it's been so long since i've posted on xanga that i'm not sure what to say. so many things has happened since....oh well. here goes.
CHINA:
went to china w/ the family for close to 3 wks before my internship. though for the 1st week i hung out w/ highschoo/college friends, we did the usual tourist stuff - except for one night.
my highschool friend that lives there is pretty connected in shanghai/beijing, so while i was in beijing he invited a bunch of us to some house warming party. we happily obliged, since touristy stuff gets to be too much after a while. when we arrived at 10pm, the party was happening. as i look around the pad, i realized this is definitely the ex pat scene. we walk over to the bar, grab our whatever-on-the-rocks, and my high school friend introduced me to a bunch of people. from then on, my bschool training kicked in, and w/ an alcohol induced friendly look on my face, i mingled like crazy. the friends i came with retired to the couch after a while, but i pressed on, even bumped in a couple of michigan undergrads along the way. eventually, i find myself on the balcony, w/ an unusal crowd. a lawyer from chicago, a southern belle, the daughter of a prominent beijing general, and a few PE/VC people.
once i introduced myself, they offered me some grass as a gesture of acceptance, which i found funny, but i cracked a joke and begged off. the lawyer from chicago talked about his practice in beijing, the southern belle talked about her taiwanese husband back in taiwan and their various businesses, and the general's daughter spoke w/ flawless english. the few PE/VC people, well, i know their kind - MBA's from xyz schools. after 5 min, i decided that i've found my place for the night, these were either people who's come a long way to be here, or people w/ really interesting backgrounds. w/ the lights of beijing in the background, i suddenly realized that if i was to work in china, i'd want to hang w/ ex pats as well. it was a slow realization, but i guess that's what happens after 20 yrs in california. though i'll always be proud that i'm fobby. :)
when last call came, i thought that'd be it, i'd head back to my hotel and sleep till noon. but no, i suddenly remembered that the friends i'm sharing the hotel suite with had taken off a couple hours ago. fishing for my hotel's address in my pocket, i was offered another option. i can join my highschool friend and a bunch of his buddies to some bar, and then go home. i looked at my watch, surprised to find that it's 3am, and decided it's now too late to go home so early....if that made any sense. (i'm usually not the stay out all night type of guy, bschool can only change me so much)
so we end up in a bar, and i ordered a ridiculously expensive beer (basically US prices, but hey, with free beers in school, anything's ridiculously expensive). after a swig, i took a look around, but i only spotted my high school friend next to me. he was grinning, so i got worried. i took another look around, and realized that the place was full of good looking women, not normal.....and, oh, these were working girls.
now i have a big grin on my face, b/c this just got more interesting. i walked him over to a corner and start peppering him with questions. (yes, you know what kind of questions) finally, he said, "why don't you go and talk to one and find out?" shoot. i've been dared. it's a test, to see if i can hang. fine. so i walked over to the best looking one that i can see (why not, right?) and started a conversation.
nothing happened of course ;) but after an hour of sipping my expensive beer, all the guys i came with started walking out w/ company in hand....and that was the sign of a night that was truely over. for me at least.
(this is way too long, more for next post)
Chatboard (0)