Through the looking glass

After losing all of my photos on my phone from my most recent business trip to China, I figured that I'd better post what pictures I have before I lose the rest of them.  Here is what I do:

It begins with a 15 hour direct flight from Chicago to Hong Kong.
  

We fly over the top of the world.  At one point, we crossed over the point where the Antarctic Ocean breaks on the icy coast of Siberia.  If there were one place on Earth that could truly be a setting for the Star Wars scenes depicting Hoth, this would be it.

Though not "WalMart" in the literal sense, this is the Chinese equivalent.
  

My boss's luggage was misplaced, so we had to find some temporary clothing for him.  If this place didn't have it, nowhere would.

 A room with a view.

This is a picture taken from my hotel room (first night in China), though it is not Hong Kong.  We fly into Hong Kong, but then drive into mainland China.  Headquarters is located in Hou Jie Town, Dongguan City (in the Guang Dong Provence).  Very industrial.

 Lunch at the farm.

During my first day of work in the PRC (People's Republic of China), we took lunch at a little outdoor venue affectionately called "the farm."  It is an eatery where you choose your food live, it is prepared and then brought to you.  The picture above depicts the array of fish on the menu.  There were many exotic varieties.

 Shell fish on order.

This is a cascading tank holding the mollusks.  Again, there were a striking variety.

 They have crabs.

What else can I say, besides the fact that, unlike your local grocer, these crabs are fresh (as in still alive in the picture above.

They were also very delicious.

You'll notice in the picture above, the lazy susan on the table at the top of the image.  A ton of food was continuously brought out during the meal.  You would then use the lazy susan to sample the dishes.  As dad would say, "we ate like kings."

 

 This is why we call it the farm.

If you are a connoisseur of fine whiskey, then you would certainly appreciate the farm.  While perusing the potential cuisine, I found a giant display of "animal whiskey."  The bottom row of the picture above is several types of snake whiskies.  Cobra, coral, viper, cotton mouth, etc.  They are all prepared on site.  The bottles above were insects and varmints.  Centipedes (GIANT centipedes), spiders, scorpions, beetles, and...
  

 Baby mice.

They say these "tonics" promote virility and stamina.  If by virility and stamina, you mean a nightmare hangover, then yes, I agree.  All jest aside, I thought that it was awesome.  If any of y'all would like me to bring home a bottle to try, just say the word.  The food that we had at the farm wasn't the most exotic they had available.  Prawns, crabs, several soups, and even pigeon.  Our liaison mentioned that, if we liked the stuff that we had, we'd go to the next level of crazy on our next visit. On the way out, we passed a shack with Guinea pigs in stacked cages.  If I have one regret, it is the fact that I did not eat a Guenna pig.

 Potty shot.

This is the potty at one of the vendors that we went to visit. Fairly typical, though in most facilities with any western influences, they may have standard toilets.

We ate, and we ate often.

This is our group, having dinner with one of our vendors.

 May ye rest in peace, my delicious flying rat (pigeon) friend...

 Hong Kong in the evening.

After our brief stay in Hou Jie, we were off to Shanghai.  Before jet setting, however, we spent the weekend in Hong Kong.  There was a time that I thought that New York was big and busy.  Between Sao Paulo and Hong Kong, that has all changed.  Hong Kong was truly amazing.  The food was some of the best I've eaten and the luxury here... Lambos, Ferraris, Bentlys, Rolls; you name it and it is as common on the streets here as the Fords and Chevys back home.

 Exhibit A.

 Exhibit B.

Exhibit C.

 8PM laser light show.

Every night in Hong Kong, at exactly 8pm, there is a laser light show.  Buildings on both sides of the bay participate and it is set to music, quite fun.

 Morning view.

The above picture was taken from my hotel room in Hong Kong.  Several floors up and nearly downtown.  

 Twilight in the city.

This is one of the last pictures that I took in Hong Kong.  I made a trip to one of the highest points on the island called Victoria Peak.  The timing was right for a gorgeous twilight picture. Though it was amazing to visit, and I'm very excited to go back, my small town desire would keep me from ever living somewhere so busy.  It was an amazing adventure.  The next day I would be in Shanghai...

An evening in Shanghai.

We arrived in Shanghai in the evening.  Above is the view from my hotel.  Admittedly, it is a poor picture and I blame my phone.  We late went out to get some food and I was not prepared for the city.

Pagodas in the city lights.
  

This area is something of a historic district (according to our "guide").  The wood work was nothing short of phenomenal.  This is the stereotypical China that I had envisioned.  It as exciting to be a part of it for even a short period of time.

More of the same.

I'm not really sure what this building was, but I was impressed its commanding presence.

Nanjing Road.

Very touristy, very neat.  Nanjing road has an air of familiarity for anyone that has spent any amount of time on the Vegas strip.  Lots of amazing street performances as well as commercial flair (there was a giant shark tank in one of the shop display windows. This was a great place to just people-watch.

We were, however, on business, and as such we were on assignment to visit vendors.  Below is a sequence that shows the production of wood boring bits.

 Raw stock as it comes into the factoy.

 The raw stock is then few through a vertical mill to hawg out the flutes. The amazing part is that this is a single pass operation (it is not a small amount of material being removed).

  

 Production is fast paced.  Often too fast to screw around with managing chips.

 Lathe operation; again, these bits aren't going to turn themselves...

 Post lathe.

 Finishing passes are often completed by hand.  This guy was neuro-surgeon steady and Usain Bolt fast.

 Bits with feedscrews freshly ground.

 These bits are nearly complete.  Only a step or two before they are completed and bound for a hardware store near you.

There is much more to it, and next time I'm home dad, I'll have to show you the extent of the operations there.  As a machinist, you'll truly appreciate the work being done.  Like I've mentioned before, the work is fast paced and the locations that I had the chance to visit never seemed to sleep; it is truly a well oiled machine.  Nearly two weeks in and it was time to start looking west.

 A couple of amazing hotels...

 And several stone mouthed lions later...

And we were back home to the sweet pea and her watchful guardian, bat dog!

So there you have it, an amazing trip and some truly crazy experiences.  With several more trips expected in the future, I'll continue to post updates of my global exploits.  From Hong Kong and Shanghai, I'm signing off.