in Lombok's
capital, Mataram, which involved checking out the Mall since it was
pouring with rain and another motorbike ride out to a temple and to
Sengigi which is an old-school beach resort with a bunch of hotels and
restaurants along a strip of main road which is parallel to a
wonderful beach. Delightful in its own way I suppose, there were some
great restaurants -and hotel deals- to be had. Once again I
experienced the joys of renting a motorbike, and the challenge of
driving in a busy and crowded city packed with all kinds of transport
(including horse and carts) driving at various speeds. We did not have
time to hang out with the locals on the cliff roads, unfortunately, as
thrilling as it looked just sitting on bikes looking out to sea...

Other thoughts on Indonesia was that there was minimal language
difficulties, through transportation is slower than expected since
most people have their own transport, public transport is not as
necessary as maybe it once was. There were some surprises, like the
Executive class in the train, which was very plush with power sockets
by every seat for only a small amount more than regular class, and was
over half full of locals, who evidently quite like travelling in
style. There was very regular calls to prayer that were most notable
in the morning and evening, but though quite a few women wore
headscarfs, almost none wore Burhkas and a lot wore no head covering
at all, which is not what I was expecting.

To round out the top 3 of the vacation -after the smoking volcano (the
first we visited) and the motorcycle trip around the third volcano we
visited- I need to mention the village of two halves that was at the
bottom of the second volcano (you may recall, this was the one with
the turquoise lake at the top). A week ago, we spent a night in a
so-called homestay before the trek up the volcano, although the
homestay was the least homestay-like homestay I have ever heard of
with awful service, poor accommodation and tour group central. Yet,
100m down the road was a small village which at first glance was
nothing special, only remarkable as it seemed well laid out with small
alleys and all the houses in a line with small gardens. Yet, as we
walked further in we found that each house had put immense effort into
their tiny gardens and were growing crops, sometimes on 2 square
meters of land, sometimes just 1 tomato plant was being grown out of a
solitary plant pot. Each house was very individidualized with some
being quite well decorated, although others being total dumps. A
stroll through this quite quaint and somewhat strange village was
incredible -there were public bathrooms and a mosque and school to add
character- yet it was the tiny alleys, the small gardens, the
individualized houses and the people (kids, adults, dogs and all) that
packed out the alleys that made it special.

And then we got to the river that ran along the edge of the village,
or so we thought. In actual fact the river just separated the living
part of the village from the working part of the village. Across the
river was like going back 100 years. Everything here was muddy paths
and wooden barns (the other half of the village was mostly concrete
paths and brick buildings) packed with animals, and again densely
arranged. The fences surrounding the barns were perfectly built
without an inch of room for an animal to escape -for everything was so
close together, one escape could cause chaos. It was fascinating. A
village of two halves -the living and the working; yet both parts
exquisitely deisgned, quaint, picturesque and funtional. Probably the
most interesting village I have been to in a long while, and all
discovered on accident.

And so another warm vacation ends, and it is back to freezing Beijing.

When a motorbike points at a Volcano

First we were warned of the dangers of driving motorbikes into the north of Bali with stories of corrupt police officers questioning licenses (solution: pretend to be unable to speak English and shove a 5 dollar note their way) or gas fillers disabling the choke and charging a small fortune to fix it; then we put on our helmets and headed north. We managed to spend at least ten minutes gazing at the very unimpressive Gunung Kawa (some stone statues) which may impress some, but pale in comparison to sights seen elsewhere in Asia, and waited out a rainstorm drinking free coffee (not the Lawak coffee though which is too rare for them to offer for free; reason being it is made of coffee beans that have been eaten and excreted by a local animal which give the coffee a very special taste apparently, and take a long time to find and collect) and tea at local plantations. In mid-afternoon we arrived at Gunung Batur.

At first, there was nothing to see. We were at the edge of a crater, and the spot where we arrived was shrouded in mist and cloud, but as we descended down into the crater we could see a volcano cone in the middle, itself covered in cloud. Finding a hotel, we immediately set off and ended up driving around the central cone on a poor road, but one that took us through the remains of previous lava flows which were truly impressive. There was evidence of off-road tracks that local youth must have great fun playing on up and down the rocks, but I managed to resist driving over them as time was getting on. We just about managed to get back to the top of the crater, where we had been several hours earlier, but now with the mist cleared, to get beautiful dusk views of the crater, the cone in the middle and the lake at one end.

The next day we hit a small path that went up the opposite side of the crater through numerous small villages and up very steep paths that pushed our motorbikes to the limit to get more stunning views. At the top we continued around the outside of the crater; drove back down to the middle and up again and headed back to Ubud, via more tea and coffee samplings. It was a fantastic overnight trip -the freedom of the motorbikes, the countryside roads and the small paths around the volcano were incredible; probably the second highlight of the trip after the smoking volcano of Bromo a few days earlier. To top it all off, as we rolled into Ubud we went down a side-street and ended up watching a cock fight. Both Dad and I were surprised the the fight was over so quickly. Then we noticed each Cock had a knife tied to one of its feet which explained things. Anyway, two fights, a lot of blood and some interesting video footage later, we headed back for a night in another incredible hotel-cum-house-cum-temple.