At the beginning of this month, I had the pleasure to travel to Beijing, China to attend a business forum and a series of meetings with my boss and a few other managers. The preparation was a bit rushed, nerve-wrackingly so due to the tons of paperwork back in office that needed to be completed and approved before the trip, but I am extremely happy for the travelling opportunity, since it was my first trip to China. ^^
This picture with the large peking roast duck (北京烤鸭) signboard may be best one for the posting's preview. XD
I knew it was going to be a great trip when P. Ramlee's Ali Baba Bujang Lapok (1960) was one of the movies selectable on the Malaysian Airlines flight to Beijing that I took. ^^
And of course I watched it. ^^
I was planning to write about the trip when I was actually in Beijing, but then I remembered Blogger, as with everything by Google is not accessible in China. ^^;
Then again, the icy low temperature (-4°C was the average during my three-day stay) was actually the immediate and most noticeable new experience for someone like me who are used to tropical weather. ^^
A giant mural painting at the arrival hall of Beijing Capital International Airport.
The smog condition was horrendous when I landed at around 2AM on Tuesday (1 December), and didn't improve one bit that whole day. ^^;
This picture was taken inside the hotel where the business forum was held, around noon - as if there's any indication of the time looking up the sky in this condition. ^^;
Miraculously, one night of strong wind and everything was clear on 2 December. O_O
The sudden, amazing improvement in the air condition was unbelievable, even when looking back at it now. ^^
A filling hot pot dinner with my boss and manager on 2 December. The fire in our bellies gained from the spicy Sichuan soup was just about right to handle the cold outside the shopping mall complex when we were walking back to our hotel. XD
Visited Wangfujing Street (王府井) on 3 December, with plenty of modern shopping malls and commercial buildings to be seen there.
Fried starfish and scorpions anyone? ^^
Lunch at Quanjude (全聚德), ...
... where the restaurant's peking roast duck isn't just a delicious cuisine, it's art. ^^
More walking after lunch lead to Tiananmen Square (天安门广场).
Click the image for larger view (8192px by 1856px)
More commercial buildings alongside Chang'an Avenue (长安街).
Saw the unique building design of China Central Television (中国中央电视台, CCTV) on the way back to the hotel.
During my return flight in the wee hours of 4 December, the plane was flying over Vietnam. ^^
I took the picture just because I couldn't sleep during the flight. ^^;
I should have written about this trip when I was back in Kuching after 4 December, but from one business forum to another large company event, the following week I went and stayed in a local hotel as part of the working committee. ^^
With Christmas and the long weekend coming up, I finally got the chance to go through the many picture I took and write about my visit to China. ^^ It's definitely one of the highlights for me in terms of personal experience this year. ^^
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment