The new walk to work... part 2

After leaving Leah, the walk continues through the area of kilimani which is highly mixed with some bungalows used as offices, some as houses, some small apartment blocks, some newer offer buildings of several stories high, and some more construction. Most of the roads lack pavements, but occasionally they appear, particularly once we get through Kilimani. Not having pavements is a pain after it rains when the muddy sides of the roads can dirty shoes and trousers; especially outside the construction sites.

As I walk through Kilimani. I pass a Lebanese restaurant and an Italian restaurant, a petrol station, the office of the Irish foreign investment/tourism agency, a beauty parlour, a couple of local restaurants, and more kindergartens. There's also a Chinese restaurant on a side street. Outside Kilimani the next stretch is on a fairly new road with excellent pavements. On the corner, beside a roundabout, there's some people selling hand-made furniture, plants, and porcelain bathroom equipment. There's also a street-stall selling breakfast. Opposite is the office of Lavington Security, a private security company that provides many of the security guards for the buildings in the area (which soon turns into Lavington), and a massive new office block under construction.

As I turn right at the roundabout there is a very steep decline and incline in order to cross another river at the bottom of the hill. Near the bottom there are frequently a few people sitting with a noticeboard displaying some magazines, which i think are religious (christian). Along this stretch there is actually a cycle lane next to the pavement, and separated from the road, which is mostly used by the odd motorbike, though there is also the odd cyclist too (usually pushing their bike up the hill). On one part of the road are a few people washing cars; all over Nairobi there are people offering to wash cars: it is so dusty that it is a good business to be in and i pass several more men washing cars every morning, not that the water they are using (usually taken from the storm drain beside the road) is that clean to begin with!

In fact the number of people selling plants may be the only close rival to the car wash industry in terms of road-side jobs. Probably pushing second place would be food stands; and then in certain areas there's plenty of shoe shine people.

At the next roundabout, where there is always a traffic jam during rush hour, I cross over, past a new apartment building under construction, and then another that is already open. This is the enjoyable part - a good pavement and a flat road, and it is usually referred to as Kileleshwa. Past some more breakfast people and car wash people, down another steep hill to cross a river and back up the other side, to another turning.

This is off a main road, which means it is bumpy (both with more speed bumps as well as potholes), and lacking pavements again! it is also fairly posh. This is now Lavington proper, a nice area. I pass a bungalow offering gymnastics and a montessori school, as well as a high school. There are plenty of nice bungalows and town houses (more on that another time). Shortly we come to the Huawei office where there is a new mini roundabout. The other side of our office is a shopping mall (there is another one just around the corner of this one too). Shopping malls are a recurring theme.. this one has the usual with cafes, chemists, supermarkets, fast/snack food, dry cleaners, cake shops, banks, a shoe shine and more, but I'll go into that another time.

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The new walk to work...part 1

We moved to a new office around 2 months ago, which is exactly the opposite direction from the previous one, and a slightly longer walk. However the walk itself is very different to the previous one.

Since Leah is now at kindergarten, and it is kind of on my way to work, the walk starts with Leah alongside me. Usually, to save time, I take her in the buggy, but sometimes she wants to walk. If so then she walks on the very narrow pavement and carefully avoids holes and stones whilst talking about them. First we walk past a local kindergarten and a boutique hotel, then we turn left and the road makes a short dip as the road crosses a river. Here we often see a dog; possibly stray, or possibly belonging to one of the workers on the construction site by the river. In this part of town, typically all the houses were single storey bungalows with large gardens and car parks. Now, thankfully, developers have begun building apartment blocks, including the one we live in (which is 8 floors high) and the new one alongside the river.

As we walk back up the short hill, a proper pavement appears, as does speed bumps in the road. In fact Kenya makes very good use of speed bumps all over the place--in residential areas, on main roads, and even on highways, where there are sometimes pedestrian crossings and speed bumps are used to slow traffic down beforehand, even in 4 lane highways. It can make it very slow going on many of the main roads, particularly as often the speed bumps are ginormous and even occasionally scrape the bottom of cars.

Then we pass a serviced apartment complex and at the junction with a main road do a quick right and left to cross over it. On the corner is a man with a small cart selling eggs under an umbrella; next to him is a bus (also known as a matatu) stop. Matatus stop very frequently and often drive badly, but in town at least they tend to use the bus stops which enables them to pull in from the road and let traffic past. On the other corner we often see a Boda Boda (i.e. motorbike taxi) driver, wearing their luminous (and sponsored with advertising) yellow top. We then continue past the trendy hotel, which used to be a Best Western and is now a brand of Sheraton. As with all hotels there are a couple of security guards at the gate which check cars before they can go in (there is also an airport style x-ray machine at the hotel entrance). The security guards often greet Leah, and she often greets them back. I like to think it brightens up their day a tiny bit!

Next we go over a couple more speed bumps which Leah often decides to run over, a part of the road with many broken bricks which Leah likes to slowly walk over one-by-one, past a lady cooking and selling corn-on-the-cobs on a stove under her umbrella, past another construction site (this one for a large office building i think) and to another junction.

Here we turn left, past another many with a cart selling eggs and sausages, past the local police station and then arrive at the gate to Leah's kindergarten - manned by a security guard who Leah rarely greets, possibly because it is at this point that it is time to enter "distraction mode" to prevent Leah crying as she says "no school". The distractions usually include looking at the playground or the rabbits, or the toys, or the teacher, or something else. After leaving Leah at the kindergarten (10 minutes after leaving home if Leah is in the buggy, or 20 minutes if she is walking) it is time for part 2...

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Kenya's parks

In March when my dad was here, we took a day trip out to Hell's Gate and Naivasha Lake; I had been before on my own, but this time we went as a family: first taking a boat out on the lake, then having lunch at one of the resorts by the lake, and then cycling in the National Park.

The kids enjoyed the lake; there are many different places where someone will take you around the lake in a speedboat and there's not national park fee or anything. It's an enjoyable hour or so and the kids like spotting hippos as well as the many birds. The guide's party trick, or throwing a dead fish into the water for an eagle to fly down from a tree and grab in its mouth always goes down well. Alongside the lake are many different resorts or campsites; where we took our boat from is one of the colonial legacy ones, where a famous conservationist once lived. We had lunch at a different one, which also had horse riding and always keeps Hannah entertained. They also have a playground, pool, bar and other things that might entice back for an overnight stay.

Hell's Gate is famed for its spectacular gorge which has only recently been formed and is getting deeper all the time from erosion, and also famed for its cliffs which inspired the scene in the Lion King where Simba's father gets caught in a stampede and cannot climb out. It's one of the only National Parks with large animals but which you can walk and cycle in as it lacks most dangerous animals (there are Buffalo, but otherwise, mostly Giraffe, Zebra and smaller animals). As with most National Parks there is a steep entrance fee for tourists, and a much cheaper entrance fee for locals, and also a cheaper fee for foreigners who are residents in Kenya.

The kids sat on the back of the bikes, as we cycled, and enjoyed spotting animals. The main cycling route is kind of a figure D, and most people just go up and down the main straight I, but there are a couple of shortcuts across the C part which is what we did, as doing the whole D with kids on the back would have taken too long. Actually most of the animals are also along the I or near it, so it is not that useful for animal spotting to do the much extra and harder distance on the D. The route has the odd signpost and it is also possible to hire bikes at the entrance, or from locals nearby the Park (as I did last time I came alone). Some of the roads are even tarmac to allow for access to the geothermal plants there which generate major amounts of renewable electricity for the country, but are generally quite well concealed and don't disturb the view or animals much.

Hannah also walked along the gorge and enjoyed the entrance, which is particularly tricky and fun to descend down (we had to carry Leah as it was too tough for her), and as usual she befriended our guide and enjoyed talking to him. She won't usually walk far if only with her parents, but if she's with a friend (a child or an adult), she'll walk forever! There's a small shop at the entrance to the gorge, and some local women have a small Masai Market too, but generally National Parks in Kenya are barebone: just natural, with a map at the entrance, not too many signs, few shops or toilets (most parks with animals you can't get out the car anyway), and generally fairly few people around. They are enjoyable experiences for a few hours, though for some people, spending longer may only be enjoyable in the parks with cycling and walking (usually the ones without many animals, like Mount Kenya) rather than spending a lot of time in a vehicle.

Over the Easter weekend we went to Nakuru, another National Park and Lake further out West, past Naivasha. Here the attraction is the land around the lake, where there are rare White Rhinos (which we saw) amongst other animals. We went in our own car, though hired a guide, who took us on one or two off-road paths, and we got stuck for a while in the mud. Even with our 4 x 4, but we managed to escape without getting mauled and continued on the circular trip around the lake, finally glancing a sleeping lion near the end. Nakuru is actually the most expensive National Park in the country (along with one other) whilst other National Parks are lower down on a sliding scale. It might be because Nakuru is fairly small compared to other parks, and it is easy and quick to see many different animals, but I may have to ask around to find out if there is a more scientific reason!

