Dad in Beijing

So for this week, my dad is visiting here in Beijing along with Michelle's parents. It's been an adventure so far taking them to the various tourist spots in Beijing. It's a good preperation for the summer staff, when instead of babysitting being a tour guide for 3 people, it's 30.

Well that was interesting

ESEC's 30th anniversary is quickly arriving and Danny is trying to get letters of congratulations and what not for a 30th anniversary book he (read: me) is working on. One of these people is the US ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman. We haven't gotten anything from him or his people, so we're assuming he has busy ambassadory type things to do. So Danny wants to make it easy on him and we'll write the congratulations letter and all he has to do is read and sign and presto, we got our centerpiece for the book. So guess what I did today.

That's right. I wrote a draft of a congratulations letter from the Ambassador to ESEC. Not quite sure if that's legal or not, but still pretty happy about it.

Who Shot the Flamingo?

Every year about this time, the cherry blossoms bloom bright pink and it's beautiful. They're in full bloom right now, but last night a storm came (the first recorded rainfall since October) and the wind blew many of the petals off the trees. This is how it looked like walking to class this morning.

My coworker Karen remarked that it looked like pink confetti. Being in a bit of a rush and in a bit of sour mood, I dryly remarked that it looked like someone shot a flamingo. Apparently, that made her day and later on, she went out and drew this in.

New Passport

After a few weeks of playing bureaucratic bingo, I finally have my new passport (courtesy of the US) and working visa (courtesy of China.) I had to go to the People's Security Bureau (PSB) to get it and that place always gives me the creeps. To get an idea of it, imagine a building that is both FBI headquarters and the DMV....and the FBI is a little suspicious of you anyway.

The PSB is sorta like that.

Anytime you see footage in VoM or the news about someone getting arrested or their door smashed in in China, probably the PSB doing it. They're like the political police. But everything went well, paid my fee, got my passport and all is well for another 2 months when i need to get my year visa renewed.

update

Like a monster from a bad sci-fi movie, Danny's book just won't die and keeps coming back. He's adding more and more chapters and information to it, which will be good in the long run, but not so much for me now. I'm co-facilitating a class with a coworker, as well as teaching two extra times during the day, helping to found a new technology orientated TIP for Shanghai and keeping up with Dannys book.

I know I've been posting a lot of pics of YuanMingYuan park lately but come on, it's really pretty this time of year. Also funny, like this one of a sign that says "Stay off the Ice"

New Passport

I spent all day today at the US Embassy applying for a renewal on my passport. It's a huge concrete and glass mega structure that could easily house several smaller countries inside and it's laid out in a vast labyrinth of security checkpoints and windows and lines. I found it a bit odd that all of the security was done by Chinese nationals as well as most of the secretarial work. I gave my application and the application fee to two very nice Chinese ladies. (for the added touch of home, the workers spoke heavily accented English)

The only American I talked to who worked there was the one who told me that my passport would be ready in seventotenbusinessdayspickupatwindowfourthankyouNEXT!