CIRCLE-PACIFIC ITINERARY

Friday, July 14th, 2006

US Air Flight 63
Departs Philadelpha 1:50 p.m.
Arrives San Francisco 4:45 p.m.

United Airlines Flight 863
Departs San Francisco 10:53 p.m.
Arrives Sydney July 16th 6:25 a.m.

Park Hyatt Sydney

Monday, July 17th, 2006

Singapore Airlines Flight 220
Departs Sydney 8:05 a.m.
Arrives Singapore 2:20 p.m.

Singapore Airlines Flight 112
Departs Singapore 3:10 p.m.
Arrives Kuala Lumpur 4:05 p.m.

Ritz Carlton Kuala Lumpur

Wednesday, July 19th, 2006

Singapore Airlines 103
Departs Kuala Lumpur 8:15 a.m.
Arrives Singapore 9:10 a.m.

Singapore Airlines 806
Departs Singapore 10:10
Arrives Shanghai 3:30 p.m.

Grand Hyatt Shanghai

Friday July 21, 2006

China Eastern Airlines, Flight 5105
Departs Shanghai 10:00 a.m.
Arrives Beijing 12:00 p.m.

Grand Hyatt Beijing

Monday, July 24, 2006

United Airlines 888
Departs Beijing 12:05 p.m.
Arrives San Francisco 8:47 a.m.

US Air Flight 564
Departs San Francisco 11:00 a.m.
Arrives Philadelphia 7:25 p.m.

NATIONALS GAME

We took a trip down to visit Kelly, Mike and Jack last weekend. Mike scored four tickets to the Nationals/Phillies game from his boss, and although the Phils got their butts kicked, it was a great day for a game, and an awesome time with all the F-R- double E food you could eat. Steph is the prettiest accesorizer at the ballpark, and check out my brother-in-law, double-fisting in his boss' $100 seats eight rows behind home plate. He's the man. Classic!

MACAU TOWER JUMP

With a full day of activities planned for our day visit to Macau (Thanks Steph!!) we didn't hit the Macau Tower Jump until night time. In fact, we were the last jumpers of the day. It was quite interesting jumping at night this time, but no less scary. As you can see, they gave us these super sweet jumpsuits to use vice the orange one they gave me last time. We liked them so much, we kept them and went out to dinner with them on that night! Wonder dork powers.....Activate!

MACAU DAY VISIT

It's kind of odd that in going form Hong Kong to Macau, you never leave China, yet get both exit and entry stamps on your passport, neither of which are anything to do with the Chinese. The two are SAR's - Special Administrative Regions - who essentially haven't changed since reverting to Chinese rule in the late 1990's, (after 400 some odd years). Beaurocracy and international relations are amazing things.

So after experiencing some truly Brisith customs on Hong Kong (driving on the other side, having your tea served with milk and sugar), strangely enough, visiting this island 65 KM off the coast of Hong Kong gives visitors a true taste of Portuguese life. (Macau did not develop as a major steelement until the Portuguese arrived in the 16th century). It was Asia's first European colony, and has a ver Mediterranean feel to it. Indeed, Stephanie kept commenting that parts could just as easily have been in Spain or Italy. Or, I'm assuming, Portugal. It was handed over in 1999. Anyway, we had a good time, and almost missed the last ferry home!

For years, the most famous landmark of Macau was the Baroque facade of the former Church of St. Paul (Sao Paulo in Portuguese). Many people make a pilgrimage to these ruins, one of the most revered Christian monuments in Asia. This church was constructed under the supervision of Carlo Spinola, a Jesuit from Italy. It basically replaced the Church of the Mater Dei, which was built in 1593 but was destroyed by fires in 1593 and 1602. The construction of St. Paul was completed from 1602 to 1627 by Christians exiled from Japan, along with the assistance of Chinese craftsmen. The Jesuits were booted out in 1762, and later the complex spent time as a military station. A catastrophic fire in 1835 consumed the site except for the facade and the monumental stairs.

Steph with her favorite travel companion sitting on a fountain in the central square in Macau.

Steph with her second favorite travel companion, the Lonely Planet Guidebook.

TIAN TAN BUDDHA

The Tian Tan Buddha sits on the island of Lantau, and is the largest seated outdoor bronze Buddha in the world. You have to climb 260 steps to reach him, and a large bell inside of him rings 108 times during the day to symbolize escape from what Budhism terms the 108 troubles of mankind. Jay-Z said there are only 99 problems, but since the bitch ain't one, maybe that accounts for the additional nine? Regardless, I had to high-five him!

HK HARBOR

Jackie Chan is my boy!

STAFFANY ON A KOWLOON STREET

KOWLOON TEMPLE

A Temple we visited on a walking tour of the Kowloon side of Hong Kong. The haze you see is created by the sprial-cone incense hanging from the ceiling. Visitors may pay to light one, which will burn for 10 days.

STAFFANY OUTSIDE JUMBO FLOATING RESTAURANT

HONG KONG SKYLNE FROM THE STAR FERRY AND VICTORIA PEAK

DOMO ARIGATO, MRS. ROBOTO....DOMO!

And she never knew I was taking the picture...

OUTSIDE THE NATIONAL PALACE MUSEUM, TAIPEI

STAFFANY LOVES KARAOKE!

Here she is, singing Love Me Tender with "Taipei Elvis." Look how she makes the locals get jiggy with it...

VISIT TO GIANT BICYCLES HQ AND MANUFACTURING PLANT

Giant manfactures bicycles under the brand names Giant, Trek and Specialized in this plant just about 2 1/2 hours outside of Taipei.

The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.

I didn't say it....St. Augustine did!