Nakuru, like some of the larger Parks have accommodation inside them, usually quite expensive and quite nice. We had a look at one as we contemplated having lunch there (though decided not to in the end as the lunch menu was very limited). It was a fairly typical place, often called a "camp", though the tents are permanent tents, on concrete, with a concrete bathroom at the back with toilets/showers ensuring each tent is en-suite, and you sleep in a regular bed inside the tent... the only thing that makes it a tent is that most of the covering over the room is indeed canvas, but it's not camping as we're used to back home! The camp also had a swimming pool. The camp is in the National Park so is surrounded by a fence of course to keep out any animals, though Nakuru also has some more traditional campsites, i.e. some land where you can pitch your own tent, and these don't have any fences around them; I read that the staff may light a fire to keep animals away. I'm not sure we'll be doing that with Andrea and the kids though anytime soon.

Nearby Nakuru we also visited the Menengai Crater, which also has a small entrance fee, though is not an official National Park. It is one of the largest craters in the World, and there are some spectacular views from the top, which you can actually drive up to. No-one was actually living inside the crater (though there was a lot of vegetation and some new geothermal plants being dug), but many people live along the sides and nearby the crater, presumably with fertile soils from previous eruptions. It's certainly worth the short trip from the National Park.

As the Kenya Wildlife Service website explains, 8% of the Kenya's land mass is protected area for wildlife conservation. The protected areas comprise of 23 terrestrial National Parks, 28 terrestrial National Reserves, 4 marine National Parks, 6 marine National Reserves and 4 national sanctuaries. Protected areas in Kenya are categorized either as parks or reserves. The distinction between the two categories is: in parks there is complete protection of natural resources and the only activities allowed are tourism and research. On the other hand in reserves, human activities are allowed under specific conditions. These activities are for instance fishing in marine reserves or firewood collection in terrestrial reserves. 

A lot of Kenya's wildlife lives outside Protected Areas, this is because most of the protected areas are not fully fenced, and hence wildlife moves in and out of these areas in search of pasture and water during certain periods within the year. When they move out of the protected areas, they interact with people on private and community land causing human wildlife conflict. This therefore requires that KWS embraces a strategic partnership with communities living in wildlife areas.

The Wildlife Conservation and Management Act categorizes the country's species of wildlife into four classes: critically endangered species; vulnerable species; nearly threatened species; and protected species. Harming endangered or threatened species can lead to life imprisonment and/or a fine of US$230,000. Though interestingly until the law was updated recently, the fine was only $400 and ten years in prison. The main species protected in these categories are elephant, leopard, lion, rhinoceros, giraffes, and some specific monkeys, zebra and so on.

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Climbing to Kenya's highest point

Taking advantage of an Easter holiday for the first time in 15 odd years, and the fact i didn't have any kids to take care of, I thought it would be a good time to do some serious mountain climbing and promptly drove off early up to Mount Kenya one morning. The plan was to stay 3 nights and do 4 days hiking. The plan changed.

Once i got to the entrance of the Mountain with a guide and a porter (though the porter was only carrying food as well as his own things, which i think may have been somewhat unnecessary--i'd think the guide and I could have managed that) we started up towards the mountain. It looked a very long way away. We started at 2,500m altitude and began up a tarmac road, quickly crossing the equator (as marked by a sign) and after an hour had picnic lunch. Another hour or so hiking and we reached Old Moses camp at 3,300m. It was only 2.30pm and I was not aware that we were done for the day. Not wanting to do nothing the rest of the day, I decided we'd do the start on the next 5-6 hours walk that was supposed to be the next day's task.

Once we left Old Moses camp, we were offroad and quickly above the altitude where trees grow. Now it was just heather, small bushes, and plants. Having only come across one group whilst we'd stopped for lunch, we didn't see anyone else the rest of the day. There was a great view back towards the plains around the mountain but we began making progress towards the peak. I was hoping it wouldn't take 5-6 hours. Just before the official half-way point up the mountain there was a fairly steep part which was fairly tough because of the altitude.

After the half-way mark it was only a gentle uphill walk along a river, but it was a long walk. 4 hours after leaving the camp it was getting dark so we took the torches out just as we started up another fairly steep part, and at this point, after more than 7 hours of hiking up hill, my legs were beginning to feel it. In the dark, of course, it's not possible to see where the end point is --so i was desperately hoping to see a light bulb or something in the distance where we'd stop for the night. After a false alert, which was a campsite, eventually we made it, and once i sat down in the cold hut, I immediately got cramp.

The guide went out to look for the porter who was somewhere behind us and once they came back they cooked dinner. Meanwhile others in the camp were dancing to try to keep warm. The camp had some lighting from solar panels, and was a solid building, but it was cold. Below zero. Quickly everyone was putting on lots of clothes and jumping into sleeping bags on the bunk beds. Possible because of of the altitude and partly because of the cold (the camp is at 4,300m), even though I was exhausted it took me a while to get to sleep.

We were supposed to get up at 3am to hike up to the peak for sunrise, but I was not too keen on doing that during the dark, without much sleep, and without much time for my legs to recover. So I told the guy at 3am we should leave at 7am instead. A good decision... by 7am, I was feeling better and it was light. And the path was really tough, almost 90 degrees scrambling up a cliff face for more than 2 hours at high altitude which meant going very slowly and having to stop frequently. It was hard work, it was slippery, and the peak still seemed a long way away!

After an hour we had caught up with a group that had set off at 4am trying to get the sunrise but with a large group had not made much progress. At this point there was only rock, no plants or anything can grow at this altitude. After another hour and a half we'd made it to the top of the Lenana peak, around 5,000m up. There's another peak slightly higher but it requires mountaineering equipment to scale that.

Of course the views were incredible and the feeling of accomplishment fantastic. It had taken about 10-11 hours over the previous day and that morning to get there. At the top there was even a phone signal (there was not in the valleys where much of the walking up took place). Then the long long trek down the hill, and it was really far away. The initial hour or two was very steep and fairly tricky; then there was another 6 hours or gentle descent through beautiful terrain that reminded me sometimes of the original Jurassic Park movie, with some strange plants, some large valleys and small ponds.

After a while I started to feel like I was getting blisters but eventually, after some very windy paths which were very indirectly going to the end, we made it to the next camp. It had taken about 7 hours to get all the way down and we'd been walking fairly quickly and done a fair distance. I think something like 40,000 steps each day. This camp was down at 3,000m and was not too cold. We'd arrived a day early, and since I had some things to do back in Nairobi, then got picked up from the camp the next day (the camp is on a small track) to drive back. This last camp is actually still 30km from the main road, but few people walk that, though it was downhill and fairly pretty.

I had needed the night's sleep before the 4 hour drive back to Nairobi that morning. And I needed a nice milkshake with some sugar once I was back in Nairobi. It was the highest mountain i had climbed, and probably the most walking i had done in a day, but it was enjoyable and worthwhile. The photos are great, and the memories will last a long time! Some photos are here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/adamsphotos/albums/72157680787302861

Kenya's beaches

With my dad visiting it was time to take the family to the beach for a few days last month. Kenya's East Coast has some stunning beaches, and lots of them,most of the Coast in fact, whether it is Diani, South of Mombasa, North of Mombasa, near Kilifi, Malindi or further up on the islands in Lamu. On the coast its a hot and steamy 35 most of the year, though cooler with the sea breeze or when the rains come.

It's a big tourism draw for foreigners and Kenyans, with hundreds of resorts, some of which are very fancy, strung out along the coast. Those on the beach are often very large parcels of land with many nice huts or villas and multiple pools as well as bars. Those set back from the beach are often much cheaper, often smaller with just a few huts surrounding a pool. Staying there saves money and one can still go use the public beach, or even the private beaches at other resorts if using those resorts' bars or restaurants.

Kite surfing seems to be the in-thing nowadays, though its also possible to go jet skiing (which i did, and very much enjoyed, as did Hannah who spent a while on the jet ski too), camel riding and taking glass-bottomed boats as well as snorkeling. To be honest, there was nothing too dramatic to see where we stayed but I believe other parts of the coast, which have protected marine parks, have more to see. The beaches themselves are almost perfect white sand beaches that stretch for miles. Indeed they are make great places to go running, at low tide anyway.

The kids had lots of fun playing in the sand, swimming in the sea, and also playing in the pool, even though the water is so warm (both the pool and the sea) it is barely even refreshing. We ended up paying a small fortune for some sand toys at one of the few shops around (The Diani area does have a few small shopping malls but they are very touristy and unfortunately quite expensive) but it kept the kids very happy.

Last week, I was back at the beach for work, speaking at and participating in a conference. It's quite common to have conferences at these kinds of places. People like to get away from Nairobi, and once they are there, they are often stuck there and can't sneak out part way through. It also means people stay for the dinners and evenings which are both fun and useful for conversations. A change of scenery does seem to help and of course people are much more laid back on the coast; almost no-one wore a suit, and everyone was fairly open to talking to different people whilst of course being able to enjoy a drink since no driving home was involved.

I attended the same event last year, but just flew in and out for 2 days. This time it was much more enjoyable and more useful, since I already knew several people and got to know many more people, especially in the government who I'll be talking with frequently. As with last year, the attendance was very good, the topics were decent, the location excellent, and the general atmosphere very positive and conductive to sharing ideas to drive technology forward in Kenya. I'm looking forward to next year!

Talking

An explosion happened in the last 2 months. From saying only a handful of words, Leah is now talking non-stop and hundreds of words, often in long sentences (Hannah play with baba, mama play with me; lots hot milk etc). It means you can start to have conversations, but it also means she can express herself better which has meant an end to the occasional biting or throwing herself on the floor in exasperation which is nice.

She is getting on really well with Hannah, though she has become too attached to Andrea, since she's seeing Andrea for a few hours a day once she is back from kindergarten. Speaking of which, she is very happy at kindergarten--which is probably helping with her English--which is just a short walk away and once of the best we saw out of many. Of course they have nice teachers, small classes, lunch, naps and plenty of toys etc. They also have rabbits, parent-teacher meetings and the like which is more than many of the other kindergartens that we saw.

She's still not yet into sharing, but she is almost there. She gets the one for me and one for you aspect--indeed she often proactively suggests that as a way to get what she wants! She has apparently started singing songs at kindergarten and is talking to herself sometimes at home. She still loves digging in the sand and dirt downstairs as well as running everywhere. She's stopped always putting her fingers up like little bunny ears when we try to take photos, but she has also begun to dislike being in photos sometimes, or tries to make funny faces.

She's got a strong mind and seems smart, with a good memory and sometimes is a very helpful little "google assistant", listening to conversations and reacting if she hears something that makes sense, like fetching something or responding to a conversation if she thinks it may somehow relate to her. She's also begun to lose her tummy which is good though both her and Hannah still eat way too many carbs.

I'm sure the next few months will be more amusing as Hannah and Leah start to have real conversations with each other. Hannah is already having long conversations, telling stories, and talking to strangers non-stop. She has a lot to say, and it will be fun to hear what Leah has to say in response!

Barcelona

i have justs spent a few days in Barcelona for work, at the mobile world congress, one of the world's largest technology conferences, and which i also attended two years ago. The conference was just like two years ago: enormous, interesting and somewhat fun.

Huawei's booth was the largest by some way focusing on the latest trends and solutions we offer for telecommunications companies, then there was the smaller one displaying our latest phones and smart watches, and another one looking at more futuristic technology: the driverless car simulation, the high definition and virtual reality widescreen camera that you could control from home to select what you want to watch (e.g. of a football match), the robots playing music, and the merged reality which you watch through the headset but can still interact with by wearing special gloves. There was also the virtual reality zombie shooting game which was a little disorientating. Outside town there was a connected car demonstation we did with Vodafone at the Barcelona racetrack, which was also the location for the Formula 1 testing so we also saw (and certainly heard) the racecars zooming by.

Unlike my previous visit I had some time to explore the beautiful old town of Barcelona with some stunning cathedrals, churches and buildings (as well as the weird) and the pretty squares or piazas. I was very impressed with the gothic quarter in particular, and at how many old and beautiful buildings there were. It is a very walkable city, with some nice shops and interesting buildings, though nothing too modern or extravagent that would ruin the overall feeling. I also noticed a lot of kids playgrounds everywhere... i guess this is something that is near the top of my consciousness nowadays!

There is an excellent nightlife, a pleasent seafront, a few nice parks, and some good museums. The main one, next to the cathedral is incredibly well done and allows you to explore Barcelona throughout the ages by actually exploing the archaeological ruins under the building. I also managed to pop into the small Jewish museum. One evening was spent at a spectacular art gallery on a hill overlooking Barcelona at a Huawei party for customers and guests wich some great food and entertainment. Another evening was spent at the Nou Camp watching Barcelona win a football match 6-1. 

There was plenty of time to eat some nice croissants, excellent tapas and paella, as well as sample local beers and wines. It was a tiring trip with lots of walking and lots of working at the exhibition, but it was also good to see many colleagues from China and other countries around the world who also work in Public Affairs or other departments and who I had not seen for a while.

The girls' first week--and the kids making the move

The girls have been here more than a week now. We've found a Chinese nanny, ditched her and found another one -- this one should be much better, not only because she lives in the same community which is more convenient, but because she is our age, rather than a grandmother. There's a big difference in parenting style as well as language and physical capabilities. More on that another time.

Hannah's had her first week in the German kindergarten and all is well so far; lots of play, after school activities (like hip hop, running and things) and the like. So far she is managing ok with the early starts and lack of a lunchtime nap as long as she goes to bed early in the evenings. Not sure yet on how the German is coming along, but let's give it a few weeks and see.

Andrea's had a few job interviews and things look quite promising. They're happy in the apartment, sparse as it is until our things arrive in Shenzhen in a few weeks. We've bought a few things locally which should arrive this week or next week which will make things more interesting.

The kids have found some Chinese, Kenyan and Foreign friends, and hopefully will make some close friendships. They've enjoyed their weekends at some of Nairobi's best fun fairs and shopping malls. Yesterday one of them organized a special kids' activity for Valentine's Day that kept them busy with arts, bouncy castles, games, lego, face paining and even cake. It's an incredible shopping mall of which more another time. Today we spent the day at a fun fair, all day, in the heat and sun--without anyone getting sunburnt which is a big achievement! Every day is dry, hot and sunny.Every evening is nice and cool.

Last weekend we went to a coffee plantation in the countryside that has some kids activities and also went to a kid's birthday party (in a very nice house). Andrea's seen a local food market as well as the supermarkets; we've also been to the local crafts area with locals making all manner of things out of wood, metal and clay (such as beds, playground equipment and plant pots).

I think it is fair to say the kids have been spoilt with their weekends and their friends. But at least they are happy; as is Andrea. It is actually incredible how easy the move has been for Hannah... from before we left, telling her we were going to China, until coming here (via a couple of weeks in Europe). Maybe it is because she was excited to learn German in Kenya; maybe it is because she remembers the move from Beijing positively (and still remembers some of the people there who she saw occasionally) and how she had no problem making new friends again--and indeed is always making new friends in England, Germany and eslewhere; maybe it is because she just picks up positive vibes from us; or maybe it is just because she was excited to spend the 2 weeks in Europe so leaving China was easier.

Obviously we did our best to talk about the positives, not say things about not seeing people again and raise the possibility of seeing some of her friends again. But honestly I think it is all down to Hannah. She is always open, quick to make new friends. Obviously we don't quite know what is happening at the new kindergarten with her teachers and friends but if Hannah is happy then it must be alright. Leah of course, as a 2-year old, has less to worry about, less understanding of what is happening, and less ability to say anything anyway! But she's been fine (almost too fine!) never seeing the nanny again who she loved for almost two years.

It is, in summary, amazing how well we, as people, can adapt to new places, jobs, environments, and people. But it is much more incredible that kids can do it, when they can't think logically, of big pictures, or even rationally much of the time.

Life in Nairobi and Life on the walk to work

As with moving to Shenzhen two years ago, I'm alone for a month so I'm in a simple regular routine involving walking to and from the office, cooking dinner in the evening whilst watching something on TV (such as the Crown or Sherlock) and relaxing at the weekend with some running and even swimming in the pool too.

We've intentionally chosen to live in one of the apartment complexes with many others from Huawei so that the kids will have other Chinese kids to play with and keep their language skills.It is an area with a significant Chinese presence; not too far from the Chinese embassy and with at least a dozen Chinese restaurants within a few miles as well as a couple of Chinese hotels and office buildings built by Chinese. We're also planning to employ a Chinese nanny for Leah to keep the language skills up (the nanny being a grandma who is here with her family but with some spare time on her hands).

The area, suitable for Andrea, is also the main hub for NGOs and start-ups in Nairobi. Like much of Nairobi, which is mostly a combination of suburbs around a downtown, it is fairly green with some gentle hills. We have lots of birds and also some monkeys that come by looking for food.There's 3 large shopping malls within a ten minute walk; one of which has a cinema. All of which have metal detectors that you need to get through before being allowed in (a shopping mall in another part of town was subject to a large terrorist attach a few years ago, from Somali terrorists angry at Kenya's role in Somalia).

Safety is of course a concern in Kenya--particularly in comparison to China, probably one of the safest places in the World due to the large number of security cameras, police and security guards, and enforcement/punishment of crime among other factors. Kenya has made tremendous progress in recent years, with more security cameras and police, as well as security in shopping malls. There's also many private security employed by different apartment complexes and houses. However there is no denying the risk is real-which means not walking alone outside at night in particular, though in general during the daytime it is safe. This is something we'll need to adapt to (more taxi, less walking).

In fact the walk to and from work is quite pleasant. The temperature it not too hot, the skies blue and the sun shining (there is a rainy season though at some points of the year). Along the way I walk past quite a lot which I'll list so it gives a sense of Nairobi. I walk from a suburban area towards downtown but about 2/3rds of the way to downtown veer off to one of the main business districts, which is also not too far from the main government buildings.

