Taken from the Park Hyatt at the top of the Shanghai World Financial Center. That's the Jin Mao Tower in the foreground and the Oriental Pearl Tower in the back. The fog rolled in so thick that night that flights out of PVG were delayed for hours the next day. I know, because I spent six hours at the FM lounge waiting for my flight back to Singapore.
Image via Wikipedia
It just gets easier and easier to do things in Mainland China. During my last trip, I broke down and purchased a China Mobile prepaid SIM for use during my visit. It makes things a lot easier when you're out there.
It was a lot simpler to buy a SIM card than it was before. Here's what you need to do:
1. Find a China Mobile (they have better coverage) store.
2. Walk inside and ask if someone can help you in english (对不起，你会说英文吗?).
3. Bring Passport and unlocked GSM phone; the former to register your SIM card and the latter so the staff can test it out for you.
It really was that easy. Here's a site with more detailed information. It's a couple of years old, but the information is still valid.
I ran the SIM card on my unlocked Nexus One. Phone calls and SMSes went through fine. I was able to purchase a data bucket to run Google Maps, the internet, Foursquare and most importantly, Google Translate! For standard GSM phones however, you will be running on EDGE. If you're wanting 3G speed, I've read conflicting reports that China Unicom has a prepaid 3G service. Unlike most prepaid service in Asia, you can't punch in a USSD code to pull up your balance or to purchase services. You need to call 10086 and press 2. Service is 24 hours and their English speaking staff is pretty good.
One more thing; Boingo Mobile works with a lot of the pay-hot spots around Shanghai. So if you have that service, you can always save your data by logging onto Wi-Fi.
So, the moral of the story is: be adventurous and ask! Usually people will be nice enough to be helpful, especially if you try to speak Putonghua. Which I can't.
Image via Wikipedia
Din Tai Fung is a Taiwanese restaurant chain that's known for its xiaolongbao (soup dumplings). They're maybe a step or two away from being perfect, depending on which location you visit.
The great thing is that they're all over Asia so if you're in Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo,
Malaysia, Indonesia, mainland China, Australia or even Taiwan, you're not far from xiaolongbao goodness. If you live in the USA however, you're very far from xiaolongbao goodness as there's only one location outside of Los Angeles and that location has mixed reviews.
Within Asia, all the locations are at an equally high standard. Some locations are more equal than others. For example, the Tsimshatsui location is considered one of the flagships because of its Michelin Star and its larger, more varied menu. Because of its location and its accolades, it's also one of the more expensive locations. Compared to this, the Xintandi location seemed like a bargain even though it was in an expensive part of Shanghai and in spite of the inequality of the exchange rate (which will hopefully change in about a year).
The appeal of Din Tai Fung is not necessarily the special-ness of the menu (aside from the xiaolongbao, whose equal I cannot find in my half of the world) but that the menu is prepared to the highest standard and that the service in the restaurant is also top tier. That's not saying much, if you were to mention the Tokyo or Singapore locations; service SHOULD be good. But to get that caliber of service on the mainland or even in Hong Kong is a special thing. When you visit a Din Tai Fung (in Asia), you will get xiaolongbao hand folded 23 times and it will be delivered to your table scalding hot. Remember to scoop it out with your soup spoon and nibble the side like a beaver so that the soup pours out of the dumpling into your spoon. Sip then gulp. Failure to follow these guidelines will probably lead to a burnt mouth. The beef noodle soup will be, erm, beefy and satisfying. The noodles will had that neat al dente snap. The veggies will be locally sourced and fresh. And although it won't be a lomantic night out, it probably would qualify as a FUN night out. Lomance is handled by the alleyways and bars of Xintandi...
Hawker's Noodle Soup, Taiwan style
Fried Pork chop over aforementioned noodles
DTF style siu mai
That's the British spelling of course. Because now that Gordon Brown is gone, my vow not to visit the UK is over.
I took this vow a few years back when shortly after taking office, Brown imposed an £80 airport tax for people who fly in "premium" cabins and a £40 tax for those in economy. Either way, it's an outrageous tax that was supposed to be "for the environment". Except after the first year of the tax, forensic accountants found out that the money collected went to the general fund, instead of the "environment". As a result, I vowed not to visit the UK until Brown was tossed out.
Except now we have Cameron, allegedly a Tory that sounds more like a limousine liberal. If he's truly a Conservative, how about repealing all those airport taxes imposed during his predecessor's regime?
If he doesn't pan out, maybe they can draft Jeremy Clarkson for PM? It's not like if it hasn't been tried before. His manifesto reads a bit libertarian to me...
Canton (Guangzhou) has a lot of history. The treaty ports were here. The Opium Wars were fought here. The sparks that led to the 1911 Revolution were, erm, sparked here. Many of the first generation Chinese-Americans from back in the day migrated from here.
One of the few colonial-esque buildings left on the Pearl River. This ain't the Bund...
