asia asia

so, the big news in my life is that i'm starting a new job on monday.

i design shoes for a living, and as a lot of your probably know, most shoes are made in china these days.

so, a couple of weeks after i start my new job, we're doing an asia trip. normally, in the trips that i've done in the past, i've flown to hong kong, slept the night there, and then taken a car or train to the nearest province on the mainland- guangdong. that's where most of the manufacturing happens. that's where cities like shenzhen, guangzhou & dongguan are.

we usually work for a week or so there, and then go back to hong kong, have one kinda big night out, and then fly home.

i love hong kong. guangdong province... not so much.

but this trip in a couple of weeks is so much more exciting!

we'll fly directly to tokyo:

and stay in shibuya for three nights. i've always want to go to japan, and to tokyo specifically. i would be lying if i didn't say that i'm having fantasies of a 'lost in translation' experience. i suppose i'd better pack a lot of apc.

then we'll fly to hong kong:

and stay there for two more nights. i adore hong kong. it's such a cosmopolitan city, and so international. it reminds me of a combo of two of my favorite american cities- nyc & san francisco. the setting of the city is so amazing too. it's surrounded by soaring hills, and pretty little islands. even though it's quite industrialized, and there's even disney is there... it still seems like this amazing bustling city in the midst of misty pacific islands.

the more time i spend in hk, the more i do see the issues and problems of the city. but as a visitor who spends a couple of days there at a time.... i really enjoy it.

then we take the train to guangzhou, just like usual.

guangzhou looks like this:

(hmmmm... this photo seems to paint a slightly nicer picture of the city than i've seen...)

we'll meet with the factories that we work with, and then go to the canton fair.

my boss will go back to hong kong to fly home, but i get to fly on my own to shanghai:

i've never been anywhere on the chinese mainland other than guangdong province, and i am so stoked to get to see another chinese city.

unfortunately, i'll only be there overnight, so i won't get to see much. but i fully intend to go out and check out shanghai nightlife. solo. will that be a little weird? maybe...

but who cares! i'll have a 13 hour flight on the way back home the next day, so staying up as late as possible is the trick to avoiding jetlag here in the us.

ugh... the only problem with this trip? i'm flying coach. which i've never done, flying to asia. i'm a little bit terrified. (deep vein thrombosis, anyone?)

ambien, it is.