- a couple of boutique style hotels

- the Chinese Xinhua Media Agency,
- the China Center,
- some road widening,
- a Christian hospital and a couple of churches,
- several Matatu stops,
- a couple of busy junctions where there are policeman at rush hour directing traffic (though a smart traffic light system may be coming in the future, even where there are traffic lights in Nairobi, they aren't used much with policemen preferred),
- the new buildings for Nairobi Hospital (a private hospital) and several other health centers (dentists, opticians etc) as well as the Kenyatta National Hospital (the largest public Hospital) and its Medical Training College,

- a company selling solar panels

- a second-hand car shop

- the National Library and their unfinished new building,

- the European Union Embassy,

- the Japanese Embassy,

- several banks and insurance companies' headquarters

- Coca-cola's office

- the Teacher's Union building

- several shacks which serve as hairdressers or restaurants

- several newspaper and snack stands and a few shoe-shining guys

- 3 or more beggars (always in the same spot every day, all day long)

- 5 or more local street sellers, usually selling fruit, breakfast of some kind, or something else

- several motorbike taxis hanging around on the corner

New Year and first experiences living in Nairobi

New Year has never been a particularly big deal for us in China (though it is a long weekend public holiday) but it is a slightly bigger deal in Kenya as most people take the Christmas-to-New Year (and often more days afterwards) off to go back to their village. The most significant consequence of that? Absolutely zero traffic on the roads over New Year! Even on the Friday before New Year's which was a normal working day (in theory) there was no traffic at rush hour (a week later the traffic at rush hour is definitely back!). 

Over the weekend I met some friends for lunch along with a walk and run in the fantastic Karura Forest (somewhat like the Lane tradition in the UK, yet it was 25 degrees here, rather than 5 degrees in the UK!). There is a wonderful cafe in the forest with great views, a small playground and good food. I suspect we'll be going there regularly. The forest itself has a variety of routes for walking, and I returned there on New Year's Day for the 15km run (it covers most of the man paths in the forest) which has been a regular weekend activity for me in previous visits to Nairobi and is still really nice. 

I had to dodge a deer and see a monkey run away from me and it always smells very nice. Much of the route is on tracks, usually with a gradient though there are some stretches properly off-road through the woods and up or down some steep inclines. It is mostly in the shade so it is not too hot.

I've been walking to and from work to get some exercise (35 minutes walk) and since it is quite cool in the mornings and late afternoons (low twenties) it is pleasent. It only heats up to the high twenties during the middle of the day (which today I took advantage of to use the swmming pool in our apartment complex for the first time, even though the water was pretty cold). I also did some shopping for the apartment, though we'll be trying to get by on the basics until the stuff from China gets here.

Kenyan supermarkets are very similar to those in the UK and very different to those in China. All the usual Western brands and products as well as food items (even Branston Pickle, which goes well in a toasted cheese sandwhich, since i'm not much of a cook). And cheaper than it was to buy the same imported products in China. It also seems like many of the shopping malls have outdoor kids playgrounds which is nice. It is a nice shopping experience and exciting to have easy access to certain little treats (the mince pies are cheap now post-christmas!) though I have forgotten how little food one actually gets through when living alone and only really eating one meal a day.

As would be expected, with the low average incomes, many things that are produced/provided locally are quite reasonable, and this includes cinemas. It seems like Kenyans aren't really into the cinema yet as prices are low and seats always available.  I've taken advantage of that (and I recommend the film, Why Him? as a surprisingly good comedy) with the local cinema a ten minute walk away.

Kenyans enjoy going out to eat and drink (the middle classes, obviously) and apart from the local snack stalls and restaurants downtown, in the suburbs all the restauants are basically bungalows with large car parks, outdoor seating, and a barbeque for grilling meat. It means most restaurants are quite hidden and also spread out down various leafy lanes. There's a range of Chinese restaurants as well as other international cuisines. I'm looking forward to exploring more of them in the future!

A new adventure: Moving to Kenya

On Thursday I finally flew to Kenya to start a new job and a new life; having spent almost 2 months off working through various recruitment approvals and processes as I moved from Huawei HQ to Huawei Kenya. Andrea and the girls will be here in a month after stopping by Europe.

It's a big deal. I think the change surprises others (who never thought we'd ever leave China) more than us. There's several reasons for the move such as work and education but it's one step closer to Europe and time for a new, and interesting adventure, after spending such a long time in China.

China is still an interesting place of course, though it is probably changing less nowadays, and I remain interested in seeing how the future there evolves. None-the-less, whilst hoping we don't regret leaving one of the safest countries in the world and one of the easiest and most convenient lifestyles there is, a new adventure is exciting and interesting personally and professionally--some things are in place and others are not, but over the next few months we'll work things out as a family.

I expect a whole new raft of blogs if I find the time about the new experience and the new life--and some updates on how things are going. As ever the blog is part a personal diary and reflection and part an update for anyone that is interested.

So come to Kenya--a place with easy-to-get e-visas, fantastic climate year-round, and a relatively safe and mosquito-free environment plus of course national parks, beaches and much more. It is one of the most dynamic and leading countries in Africa and a bit of a shining light....long may it continue!

The consumer benefits of a very large market

China is a large country with a large population--and this causes many challenges but it also creates many opportunities, not least because almost the entire population speaks (and reads) the same language, and is of the same ethnicity.

For technology companies it is hugely helpful to have such a large market speaking the same language, using the same regulatory system, having similar interests, and even using the same banks. When trying to scale up services this makes it much easier to invest money and get fast results at a large scale compared to having to do this across multiple countries where none of these factors are true. This is one reason why many of the Chinese technology companies are so successful and able to invest in innovation: because one single service can quickly be rolled out to several hundreds of millions of people.

There is also a whole ecosystem that works together at large scale: the same suppliers and distributors are often nationwide and thus good partners for companies. And with such tremendously large and dense urban populations, like Shenzhen for example, which are also fairly wealthy, with good infrastructure, and with many relatively wealthy people within them, it is a consumer's paradise.

Having lived in Shenzhen you can find a dozen providers of organic food who will bring food to your door daily, that you order in advance on an app, hundreds of restaurants nearby who will deliver food to you (also ordered on an app or by phone if one really prefers) directly or indirectly (through a delivery company), and millions of locally manufactured products that will be at your door within 24 hours. In fact there is almost too much choice!

Then of course there are the additional services. Shenzhen has more than a dozen trampoline parks (last year there was only 1), more than 4 large theme parks, a wildlife park, multiple beaches, hundreds of parks, hundreds of shopping malls (all with cinemas, playgrounds and more inside), several exhibition centers and so on. No matter what you are looking for, you can find it simply because there is such a large market. Even if you are part of a very niche market, that would be sizable enough for someone to cater to it--whether it is a strange hobby or a weird product.

As so many things are made in China, even things that the Chinese don't want you can still buy in China--such as a toasted cheese maker (though online rather than taking up space in shops). But it is also imported products.I don't think any Chinese would eat smoked salmon but its easy to buy online from a company who imports it and then sends it across the country to your door still frozen within a day due to the good logistics system (and suitable packaging). I also don't know who would want to buy a Christmas advent calendar but there are several available; or Original Source Tea Leaves Shampoo - but even that is available online that someone has already imported into China and can send to you. In fact even this availability of imported goods is only possible when you have such a large domestic market.

Governments have been able to invest in infrastructure; companies have been able to invest in services and supply chains; and consumers get a fantastically convenient life. Spoilt......

An early birthday party and getting the balance right as parents

Since Hannah would not be in China in a few weeks for her actual birthday, we needed to have a birthday party (and kind of a leaving party) for her close friends.

We opted not to go for the outside option (previously we had done this before at playgrounds/with cooking and a popular option nowadays is trampolining) and instead go again with the at-home option: a very traditional party with a theme (the film" Frozen"), games (from "musical statues" to "treasure hunt" to "pass the parcel"), a cake made by the birthday girl's mother and so on. The parents were happy to ditch their kids for a few hours. We struggled to keep tensions from boiling over and an eye on everything, but it was a success.

I had a very careful balancing act with timing the music for "pass the parcel" to ensure everyone got something and to manage expectations for all those who did not actually win the final prize (which was then shared with everyone else anyway) and Andrea and I had a similar challenge with the "treasure hunt" outside (where we did some of the games).

The kids made pizza and caused lots of chaos: it was a fairly stressful 3 hours but they all enjoyed it which was the aim, of course. Except for Hannah who enjoyed some of it, but had a massive breakdown during some of the games. First when her ball didn't go in the circle in her early attempts and she was told to go to the back of the line and wait her turn to try again (yet some of her other friends got the ball in the circle earlier than her), and then during the treasure hunt when she had trouble accepting she could not be the first person to find every single "treasure". In fact such a possibility was hinted at in the babycenter.com weekly newsletter about birthday parties!

Just as predicted, Hannah had been very excited for several days (several times each day asking how many more days until her party), was also a little stressed, and was keen to be the center of attention. Hannah has always liked to be the "leader" and "number 1" - which she often is, with a younger sister who looks up to her - and we like to encourage her to be proactive and approach other friends and so on, but we do also have trouble striking a balance in saying it is ok not to always win, for others to win, and for you still to be happy. Clearly we still have some work to do! I think it will help when she moves school. We'll still want her to be extrovert of course and to make new friends, but in a school with more European kids of her size and more extrovert personality (many Chinese kids, especially girls, are quite introvert) she will have to adapt. She has done so before when playing with older kids in other environments, so I'm sure she'll be fine.

It is a tricky balance: supporting a child to grow according to their personality and what is needed to be successful and happy - a balance between extroversion and introversion; leadership and teamwork; strong willingness and compassion and so on. Of course everyone has their own personality, but we all need to adapt based on context and environment to some extent.

Another difficult balance to strike is around spoiling children. We don't think we spoil our kids. They have a nice life, and they have most things. We let them have fun but they don't always get what they want (such as ice cream every day, a little electric sit-in car, roller blades that will only be used once, limits on fair ground rides and so on). Certainly we try to ensure we get what we want and that our kids listen to us, but it's not always easy (especially when children are tired)... lots of compromise and another balance: between rewards, punishments, and trying not to always have to use rewards or punishments as a motivational tool! We think it's ok so far but we continue to learn as parents.

Having said all that, giving Hannah three parties (of a sort) in China, England and Germany won't help!

Chinese Food (and drink)

The last few days in China have led me to reflect on Chinese food since it will be something that will not be as readily available once we leave China.

China has a large variety of food that varies by region, but with so much internal migration there is a lot of each region's food available in other regions - and what most restaurants have in common is a large menu!

There are a lot of favorites that I'd always tend to order--usually vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, eggplant, green beans, stewed radish, egg and tomato for example. We're not a fan of cold dishes (a requisite "starter" in China) too much but the smashed cucumber with garlic is good. Meet can be hit and miss in China with some highly variable quality: especially chicken, with lots of bones, and pork with lots of fat so beef is a safer bet and lamb is quite rare (though fantastic when cooked with cumin). From very spicy to sweet and sour or just fried with onions or other vegetables, there is a lot of choice. You can also go for meet cooked in a sizzling pan, or in a pan over a candle on your table, or of course cook it yourself in a hot pot on your table (or in another different style, have it cooked for you in a pot after you select it). It can also be BBQ'd in small skewers or even with a whole animal on a skewer in front of you.

We never used to go for fish too much, but have much more since having kids and finding a style of cooking fish that the kids would like and some fish without too many bones, or at least that enables easy removal of the fish off of the bones. Then of course there is the sort of deep-friend fish in sweet and sour sauce where the bones seem to get fried into smithereens and disappear!

There is the interesting presentation and approaches to combining foods: such as putting diced meat in a small bun to eat it, or putting ice cream inside a hollowed-out, warm, loaf of bread. Both of which are fantastic by the way.

The Chinese love their rice, and also their noodles - and there is a huge variety of noodles, both in how they are made (thin, wide, sliced, diced and more) and what they are made out of (including Spinach for example) and they'll come with anything under the sun if as a main course, on its own if at the end of the meal. Then there is also dumplings, more from the North, but available everywhere in various connotations, normally boiled or steamed (in which case it is not a dumpling strictly speaking), but occasionally fried. Usually dry, but also available in soups; usually filled with something (and it is amazing to watch how fast some cooks can wrap dumplings) but also sometimes without - just the dumpling skin.

Deserts don't really exist thought here is some sweet dishes and desert equivalents in Southern China especially Taiwan and Hong Kong with dim sum and shaved ice (an old favorite of mine was dipping a fruit in molten sugar and putting that in water to cool and go hard).

There's the raw spicy from Sichuan and the hot spicy from Hunan. There's the sweet and sour from the North-East; there's the lighter food from East China. There's the meat heavy food from the North-West, the preference for noodles in the north, rice in the south, and even bread in the North-West.

It is fairly hard to define Chinese food in general unless one talks about how it is eaten: mostly shared dishes, and always with chop sticks (the Chef will slice everything up small in advance). It's also mostly cooked in woks that are multi-functional allowing boiling, frying, steaming and everything in between in one pot. Unfortunately the Chinese still like to use a lot of oil in most of their cooking - it certainly makes it more flavorsome, but also makes it much less healthy.

I could go on forever, but I won't. I also won't try to even list my favorite dishes. I can't cook much Chinese food which is a real shame - it is not particularly hard from what I can tell and is usually just a mix-and-match of ingredients around a few ways of cooking mostly. I love the fact you can take-away any leftovers; and you can usually order food from the local at all hours (or online if so inclined).

Certainly being able to read Chinese is of immense help (even if there is a menu in English the translations can't be relied upon), though there are also frequently photos. I do still vaguely recall my early days in China of eating the same few dishes all the time (that i could pronounce in Chinese) and of lots of pointing (usually at other diners' dishes, sometimes in the actual kitchen). Though there are a million food related words with every part of an animal named differently, every variation in vegetable named differently too. It's not just the difficulty actually finding English names for some of the vegetables that are in the Far East, it is that there is not such a name (or maybe it only exists in Latin!) - 10 different type of mushrooms with different names, for example.

Few meal times would be complete without tea, of course; but also without alcohol from the many different kinds of hard liquor that the Chinese drink (usually awful to my tastebuds) to the lighter (sometimes sweeter) liquors that are quite nice to the generally bland-but-passable lagers and the new-ish tendency for wine.

The endless competition and entrepreneurial nature of China does mean some higher quality and more innovation, that is welcome... though queuing is common at popular restaurants. This also leads to the ready availability of Korean and Japanese food (not too bad), Western food (usually awful pizzas or french fries with something or a all-you-can-eat buffet) and even some Thai or Vietnamese food (highly varied). There's also western bakeries, though they're still outnumbered by Chinese bakeries with their very sweet breads and rolls, the tendency to put various fluffy things on top of the bread, or the desire to stuff the breads with sausages, cream or something else.

I think it is time to end this post for the meantime without even going into the supermarket experiences, the Chinese wet (and dry) markets, the passion for dried (and highly preserved) food and also the cultural connotations around certain foods (like giving and eating sweets for prosperity) or how it is eaten (the customs around serving others, paying and so on). Suffice to say, it is a special aspect of living in China and I foresee one that will be missed.... despite the odd Chinese restaurants overseas, it is certainly not going to be the same!

Vietnam nine years later

So back in Vietnam 9 years with the family (including my dad) after a previous trip. A quick comparison of photos shows some differences: no trekking in the hills in the rain on this trip, but instead visits to indoor and outdoor playgrounds (we actually wanted to visit an indoor water park but it was closed) and purchasing Elsa (from the movie Frozen) clothing at the markets; less visits to bars in the evenings too! My previous visit was longer - about 10 days so I could also see more places (the Demilitarized Zone, Hue, My Son and Sapa for example) than this 6 day trip.

Actually aside from traveling with children this time around (which also means getting less done and moving somewhat slower), the rather crappy weather also affected things - cool and overcast on the boats at Halong Bay and raining in Hoi An disrupted opportunities for going to beaches or swimming - a particular shame for the kids.

In terms of Vietnam: well Hanoi still has insane amounts of motorbikes, but it also has an increasing number of cars (noticeably more than 9 years ago) which makes it much more dangerous; although some roads do seem to be better. The old quarter is still delightful though I don't recall there were so many cafes and hostels there last time. There is still a lot of very local food everywhere on the street (though Andrea was disappointed with the pho, and we tried several). There might be even more clothing markets now that Vietnam has significantly ramped up its manufacturing base (and our hotel this time was right next to a specialist Christmas clothing market). The Thang Long water puppet show has not changed at all (it is interesting reviewing the photos from the previous trip and seeing that it is literally identical in every aspect) and the same grand buildings remain in the French quarter too (though this time with some Christmas decorations reflecting the time of the year).

We didn't go to the Ethnology Museum, but instead went to the Police Museum which was fairly interesting, even with an old motorbike and sidecar the kids were allowed to play in and some kid-size police uniforms they could wear. We also popped by the Vietnamese History museum which really lacked English descriptions of the big picture of what was happening, so the English descriptions of photos of certain people or of certain objects didn't add much value for us.

I don't recall visiting the Hoa Lo Prison last time but it was worth a trip this time: somewhat predictable and not hugely informative, but still. Hannah was a bit scared. A new Vietnamese Women's Museum recently opened too - a nice idea, and fairly well done but only vaguely interesting. I suppose it would be more interesting for those new to Asia who did not know much about women's role in family life or traditional clothing and the like.

Halong Bay is still an incredible place to visit with almost 2,000 limestone peaks jutting out of the sea. It didn't look as incredible as before when it was sunny with clear skies; and it didn't feel as special without viewing the fantastic sunset and sunrise from the top deck of the boat (or indeed sleeping on the boat as it was too cold this time or sunbathing on the boat as the kids preferred drawing), but it is still a real highlight of Asia. Hannah did make it up the 500 odd steps to the viewing platform and enjoyed the large brightly lit cave. She also made friends with some of the others on our tour and both her and Leah enjoyed the rowing boat ride to see the monkeys in the lagoon and making Spring Rolls for dinner on the boat.