Despite being a pivotal part of modern Chinese history, modern Guangzhou is, like the rest of urban China, a construction zone with new high rises and an aspiring populace. I'm currently staying at the Grand Hyatt in the Tianhe new town. This area eventually will be the new CBD and looks like they're building on the Pudong model.
Two pleasant surprises greeted me when I did my 6 mile walk last night; the Guangzhou Metro is surprisingly clean and quick (the downside is that it begins to shut down at 2230!) and Shamian Island, which despite also being a construction zone, still oozes historical charm due to the colonial buildings still there, warmly lit treelined streets and lots of couples meandering about. Almost like the opposite of what modern China is and a welcome respite.
But that's the past. Let's look at the present, which is my stunningly modern room at the Grand Hyatt.
The layout of the room is different; you enter the room through the bathroom with the glass walled shower being directly behind the head of the bed with a couch at one side and the desk/TV on the other. Mounted on the wall is an iPod dock that is hooked up to the TV so you can listen through its sound system. I like!
The afforementioned shower/bath is directly behind the bed and is a wet design. You walk inside, close the door and fire up the shower, getting everything wet. I like too! It also has a square shaped tub which if you were to decide to have a soak, you'd have to sit cross legged. Not a fan of that.
The side room that has the bog has a square shaped very kawaii sink so you can wash up in there. Neat. And inbetween the shower and the closet wall is an island with a sink and mirror. Think of it as a kitchen island except you brush your teeth, gargle and shave here. Very nice! Think I will stay here again on my next visit here.
Grand Hyatt Guangzhou
12 Zhujiang West Road, Pearl River New City, Tianhe District,
Guangzhou, People's Republic of China 510623
http://guangzhou.grand.hyatt.com/
Often, travelers will groan when they check into a hotel and they get a lower floor. Usually, higher floors are reserved for elite guests (much like upgrades and E+ are usually for elite flyers). In some cities, like New York or Hong Kong, a higher floor is a must because you get a feel for the city. Hong Kong and New York are defined by their skylines so it's best to able to see them.
From the sixth floor, overlooking Roppongi Keyakizaka Dori. Happy New Year!
Having a lower floor at the Grand Hyatt Roppongi, for example, isn't the end of the world. In fact, it gives you a sense of having bearings since there's not really an outstanding icon of Tokyo to focus on. No million dollar skyline or Art Deco canyons here. What Tokyo has is street life. It's the best city to explore on foot (provided you've not twisted your ankle before the trip) and its full of neat things you won't find riding on the Hato Bus. The hotel is part of the Roppongi Hills complex and it serves (along with Tokyo Midtown) as an oasis from the silliness that Roppongi is known for.
Hallway from the room to the front door. Nice!
The rest of the room, including a wet bathroom and a properly firm bed!
The question will arise; how could I stay here on my usual low budget? My stay here was an award night from Hyatt's Faster Free Nights promotion. During my last stay in LA, I stayed at two Hyatts, thus earning me a free night anywhere there was availability. What's important is that the service was sublime, the room was comfortable and I had a place to fall flat faced after the 10 hour flight from SFO. Despite being on a "lower floor".
Grand Hyatt Tokyo
6-10-3 Roppongi, Minato-Ku,
Tokyo, Japan 106-0032
Tel: +81 3 4333 1234 Fax: +81 3 4333 8123
This is a great price from Tokyo!
Watching this always makes me want to go somewhere. As long as it's on ANA!
Or in English, a China Eastern Airbus A340-600 taken from one of the best planespotting spots at LAX; the Hertz Rent-a-Car lot!
Whooooosh! Coming in for a landing...
Not to be outdone by ANA's Pokemon jet, UA now issues their 747s window shades so the dashboards wont be dried out by the sun when the plane is parked.
Do you suppose the headrests have doilies and there's a keychain alarm?
This was the plane that flew me back to SFO from HKG. My SWU finally cleared when I landed HKG from SIN. Too much excitement for an upgrade...
Speaking of excitement, there was a passenger who decided to give the HKG based crew grief BEFORE TAKEOFF. Apparently he did not approve of the contents of the kosher meal he special ordered. AFAIK, on UA, you get to order the type of special meal, not the contents. This ain't SQ and you can't Book the Cook with any other airline but. Anyway, he kept name dropping "Global Services" every 15 seconds and threatened to get off the plane (which he should have done). The captain had to come out of the cockpit to read the riot act to this bozo, who because of his shenagans, prevented the cabin crew from locking down the plane for takeoff. The bozo (which shall be his name now) tried the "Global Services" namedrop but the captain simply said, "I don't know and I don't care about what Global Services is, my job is to fly this plane which is now late for take off. Do you want to get off the plane?"
After seeing that namedropping Global Services meant nothing to the captain, bozo shut up and takeoff resumed. Apparently, bozo lived in San Francisco. He was full of smug and was heading home (how appropriate!). I found it interesting he gave far less grief to the non-HK based crew on the plane. Typical. When we landed, I made it a point to shake the captain's hand and to extend my support for his actions. He and the cockpit crew appreciated the gesture.
My good deed of the week...
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