CHINA GIP ITINERARY

Sunday, May 7th

United Flight 3 185
Departs Philadelphia 6:45 AM
Arrives San Francisco 9:33 AM

United Flight 831
Departs San Francisco 1:08 PM
Arrives Taipei 8:15 PM May 9th

Howard Plaza Hotel Taipei
http://www.srs-worldhotels.com/taiwan/taipei/hotel_tpehow.html

Saturday May 13th

Cathay Pacific Flight 405
Departs Taipei 4:10 PM
Arrives Hong Kong 5:55 PM

The Royal Garden Hotel
http://www.rghk.com.hk

Sunday, May 21st

United, Flight 862
Departs Hong Kong 11:45 AM
Arrives San Francisco 8:47 AM

United, Flight 186
Departs San Francisco 11:30 AM
Arrives Philadelphia 7:55 PM

CLERKS 2!!!

With a slacker classic, there is no rush to do a sequel.....CLERKS 2 is out in theaters August 18th!!

SPRING GALA

Stephanie and I attended Wharton's Spring Gala last Friday night, a black tie optional end of the year celebration for Wharton MBA students and staff. Although I look very sleepy in this shot, I actually received a lot of compliments from my co-workers that I looked good this evening. The funny thing is, I wear this suit and tie all the time at work, and never got a compliment. This picture clearly illustrates what made me look so good that evening...

JACK ATTACK!

Pictures from Jack's first Easter. Not only is he kicking some serious baby bootaaaaay in his Saturday-morning swimming lessons, but how cool does he look in sunglasses - he'll be sitting the wood in Wildwood before we know it! We should start calling him Mitch!

HAPPY EASTER!

FIRE AT SEA CAN RUIN YOUR WHOLE DAY

Since nothing is going on with me at the moment, I thought I'd remind you that a bad day at the office is still better than a bad day at sea! This is the M/V Hyundai Fortune which started burning 60 miles off the coast of Yemen on March 21st, her 10th birthday. Initial speculation was that conatiners with fireworks were to blame, but now industry sources have started to consider in private whether the vessel could have been the target of a piracy or terrorist attack, or even hit a mine. Needless to say, the loss is huge. Her Hull Value is $56,000,000 with a deductible of $150,000. Cargo-loss estimates are north of $10 million. Some say images of a ship this badly damaged have not been seen since WWII. Imagine all the baby strollers and DVD's, clothes lost in this disaster. Ship happens...

DT's RULES

My friend DT is a Second Class Boatswain's Mate in the United States Coast Guard. When I visited him in Puerto Rico, he told me about his eight rules that he informally gives to non-rates, basically people right out of boot camp, when they come aboard his ship, to help them adjust and do their jobs well. I like the common sense, back-to-basics approach to these rules, and thought I'd post them here:

1. Show up early, so if you are late one day people will overlook it because you are always early.

2. Clean uniform. Personal apperance goes along way. Look sharp.

3. Proper planning prevents piss poor performance. Plan ahead.

4. Have a good attitude - nobody likes it when you just complain all the time. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel, even when you are dying.

5. Work hard, do it right the first time. If we don't have the time to do it right the first time we are going to have make time to do it again. Who has time to make time?

6. Tell the truth.

7. Mind your own business.

8. No matter how bad it gets today, I am not getting shot at, like in Iraq.

DHARAVI SLUM TOUR

One of the best things I did on this, or any other trip, is visit the Dharavi slum with Reality Tours and Travel. Asia's largest slum, Dharavi is infamously home to over a million people, many of them migrants, all living on less than one square mile of reclaimed marshland on the edge of Mumbai. Prince Charles and Bill Clinton have both visited these slums.

The living conditions look terrible and they are terrible. Some estimates state there is one toilet for every 1,488 people. These people are not hopeless, however - indeed, they are the most energetic people in the city, and most homes, when you look inside, are spotless.

Dharavi is much more than cold a statistic. What makes it special are the extraordinary people who live there, many of whom have defied fate and an unhelpful State to prosper through a mix of backbreaking work, some luck and a great deal of ingenuity. Inside Dharavi, covering 530 acres near the airport, goods worth over $600 million a year are produced. Alleyways a few feet wide lead to bakeries, metal workshops and sheds that recycle discarded plastic goods ranging from medical syringes to telephones. Workers in a series of tiny workshops spray-paint, cut and press strips and sheets of leather and vinyl that eventually finish up as cheap wallets and bags plus, in some cases, upmarket luggage (often fake international brands). Few of the workers earn more than 100-200 Rupees ($2-4) a day, and families often live in overcrowded lofts over the workshops. Yet there is progress, and hope.

I hope the following pictures convey what an amazing place this is.

MUMBAI TRAINS

I stopped by Church Gate station, where on an average day, six million commuters struggle to get on trains that can only accomodate 2 million passengers. To say it gets physical when a train approaches is an understatement. Traveling down the tracks, people hang out the open doors for space and fresh air, and it's not uncommon to see guys riding on top of cars. To make things fair for women in the rush to get on the trains, a number of cars are designated Ladies Only...

Believe it or not, this billboard is a advertisement for coffee. A Mumbaikar is a person who lives in Mumbai.

Mani Bhavan is a simple old-style, two storied house in Mumbai. The house belonged to Shri Revashankar Jhaveri, Mahatma Gandhi’s friend and host in Mumbai. Whenever he was in Mumbai between 1917 to 1934, Gandhi stayed here. It was from here that he initiated the Civil Disobedience movement. Mani Bhavan stood witness to the important movements of Indian freedom struggle. It is now converted into a museum and research centre. Unfortunately, it was going through renovation when I visited. Some exhibts were still open, and a picture of a letter Gandhi sent to Hitler in an attempt to prevent the war is below.