Hoi An also remains a real highlight of Asia with several streets of old wooden housing that has not changed much in centuries, as well as some more colorful French buildings in there too. Nowadays almost every building in the old town is a tailor and every building in the rest of the town is a hostel or hotel (several hundred show up online at very cheap prices making it hard to choose!). Not something that kids really enjoy looking at but beautiful for adults. Unfortunately due to major flooding a couple of streets were literally under water and unpassable but otherwise we could see most of what was there. The buildings are very well preserved and there are some delightful cafes and shops.

Apart from spending significant time in the fantastic Dingo's Deli (an Australian restaurant/cafe on the edge of town with great cake and both an indoor and outdoor playroom that are suitable for kids on rainy days) we also did a half-day cooking class. Despite a very wet visit to the market to buy the ingredients it was successful with Hannah helping out a lot, Leah partly watching and partly sleeping, and some good food. Definitely more kid-friendly and suitable for bad weather than hiking or visiting temples!

A good 6-day trip, despite some very average weather, which is cheap to visit from Hong Kong (and with cheap hotels, food and domestic flights, a cheap holiday overall). Certainly recommended for others--even those with kids!

A final weekend in Beijing?

The family and I took a short trip to Beijing over the weekend. I needed to pop by the Social Insurance Fund office to sort some things out. This was the first time I had been to Beijing in more than a year (the previous time was itself the first time in almost a year before that) and it will likely be quite a while before I am back again. So what does one do when one is planning a "final weekend" in Beijing?

First, arrange for some babysittng for the elder child: Mrs Chen, who used to see Hannah on a weekly basis when she was in Beijing cried when she heard she would be able to look after Hannah for a few days - and then promptly went and stocked up on chocolate and sea food! Second, schedule to meet some friends - not that many are left, but the all-encompassing We Chat serves its purpose well (even for Hannah who met her first best friend with whom she had played almost every single day for the first 3 years of her life, though it was not very successful with the friend not showing much interest in Hannah any more). Third, arrange a hotel - hotels are cheap in Beijing in mid-December. It is winter (a few degrees above zero in the afternoon, a few desgrees below zero the rest of the time), it is coming up to Christmas and Chinese New Year, the air is polluted... anyway, with a large supply of hotels, and few domestic or international tourists or business travellers, a good 5-star international hotel can be grabbed cheap.

We had to eat Peking Duck, of course, with our oldest Chinese AIESEC friends, most of whom now have their own kids, or are soon to have them, though many have also moved to Shanghai or overseas. The private rooms eaily available in Chinese restaurants are fantastic (and also necessary when the main rooms get very loudy and/or smoky) and more Western restaurants should consider this!

Andrea and I did some Hutong walking with Leah - from the Lama Temple past the "in" hutong of the beginning of this decade (Wudaoying) all the way to Beiluoguxiang and its older sister, the "in" hutong of the previous decade (Nanluoguxiang) which suitably enough was being renovated again. When I first went there in 2004 there was one cafe on an alley way, and that was it. A few years later it went though successive transformations with literally a hundred new cafes, bars and shops as well as a dramatic widening of the alleyway, and then this spawned out into all the neighboring alleyways. Then the subway came and now the latest renovation.

We couldn't walk down it due to the latest renovations (also including electricity grid upgrades) so we sauntered off down some of the neiboring ones which have not yet been dramatically changed, past a great little market, past the original Great Leap microbrewery and alongside a newly renovated canal to reach Hou Hai, the lake. Hou Hai was "in" even before Nanluoguxiang... originally a short strip of some upmarket bars, and then a hanfdul of lower market bars, it exploded into line upon line of lower market bars, cafes and shops. And it is still going strong actually more than a decade after that explosion began. The upmarket things have moved into other hutongs near by to be more hidden and exclusive, while the rickshaw drivers consider to ply their trade offering to take guests on tours of the hutongs and the lake. 

The transformation of the hutongs are well commented on--from the original large mansions a century ago to smaller dwellings, and now spruced up again in some parts (and destroyed in other parts). The latest change seems to be a policeman on every other corner in the hutongs. The liveliness of the hutongs in this trendy and in-demand area has certainly diminished but a community feel remains in some of them. 

We had lunch in one of the coutyard houses at the far end of the lake, close to Deshengmen, which typifies some of the changes... the courtyard house is now a nice restaurant serving food from South-West China, with a glass roof over the actual courtyard, a children's playground in a small house accoss the alleyway, and lots of small water features and shrubs in the restaurant. Some of the food was great--some soups, eggplant, toufu, lamb and the mijiu (low alcoholic sweet rice wine). The company: former colleagues from BSR, many also now with children. 

Next--a bus. Alway the best way to see a city: with the locals and with a high view. Bus number 5 in Beijing is one of the best, going through the heart of Beijing from the north-west of the hutongs down past the Forbidden City and sweeping past Tiananmen Square to the South-east of the hutongs where we alighted. These hutongs are the polar opposite to those in the north, and in fact we find these ones fascinating. Some of them, alongside the street running South of Tiananmen, have now been totally rebuilt--and are somewhat derelict. The main street populated by upmarket chains and some old local brands; the neibouring alleways to the eat were knocked down and re-built to a plan that has clearly not worked and much of it is now abandoned after being populated a year or two ago. To the west are some of the remaining community hutongs, very tightly nested together and shooting off in all directions with lots of live (in Summer at least) and a nice local feel to them - we enjoyed the walk through as re reminisced of the previous walks.

To the east of that area, is huge trathes of hutongs that have been demolished in readiness for something big. It has taken more than 5 years to get the existing reidents out and to knock everything down. A strange site of rubble and trees with the odd resident/house remaining; and then further east some hutongs that have been superficially restored by plastering a thin layer of additional bricks around their outside to make them look modern. And then eventually out to Chongwenmen, the shopping area that is where almost all chains start their entrance into Beijing, from H&M to Burger King and much more.

And lastly, to wrap up the Hutong tour, via a detour to get a coffee and waffle, to the South, heading towards the Temple of Heaven is our favourite hutong of all, Ciqikou. A small slice or rual China existing in the capital city: residents from around China living, working, selling, buying on one narrow hutong. We loved the feel, and especially the guy selling some of the best BBQ steak found anywhere. But now, white barriers have been laid down the middle of the hutong, and along both sides, restricting any of the shops from setting out their wares. So no more vegetables, no more street snacks, no more outside eating. No more community. No more favourite Ciqikou hutong. Maybe there is a good reason, or maybe there is not. But on our last trip to Beijing we could say RIP to our favourite hutong. Indeed the hutong had only been found once we realized the best places were hidden behind newly built walls designed to hide the best places! At least that insight remains with me. Where there is a nice wall that looks out of place, go look behind it!

And then another bus - the 43, a classic that goes north-east from the Temple of Heaven passing the old Beijing City Walls and train station, up along Jianguomen waidajie past the legacies of old Beijing, such as the Friendship Store (which seems to somehow still exist from what we could tell, despite zero market for it, and no actual sign on the outside anymore), past the modern Beijing: the tall luxurious apartment and office buildings around Guomao and the CBD complete with giant TV screens as roofs for shopping malls as well as glass pyramids for malls, and where all the 3 BSR offices were that I had worked in.

Up to Sanlitun, the original bar area (though the actual original street, Sanlitun south street was knocked down shortly ater I arrived in 2004, the north street and back street remain in various forms) that has constantly re-invigorated itself with new malls, hotels, and bars; flagship shops and more besides. Dinner had to of course be Western if it is in Sanlitun, in this case some Tapas and then American at Home Plate BBQ, the scene of my "leaving Beijing" party 2 years earlier. With perfect timing one of my oldest friends in China, Chris, with whom together we had studied Chinese, climbed mountains, trekked the Southern and Northern borders of China, donated alcohol on trains, and many more adventures besides, was back in China having left a few years earlier to puruse a PhD. A last meal with him and his wife was perfect.

And if that was not enough for a day, there was still time to go all the way out to Shunyi, the home of the rich, the land of the spaced-out and the villa, to meet another of my eldest friends in Beijing, Ben, with whom we had shared thousands of moments on the football pitch, for a drink and a disappointing viewing of a football match (it really was not a good idea to try to play on a sunday night in december in beijing!).

We'd covered so much of Beijing in that day and a half I was vey satisfied. There of course are many places we could not pack in, but much of the best was ticked off. All that remained on the third day was to spend some quality time with the family, thank Mrs Chen, and to enjoy the wonders of the Hai Di Lau hotpot which we'd enjoyed just a few weeks earlier in Shenzhen too. You cannot have a winter in Beijing without having hotpot.

A quick walk around the Lidu area--one of the oldest foreign business districts in Beijing and one that has dramatically changed with new shopping malls, business parks and art districts--ticked another box. Then a final breakfast at the hotel with another old friend and 72 hours in Beijing was complete. Lots of calories consumed, some burned, lots of friends met, and lots of memories stored.

Shenzhen - a week

With my mum in Shenzhen for a week last month, what did we do?

