Huixin's Birthday Party

It was Huixin's birthday on Friday and she had invited us to dinner at Grandma's Kitchen located on Xiushui South Street. I wanted to bake her a birthday cake but ended up buying one at Kempinski Deli. But I compensated my laziness for probably the best Black Forest Cake in town and a doggy softtoy. *oh, yanqing has a share in the presents too*

We drove to Grandma's Kitchen. I realised that with driving on our own, we became never punctual for appointments - partly due to our unfamiliarity with directions yet. But I must say then we usually underestimate the time we need to drive to a destination. Hhhmm, this is bad. Because having a car is suppose to shorten our commute time. *perplex*

Back to the topic, it was great fun at her party. We haven't been seeing each other alot since I moved here. Things do change after one is married and has his or her own family to take care of. I feel that I am a friend who is guilty of neglecting her friends. I'll try to change that.

Grandma's Kitchen was filled with laughter and loud talking on Friday night, thanks to us. But they also got a big check to cash in, because the birthday girl ordered ALOT of food. We were stuffed, happy, and satisfied. Olof and I left earlier since he got a flight to catch the next day.

My Telephone Ambassador

Piano concert

Hello!

Our kind landlady gave us 2 free tickets to the National Center for the Performing Arts of China. This amazing opera and concert hall has the shape of an egg, and looks very futuristic also from the inside: http://www.chncpa.org/n33879/n33958/n34529/index.html

We saw a great piano performance by the French pianist Phillipe Entremont.

Olof and Sam

Olympics Basketball Match - Prelims

Wow! Holi cow! It was absolutely spectacular to watch basketball LIVE at the competition venue, especially to watch good teams play.

We were lucky to manage get our hands on two last minute olympics basketball prelims tickets, which cost 2.5 times their original prices. To that, we (*&$*#&))(#_(*&!!. The Wukesong Indoor Stadium was surprisingly 80% filled with spectators for the two matches. *Yes. One ticket that entitles you to watch two matches. Yeah!* It was just the prelims, we can't imagine how it is gonna be like for the finals.

Croatia vs Lithuania. The Lithuanian audience cheerleaders became star of the show as well. Ha! They were very united and coordinated, but at the same time definitely a menace to the Croatia team, as they jeered whenever a Croatian laid its hands on the ball. But it was a fantastic game. Croatians led the score by as much as 10 points first, which was later over taken by the Lithuanians. The latter were charged with adrenalin after the 2nd quarter break, and crushed the Croatians like a monster. Both teams displayed great skills and perseverance.

Iran vs Argentina. When we first knew that Iran was playing, our first thought was: Eh? Iran? Then our second thought was Mr Ahmadinejad and his missile tests. But the players turned out to be quite good - absolutely skilled in 3 pointers, with very few misses. No.15 left a very strong impression on us, as he NEVER got changed out during the entire match. We understood that the Iranian team needed him - He was almost as tall as the goal post. He did not even need to jump in order to block or dunk any balls. However good they were, they were never good enough for Argentina. They swept the court like a hurricane. Swift, seamless teamwork, good physiques, the Argentines were unstoppable.

Of course the games aside, there were also the Beijing Dream Dancers and Olympics Mascots to amuse the spectators during breaks. Unimpressed with the dancers, we were rather entertained by the inproportionate big-headed mascots, which are called Fu Wa in Chinese.

Reception with President Nathan

My first thought when I saw Mr President, "He is so tiny!"

I finally saw my motherland's president in person. A reception organized by the Embassy of Singapore in Beijing gave Singaporeans the chance (probably once-in-a-lifetime) to get so upclose and personal with their president. The turnout was rather overwhelming. The entire Chaoyang Grand Ballroom at Grand Millennium Hotel was filled up with ladies and gentlemen in fine dresses and suits (although some were dressed typically Singaporean, if you know what I meant).

Mr President was, as we saw on TV, amicable and friendly. But he has clearly aged. At an age when he should have already retired and be enjoying his twilight years, we should be thankful that he took a 7-hour tiring flight to come support Team Singapore and graced the reception.

At a big event like this, and especially for newbies like us, we felt rather small and insignificant. But thank god that we saw some familiar faces that we got acquainted at the national day folk dinner that we organized last Sat. And my best friend Stacey was there as well (although she cleanly forgot about it if not I called her). So the evening ended fantastic still - minus the food.

And no, Mr President did not get to shake my hands. But I caught a glimpse of him on my Coolpix camera.

Singaporeans

Hello!

Sam called for a celebration of the Singaporean National Day on one of the online forums for expats. Soon she had gathered a crowd of around 25 people. We met at a Malaysian restaurant and enjoyed a few hours together. I think we will meet up with some of them again.

When we were about to enter the building until, we realized that the Malaysian king lived in the hotel (during the Olympics) in the same building as the restaurant. We could not enter until he had left the building. Luckily he was just about to leave when we arrived.

Next Singaporean gathering may be at the official Singaporean celebration at the embassy. The Singaporean president will be there, and so will we.

Take care,
- Olof

The Olympics are here!

Hi,

Last Wed (2 days ago) the government announced that Aug 8th would be a public holiday this year. No working day on the opening day of the Olympic Games. I had to re-schedule some meetings and work harder last night, but an extra public holiday is never wrong...

Sam and I will go to a gathering with INSEAD alumnis at the Little Saigon, a Vietnamese restaurant located in the Old Beijing. The opening ceremony starts at 8h08 (and today is 2008-08-08, yes 8 means luck in Chinese culture). The INSEAD alumnis have booked the whole terrace, which has a great view on the Drum & Bell Towers. A large screen will be set up for us to enjoy the ceremony together.

Looking forward to tonight!

Cheers, Olof

Driving license in China

Yeah!

I passed the theoretical driving test that was required to transfer my driving license to a Chinese one. 100 points out of 100. Completed test in 26 minutes of maximum 45 minutes.

Some things were a bit tricky, for example the penalty point system and the different fine levels, as well as some of the signs. Overall, most questions are actually quite entertaining.

Let me share some of my favourites. The first one is related to "Driving with civility and profession ethics".

1) What should a driver do when he needs to spit while driving?
A. spit through the window
B. spit into a piece of waste paper, then put it into a garbage can
C. spit on the floor of the vehicle

Correct answer: B

The second one is in the category of "Laws, rules and regulations on road traffic safety".

2) All vehicle drivers, pedestrians, passengers and other people related to road traffic:
A. must obey "The Law of the P.R.C. on Road Traffic Safety."
B. can sometimes disobey "The Law of the P.R.C on Road Traffic Safety."
C. need not obey "The Law of the P.R.C on Road Traffic Safety.", only vehicle drivers must obey.

Correct answer: A

Finally, one example from the chapter about "Related Knowledge on safe driving".

3) Can the driver be barefooted or shirtless while driving?
A. no, he can't
B. at night, he can
C. when its vehicle is running on highway he can

Correct answer: A

Ok, this was the theoretical test. In reality, traffic rules look very different. Close to no driver follows the rules. That is particulary clear for rules about when to blow horn, wait in line, use lights and pass other vehicles.

In a typical situation at a crossing, if one vehicle is waiting for a green light to make e.g. a right turn. Then the vehicle behind will blow horn several times when it approaches the car that has stopped and then pass on either the inside or outside of that car... Against the rules, of course!

All the best,
-- Olof