Back in Asia

After we have left Beijing, we have been living for 2 years in Germany (to be precise: 2 years and 2 weeks). Now we are back in Asia. This time Bangkok. It is a bit like moving back home, because we have lived already 5 years in Bangkok before (1998 - 2003) - but that was without our son.

He misses Beijing and we still have many friends in Beijing that we really want to visit. Now, from Bangkok it is "only" a 5 hour flight to Beijing.

Since we have announced that we are going to live in Bangkok again, all our friends from Beijing (and not only from Beijing) have promised to visit us in Thailand.

I hope to keep this blog alive by writing soon again something new. Hopefully about a trip to China!
Stay with me and this blog!
Thanks, xie xie

suzie

PS: BTW I have startet a blog about moving to Bangkok (so far it is in German). But from now on, I will translate the posts into English as well. You can find it here: http://www.1lifeinbangkok.blogspot.com/

When you ask for TWO and get EIGHT

Once, when my mother was visiting me in Beijing together with my mother-in-law, we went shopping. We always went shopping of course, but once we went shopping for tea. It was their last day of their stay in Beijing and the demand for different kind of green teas and jasmine teas in pretty little gift boxes was high. I was the tour guide and had to translate - but could not handle both mothers at the same time. So my mother, not shy, went ahead and ordered two more red boxes of a nice Dragon Well green tea. And to make sure the Chinese sales girl understood her right, she made the gesture with her two fingers - the Western way :

The Chinese sales girl got very excited and asked her collegue for help and they packed tea in boxes, and boxes and boxes ... meanwhile I turned around and saw my confused mother trying to stop the girls and behind the counter I saw happy busy working sales girls.

I understood right away, what had happened, when I heard my mother saying : No, TWO, TWO !

The Western gesture for TWO is the Chinese gesture for EIGHT !

You must know the following :
Chinese use one hand, five fingers only, to count to 10. And especially when shopping in the grocery markets they use their fingers.

And counting to ten the Chinese way goes like this:

Chinese figure gestures

Chinese characters for 1 to 10 and pinyin writing

Below alternative gestures for 10 :

So, my Mum had ordered EIGHT boxes of tea, thinking she had asked for only TWO. Well, she did ask for two, in her English - but with the Western gesture for two which is the Chinese gesture for eight.

What you want to know about Sexy Beijing's Sexy Christmas

In this Sexy Beijing video from December 2006 Su Fei tries to find out about the Christmas spirit that seems to invade China's capital every year. What do Chinese people think about Christmas? What do they know about Christian customs and what do they know about Jewish Hanukkah?

Although China is a communist country and Christmas is an official working day, Beijing is decorated with Christmas trees and full of Santa Clauses like any other capital in the world these days. Flower markets in Chaoyang district have been selling natural Christmas trees and Advent wreath with four candles. The sales person often not knowing the meaning are smart enough to know the foreigners' demand. Christmas seems like a fun holiday - as it should be - and as Chinese people do like most Western things they also "copy" Christmas - at least the decorative and fun part like getting together and exchanging gifts.

*

 HAPPY Holiday to all of you !

*

Boutique Hotel in Sanlitun : The Opposite House

The newly created Swire Hotels group, owned by Hong Kong-based Swire Properties, opened its first hotel "The Opposite House" in Beijing in summer 2008.

lobby of the Opposite House

exterior of the Opposite House in Sanlitun, Beijing

The hotel with its green glass exterior and minimalistic interior offers 99 suites starting at 1850 CNY per night (minimum stay 2 nights).

all rooms feature wooden floors and are very bright

the bathrooms feature bath tube and double sinks made of oak wood

the only traditional Chinese accessory is a wooden chest used as coffee table or storage

 

a room (studio 95) with a balcony

Designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, the hotel is part of Swire's first integrated commercial project in China, a giant new shopping, lifestyle and dining development, called The Village, at Sanlitun in Beijing.  So if you wonder why all the old houses had to vanish, for what and why all these glass cubes look alike, then you know: it is all part of an integrated project by this Hong-Kong based company.

from right to left : the (South) Village, addidas store, Yashow market

If you have been in Sanlitun lately and have any dining or shopping experience in the Opposite House's neighbourhood, let me know what you think.

map and contact, click to enlarge

photo source: the opposite house

Beijing City Guide by Design*Sponge

Maybe you already know design*sponge, a daily website dedicated to home and product design run by writer Grace Bonney. This extremely successful blog also has a growing collection of city guides, that are compiled with the help of readers. Design*Sponge city guide to Beijing is quiet a complete list of things to do & see in this fast changing city.

Like many others which are planning a trip to Beijing the authors of this city guide came across my blog. They liked the "great beijing home/decor shopping list from beijing notebook" and included a link to this blog.
Thanks for the mention !

I can recommend to check out this new online city guide as it is compiled just recently, in August 2009 and includes all the new stuff - and the old stuff that has not vanished.