Issues Stymie Leaving Yesterday

Well,
Leaving China involved a domestic flight and then a boring 6 hour wait for our international flight... but we took care of that.  The domestic flight was very nearly 6 hours late, so after a couple of phone calls from inside the plane while we were sitting waiting to (eventually take off) we stayed in Beijing for an extra night...

All worked out ok.

It would have been good to have a guardian angel to look at what the flights were doing.  Just someone watching and seeing I had got in safely... I used to have one of those, but since then the flights have not been quite as trouble free.


this is the plane leaving Hong Kong the following day.

Couple Shots Taken Of Underneath

Chinese Subway

 Chinese Walkway....

Chinese Forbidden City Grounds

Products from Chinese Machines...

On the way home.

Panoramas

A bit of Great Wall...

A bit of Forbidden City....

Great Wall Shenanigans

Went to the Great Wall today.  Ended up looking around with an American Gentlemen who was working on his Executive MBA for the day.  (he was working on the MBA for more than a day... we were just hanging out with him for a day... just thought I would clear that up!)  All good fun.

puppy

My work

for those of you who have wondered before what exactly it is that I do...
I decided to include a technical diagram of one of the machines I am working on right now.

I have included a lot of technical annotation on the photo....
(This is now the sum total of what I know!)

Wedding Wishes

Starting at about 4am there were more fireworks this morning.
This time the biggest, longest bangs were for a wedding that is happening here...
Here are some of the remains!

I am not sure how I would feel about having my photo all over something that people where going to blow up!

Water Writing

Writing on the tiles of the Town Square with water....

street....

People playing instruments for change at the side of the road...
They are invariably blind...

This guy was really quite good

the Chairman and I....

Beijing today.... had a bit of a walk around....

The traditional "get a photo with a Westerner" thing was alive and well.... 10 seconds after this shot I got nabbed for a shot with a random nearby local

Airport again...

Off to china. Should be... Well.... Hopefully I will come back with plenty of photos anyway!!

Xan and Dimmy.

Xan was doing a school talk on his favourite pet...
And good old Dimitri was the logical choice.....

your thoughts..?...

Spent the day cutting down trees at my sister's place today... great fun, hard work separated by trying to work out how to drop trees on her little block and not on the houses next door!... a little tired...  but I have a question....

I am thinking that while I am spending months and months away in China this year, that I should use the time a little productively and do and MBA at the time....

what do you think?

Too much SUN!!!

Starting to be Autumny here... so just starting to get a little cooler...
I am at my favourite position outside my favourite coffee shop, and have been working pretty well...  just completed a document I have been working on.....
BUT - because of the change in season, the sun has changed position...  so now it is hitting me full in the face...

I know that it might conceivably be possible for me to sit in another position... but gosh darn it.. this is my spot!!!

I am forced to conclude that despite what I might think, this is absolute proof that the universe does not revolve around me.... who woulda thunk it?

Now - if you will excuse me.. I think I need to go and have a headache now.