Well during the so-called typhoon (it really wasn't) we went to an indoor trampoline park (last year there was only one in the whole of Shenzhen, now there is even one cloe to where we live so there must be at least 20 in the city so it is clearly the new thing) which is just one of the many many indoor actvities that children can do (though adults can also do the trampolining). We didn't go to any of the other children's playgrounds but there is one in every mall and we have membership cards for a couple of the larger chains.

We had dinner at the legendary Hai Di Lau hot pot restaurant which for those who do not know of it, do not know what good service is. When we went 5 years ago and Andrea was pregnant she was given a special pack of health products and a special back rest to put on the chair. When we went a few months ago the kid got their own booster pillow to ue and keep. This time we made full use of the facilities: the kid's playground which you can monitor on the screen of the tablet on each table and the free manicure for the girls. We ordered the hand-made noodles, and the chef comes to the table to twirl the dough into noodles for you to cook (a hot pot restaurant at its core is where you cook your own food in a boilinig pot of water on your table).

But what makes Hai Di Lau stand out is the small things: the children's cutlery of couse, but small gifts for the chldren and balloons; the aprons for both adults and kids to protect your clothes; the little sign they put on the table saying the table was taken and not to take the food away whilst we were all away from the table for a minute (at manicure/playground/washroom). And of course the actual service and the food are very good. In China it is a well-known chain, and it is popular. It is premium priced and you get premium service. I believe they even pay for the staff's children to get into kindergarten, they go to such extremes. Mum loved it!

We of coure had to take her to Dafen, the art village with hundeds of artists doing originals and replicas right in front of you, as well as some sculptures and other forms of art. Fascinating as always at how good some of them are: especally the likeness of the paintings of real people to the actual photos.

Mum did a day at the Window of the World (a park with replicas from around the world, plu a few rides) which the kids enjoy. She did a day doing arts and crafts, since she is exploring how to do something similar in the UK, she spent time with the kids of course, but that was about it for Shenzhen as well as some drives around town to see bits and pieces. Unfortunately there was not time to check out the multiple parks or some of the nice walking and cycling paths, or some of the other touristy theme parks or even some of the beaches.

Shenzhen is not really a place for tourists to stop by, but there is enough to do for a few days, and then it's just a convenient place to enjoy China--Chinese food, Chinese shops, Chinese skyscrapers and the like. All of which are available in Shenzhen. But as a place for living it really is one of the best places, not just in China, but in the World. Everything is convenient (from transport to shopping) and cheap (renting is cheap, buying is not) especially if one can speak Chinese; everything is digital; everything is fairly new; everything is well organized and fast and professional. The climate is good, the air quality decent, and the quality of life for families is fantastic, as with many other major cities in China with zoos, playgrounds, theme parks, beaches, swimming pools in modern complexe, playgrounds in all complexes. It's been even better than it was set-up me by my Chinese friends when I first arrived 2 years ago.

Fujian and tourism in China

A brisk 3 day trip (it should have been 4, but a typhoon warning cancelled all trains for a day) to Fujian last month with my mum brings up some of the typical issues in tourism nowadays in China which is quite interesting to share.

Fujian is the province on Mainland China opposite Taiwan. It's capital, Xiamen is a large and bustling city with a small island no more than a mile or so long and half a mile wide. A century or so ago, when the Western Countries forced China to cede some territory in key cities that could be used for the Western Countries to establish trading posts, this island was one of them and it remains full of grand colonial mansions. It is car-free, leafy, hilly and pleasant. It is also known for its pianos as all the mansions used to have them. We didn't stay on the island, but in the main city, finding a nice airbnb place that was particularly kid friendly (since with 3 adults and 2 kids its better having an apartment than a hotel).

I first visited the area a decade or so ago and found it fairly busy, but away from the little port with dumpy tourist shops it was quiet and pleasant, with some nice little beaches too. Many of the mansions were run-down, which was part of the charm of the island. Now they have built an extra two ports on the island to handle the large number of (mostly domestic) tourists! Yet most of the shops are now more upmarket and trendy; many of the mansions have been restored, which is nice, and some turned into nicer shops, restaurants or hotels. I had feared the worst, but it was better than I had expected. On the whole it's not been too badly managed, although the beaches are unfortunately not particularly pleasant with driftwood and rubbish floating around since the seas around Xiamen are very busy trade routes.

Outside of Xiamen, previously a 3 hour bus ride away, but now only a 1 hour fast train ride away, in the hills are where the Hakka people live--or at least used to live. Trying to keep safe in the face of persecution from other groups of Chinese, they had fled to the hills and built the massive buildings which are almost fortresses. An entire village in one circular building (though some are also square or other shapes) where literally hundreds of people lived (the largest had 600 people living inside it and more than 200 rooms across 4 or 5 floors). The oldest were built seven hundred years ago but the most recent ones were built only 50 years ago. In fact they were designed with kitchens on the ground floor, bedrooms on the first and second floors, and grain storage on the third floor. Each had several wells, and in the middle of the buildings would be the toilets and wash areas as well as barns for the animals. They are truly unique with just a couple hundred of these buildings remaining and nowhere else in the world.

Returning to this area, again a decade later, and apart from the high-speed train, not a lot more has changed. There is some accommodation available inside these incredible buildings (known as "tulou" or "earth building") but not too much, partly due to the high cost of converting these buildings to be suitable for tourists to stay in (e.g. on-suite bathrooms etc), partly due to the dispersed ownership (each family only owns one room in each building), and partly due to the lack of interest from tourists in staying there (Chinese like their mad-dash tours where they do as much as possible in a short time and thus would just come visit for the day from Xiamen; they also like the more typical modern Hotel). It is a shame that more people do not stay overnight and experience living in these buildings, but they are a real highlight of China and thankfully being fairly well managed. I can recommend staying in the Fuyulou Changdi building.

There are fairly high entrance fees to see some of the buildings where the money is split between the local government, the local village committee and the building owners themselves which seems to work well and provides some funds for renovation and restoration. Of course many people have moved out to live in the cities so many of the buildings are sparsely populated compared to their peak period but there are farmers still living there and others looking to make money from tourists, selling tea or other souvenirs and local products. The Chinese do love their local agricultural products, and you'll often see them bringing entire boxes of apples or something or other with them on planes.

There is still not much interest in exploring the countryside, at least in this area; and China generally still hasn't found much interesting in hiking or trekking or exploring (though of course there are exceptions in some locations and with a growing domestic youth backpacker movement). It is mostly a tour bus or drive-by-car culture; take the photos; buy the souvenirs; get an introduction by the tour guide; move onto the next place.

With so many high speed trains now all over the place, it is much quicker and easier to get around; with so many places using wechat or alipay (a mobile phone based payment system), you don't need cash or cash machines any more. You have to beware the over-priced souvenirs and food, but you can find more local products to buy if you look, whilst carefully avoiding all the selfie sticks of course (it seems most phones don't even get taken out of the selfie stick any more!).

On the whole then, tourism in China is being managed fairly well. and that is nice to see.... it is not easy balancing gigantic numbers of people with cultural preservation. providing a real experience and supporting local jobs, but I think China has learned fast and has made much progress compared to the past. Although the tourists' habits have not changed as much (though fewer tour buses now and more Audis), they seem to be slightly better behaved!

Leah's words and Hannah's leadership

As Leah gets into her stride in her third year, she will likely start speaking, or to put it another way, she will use the same words that we use, and she will use more words!

At the moment she has a favorite word "yaya" (which is not a word in Chinese or English) which tends to mean either water or toilet (it is normally possible to work out which); another frequently used word is "jiejie" (which is a word in Chinese for big sister) and Leah likes using it along with the word "my" (which is a word in English) when she distinguishes between whose food, pencils, dolls or shoes she is playing with, pointing at or thinking about.

As other parents know kids tend to start speaking a few syllables and build from there, so the "m" is a frequently used one (of course the first use is "mama") and none much more so than "more" (English, of course). She just uses the simple "m" for milk. The other frequently used syllable stems from "baba" (Dad in Chinese) and includes "baobao" (Hug in Chinese).

There are some other syllables she sometimes uses, and some other words she occasionally pronounces when asked to, but then doesn't re-use. But there is a long way to go; much like Hannah, who only really got into her stride once she was close to her third birthday. These bilingual kids are slow speakers. The strange aspect of all this though is that her listening is very good, understanding thousands of different words, with just exceptions of words and concepts she cannot understand yet (such as distinguishing different colors).

It means you get to have amusing conversations with her as you have to guess everything she is saying based on context and her pointing, repeat it back to her and see if she confirms you are on the right path or not. Very one-sided, but of course we don't want to dent her confidence even if most of what is coming out is unintelligible.

She is though slowly getting more into reading and starting to listen to stories rather than just look at pictures; but she still lacks the patients to do too much and has such a strong character that she'll sooner or later decide she wants to do something else, or pick a different page in the book no matter what. Thankfully the biting has stopped now, though there is the odd bit of hitting if Leah doesn't get her way and can't explain her feelings properly.

In fact she is very very strong willed, proactively going to the toilet or taking a banana; putting on her shoes and opening the door to go outside and so on. This can be a pain when she wants to copy Hannah and refuses anything else... so even if she doesn't want or like something she will still demand it because Hannah has, and even if she does not understand something, she will still do it because Hannah has. On the whole it is great, since Hannah is such a good girl; generally very obedient, good at brushing her teeth, eating and the like.

It does sometimes lead to problems when Leah can't to what Hannah does, such as running fast or playing games with her friends, but Leah does try and play with them. It is funny how keen she is on playing with Hannah and with Hannah's friends, when she has no interest in playing with other kids her own age, instead usually seeing them as competition. And let's say that Leah definitely has not understood the concept of sharing yet! So Leah is in an interesting mindset where she is very strong willed but still very obedient to do what Hannah wants.

Yesterday evening Hannah voluntarily went to shampoo her own hair in the shower which is incredible as she usually hates that (all kids at some point put soapy fingers in eyes and then fear soap again for years, as far as i can tell). This was from the conversation earlier that morning when we discussed that she needs to wash her hair so it would be easier to brush. Her memory is fantastic, though selective...she rarely remembers what happened at kindergarten, maybe because it is so similar each day that not much stands out, but she will always remember specific things that her teacher says, such as around wearing certain clothes for the next day, and always remember other things we say and remember places we have been to before.

Hannah is definitely not shy, and is the driving force when playing with her friends; she is also actively talking to her friends at school and arranging play dates for after-school and enjoys giving instructions to others, not least Leah, who usually is very obedient. It makes me wonder whether their personalities would be different if they were not sisters, i..e. would Hannah be as bossy if she did not have a younger sister to give instructions to, and would Leah be as obedient if she was not so used to following instructions.

Thankfully Hannah's friends do like listening to her and she has 3 or 4 very close friends who she wants to see every day (and she usually does at kindergarten, though this is never enough) and normally gets to play with most evenings and some weekends.

So what is wrong with this picture which is so rosy and happy with two fantastic girls getting along so well with everyone including each other and their parents? Everything seems fine so that must mean something will change for the worse with one of the two girls, or the relationship between them, at some point, won't it?

Taiwan

So, after 12 years in China,  I finally made it to Taiwan. The four of us flew into Taipei for a day and a half, then went to Hualien for 2 days and back to Tapei for 2 days.

For Chinese people, the main purpose of visitng Taiwan, it seems, is to go to the night markets. The Chinese love the Taiwanese food and particularly the large variety of snacks that are now popular across the Mainland too. For us westerners, some of that is nice, but it often involves deep frying, putting food on sticks or into balls, and so on - and sometimes its really not a big deal. So we visited a couple of night makets and certainly enjoyed some of the grilled fish, excellent fruit juices, great dim sum and dumplings, and some other bits and pieces. Night markets are always fun of course: there may be the odd person playing music, there are bright lights, there is a nice atmosphere, and you can pick and choose different foods to eat at tables or whilst standing up.

I think the Taiwanese are fairly innovative food-wise; they have more options for breakfast than the standad Chinese breakfast (I'll be honest, I am not much of a fan of the standad Chinese breakfast which consists of vegetables, deep fried dough, boiled eggs, steamed bread and rice porridge which only has any taste if you load it up with sugar!) with the incorporation of eggs and even bacon in various omelete and sandwich type dishes.

I had known of seveal Taiwanese cafe chains that were popular in China--and I have always been a fan of the Taiwanese shaved ice dessert (topped with mango for example), but had not quite expected such a large variety, supply and high quality of other more western deserts in Taiwan: things like doughnuts, tortes, and other things chocolatey (even the haagen das was cheap). Let's just say this was not a holiday where we lost any weight....

So, now that the food part is over with, I can reflect on other aspects of Taiwan: though it is much more than just Taipei, Taipei itself might be compared alongside Singapore and Hong Kong - both city-states of Chinese heritage. It has a very modern infrastructure and is very convenient and civilized. It almost seems one step up from Hong Kong, though of course still below Singapore. There are breastfeeding rooms; there are separeate queues for elevators for priority passengers (I.e. the disabled, those with buggies) and general passengers. There are playgrounds dotted around the place, plenty of public toilets, very good English signs etc. Hong Kong has much of this too, so maybe I am being harsh on Hong Kong. But I was probably not expecting Taipei to be as advanced as it is and thus I was impressed.

Whereas Hong Kong speaks Cantonese and reads traditional Chinese, Taiwanese speak Mandarin and read traditional Chinese, so at least it was easier for me to communicate with local people (though to be honest most people in Hong Kong now speak Mandarin too since there are so many Chinese tourists there) but I can't read traditional Chinese very welll (Mainland China uses simplified Chinese) so menus were more challenging.

Taiwan has gone crazy on cycling with fantastic facilities, bike lanes and even international advertising campaigns attacting cyclists to tour Taiwan. Not something we could fully benefit from wth 2 small kids, but we did do some near Tamsui on the northern coast of Taiwan that can be reached by subway from Tapei... it is a nice town with some interesting temples and buildings founded by a missionary including a school, clinic and university as well as some impressive houses. There is a nice cycling path alongside the river which goes through wetlands. A laid-back and relaxed place... from the subway we saw several companies seem to have large offices nearby and I can see why their employees may want to live out here instead of downtown.

We walked around various parts of Taipei: some parks, momuments, "gates", government buildings and the like... some Japanese influenced buildings (Taiwan was run by Japan for a while) and some French themed design with wide boulevards. Taiwan's economy is closely tied to Mainland China's for both good and bad--though many Taiwanese companies are doing well in Mainland, many of the manufacturing and high-tech jobs have moved to the Mainland, so Taiwan is having to find new gowth opportunities (though it is larger than a Hong Kong, so it does at least have more domestic resources and a lager domestic market).

One of those is around cultural and creative parks being developed in old warehouses and factories. We visited two in Taipei: the 1944 Huashan park is buzzing and a lot of fun with outdoor entertainers and some wonderful craft shops that are genuinely interesting. The Songshan park seems mostly still under development but there was one building that had a whole series of arts and crafts activities for adults: from pottery to glass blowing; from making purses to painting and all the while whilst sipping on a coffee (the Taiwanese love their coffee).

We also visited the cultural park in Hualien - struggling somewhat I think but we did find some nice stuff. Hualien is generally a stopping off point for the nearby Taroko Gorge and the town itself has a mixture of modern shopping streets and run down back streets... it doesn't have much else to do there. We did a day trip to the gorge - many of the hiking paths were closed due to a recent typhoon making them dangerous, though we were not likely to do much hiking anyway with the kids. It was pretty, though I feel like I have seen a lot of gorges and was not as spectacular as guide books make it out to be.... maybe we need to go back another time and hike more to appreciate it better, rather than taking the bus up and down different points, with just a few kilometeres of hiking possible.

Probably the most memorable part of the trip for the kids was the visit to the Ocean Theme Park outside of Hualien: only around 6 or 7 rides, but enough for the kids, and since it was a weekday the whole place had less than 300 visitors (we counted them when they all congregated for the dolphin show) which meant 10 rides of the rollercoaster (no need to get off, just stay on and go around again) and even a few rides of the spinning cups and spinning balls (kids seem to like being dizzy, adults don't!). Leah didn't quite know what to make of the dolphin show, but Hannah enjoyed it. The park is nicely done, but is mostly for kids under the age of 8... perfect for us anyway.

On one of the last two days in Taipei we took a day trip out to some villages in the hills accessble by a local train. Strangely the little 3 carrriage train only runs hourly and is packed (even on a weekday) wth tourists which is a bit inconvenient. The villages and the scenery were nice enough. The Shifen waterfall was impressive, but the rain put a bit of a dampener on the trip so we didn't see as many of the villages as we wanted, nor did we let off the lanterns as is customary. Mostly tourists seem to go there for that, the snacks, and to see the little train line running through the center of the villages. That night, back in Taipei, we went to the Shifan night market which was more about clothes than food, strangely, and ate at a fantastic middle eastern restaurant in the student area.

On the last day we enjoyed the wonderful Miniatures Museum which was packed full of interesting doll houses and miniature replicas of houses, castles, street scenes and other scenes (Alice of Wonderland etc). It was fun for the kids, but adults probably enjoy it more: the incredible intracies and the thoughtfulness that go into many of the scenes, like tiny working TVs, actual oil paintings or newspapers alongside glasses, slippers and everything else that you'd find in a bedroom; or a scene of a street caught in a downpour with everyone running from the rain, paint spilling, and even raindrops on the telephone wires. I can't recommend visiting enough. Andrea took more pictures in there than the rest of the trip combined!

After spending a few hours with an old friend, Primrose, we flew back to China (via a simply insane border crossing from Hong Kong into the Mainland since there were millions of Chinese who were also coming back home at the same time as us after the 7-day public holiday).

A sizable island it should be higher on the list for tourists since it is easy to get around (its only a few hours by train from one end of the island to the other) with plenty of nice things to see, and some good food. If you enjoy cycling or cafes, you'd love it! If you have kids, it's a good place to visit (we even found hotel rooms for all 4 of us) too and can keep both kids and adults entertained.