All –
So, this is update number two…albeit it is the first full-time Hong Kong resident update. Well, today is May 3, 2007, which means Randi and I have been in Hong Kong for just about two months. I was kind of waiting a bit so that I could have some interesting and meaningful information to share, that and we have been pretty busy with everything going on in our lives over the couple of months.
As most of you know we left Memphis on the 6th of March for our journey to Hong Kong…our dog, Henry, left on the 5th due to flight restrictions and all that jazz. Just for your personal edification, it will cost you approximately $500 more to ship your dog via Northwest’s VIP (Very Important Pet) service than it would for you to buy a coach seat from Memphis to Hong Kong. When I was quoted the outrageous price I asked the highly educated and completely customer oriented Northwest representative if Henry would be receiving an in-flight meal as well as in-flight entertainment…she flat replied “no”. So, much for VIP service and so much for getting your money’s worth; I think next time we are going to slap some clothes on him and stick him back in coach…at least he will be able to stretch his legs.
Randi and I departed on the morning of the 6th after a long week of prepping our house/condo for rent. We were “advised” that the condition we leave the condo in would be the condition that we receive the condo back in…so; Randi and I went to work. Now, having only been in the condo for a little less than a year, it was in very good condition; however there was still work to be done. We patched every nail-hole in the place, spackled, sanded and repainted to ensure that the walls were in tip-top shape. We ended up repainting the bedroom due to the walls just not looking right after our repairs; I personally think the paint color was a bit off…since you could see exactly where we repainted. So, we taped, drop-clothed and painted…which, really made the room look great. I personally think we did a better job than the contractors originally did. We also used some polyurethane (thanks to a tip from the Gillespie’s) on the tiles throughout the house…which really brought out the texture of the tiles and gave them a clean appearance. You would not believe the difference that little trick did on the slate around the fireplace…night and day. Randi and I decided to leave our home theater system in place for the renters…rather than pulling everything out. So, our lucky renters will be getting a 42” flat-screen and a Bose surround sound system hooked up to some high-end Sony equipment. I also had to leave my Xbox and PS2…so, whoever rents the place is getting a pretty decked out entertainment package. I am just hoping it is all there when we get back. Our developer, who is slower and less responsive than a corpse, is supposed to be swapping out our wine cooler and beverage center with G.E. Profile units…but, he has yet to do so. I think the only time he was responsive was when I had to cut a check for the condo…since then…we will just say “responsive” and his name do not belong in the same book…possibly even in the same hemisphere. So, after putting everything in tip-top shape…Randi and I were ready to head out.
Randi, Henry and I crashed at our friend’s the Gillespie’s for about 10 days as we packed everything up and prepared to move. A special thanks to David and Andrea for being so hospitable while we crashed at their place…complete with dog.
Randi and I also had to decide what to do with our cars. We sold the Saab right off and then we decided to keep my Land Cruiser…as it was/is my “dream” car and I am just beginning the process of building it into an “expedition” vehicle that I plan to someday cruise all over the North American continent with a few friends. Randi’s parents and uncle were nice enough to offer to keep the vehicle at their house during our absence…although I had several other offers to “watch” the vehicle why I was gone. Several individuals, who shall remain nameless, were extremely eager to get their hands on it.
We are still in the process of selling Randi’s Pathfinder and we are hoping that it will be sold by the end of the month…we hate to see it go…but, we can’t justify keeping two cars while we are out of the country. So, if anyone is interested in a fully loaded 2004 Pathfinder with less than 30k on the odometer…let me know. Sorry for the sales pitch…did I mention it is four-wheel drive?
Finally on the morning of March 6, 2007 Randi and I headed out. Well, headed to the Memphis International Airport early in the AM. Randi was worried that we were going to miss our flight and her parents decided to meet us there...so we had to get there a little earlier than normal. Randi’s parents help up pretty well, although her Mom did break into tears as we said our good-byes. They are not quite use to the “globe-trotting” lifestyle that Randi and I were embarking on. I am kind of used to flying all over God’s green earth and my parents, I suspect, are fairly use to it. Let this be a warning to all the single men out there…lesson one on how not to score points with the in-laws. Do not, and I repeat do not, tell your in-laws that you are moving their only daughter and only child to China just a few months after you get married. I have to admit they have been pretty good about it.
Randi and I arrived safe and sound on the 7th in our new home along with my two co-workers/friends. We immediately went to check on Henry to make sure he survived the flight. I have honestly never seen a dog that “stressed out” before. I think his first flight, seeing how it was close to 20 hours and crossed numerous time zones, was a little stressful on the little guy. None the less he made it in one piece and as best as I can tell he did not use the bathroom in his kennel…apparently he has a strong bladder.
At this point in time, we are pretty much moved in and settled into our apartment. We had to stay at a hotel for about 10 days while our furniture made its’ way over here and all the apartment items were taken care of and switched over. Henry unfortunately had to stay in a kennel…he refers to this period as his Chinese Prison days…but, it wasn’t that bad. Randi and I were able to visit him once and it was an average kennel in the Chinese country side. I think Henry has just gotten spoiled sleeping on his feather bed and being tucked in every night by my wife. He is indeed a piece of work.
So, we were pretty excited when we were able to move into our new place. We are living on Victoria Peak which is on the Hong Kong Island part of Hong Kong. Hong Kong also has the Kowloon “side” as well as the New Territories. The island is definitely a lot more exciting and full of energy. Victoria Peak or “The Peak” is basically the top of the mountain that overlooks the city. It is a great area and we have some fantastic views of the city and the surrounding seas. We were fortunate to find a place up there within our budget as the area is extremely expensive. It is a great place for Henry as there are parks and trails all over the mountain. He loves going for walks and spotting all the new wildlife that he is not quite use to yet. As he is a birddog, he has an intense fascination with anything that flies. Unfortunately, being on the peak there are some large birds of prey that like to fly around…I think Henry is still sizing them up…or it could be the other way around.
Our apartment is great, we are living in a complex called “The Mount Austin”, I know it sounds a little “high-brow” but, I think if you add a “the” in front of anything you get the same feel. Go ahead and experiment with that one…start adding ”the” in front of everything at work or at home and see how people react. My pen…I mean “the pen” has taking on a whole cult following now…everyone wants to write with “the pen”…nothing special about my Pilot…except I added “the” to it.
We have a small three bedroom place with two bathrooms. It is roughly the same size as our condo in Memphis…so the transition was easy. We have great views from all of our rooms, we look down on the Pok Fu Lam reservoir and then the South China Sea…it is pretty cool to relax on the sofa and watch the ships go buy in the distance…very cool. We have hit IKEA numerous times to get all the little stuff that makes a place your home and we are really starting to get comfortable. Since our condo was only a one bedroom place in Memphis; we are still lacking guest bedroom furniture but, we are going to meet with a builder this weekend and hopefully we will be well on our way to having some furniture for our future guests. It is actually pretty inexpensive to get furniture made here…you can basically take the builders a picture of what you want (say a Pottery Barn catalog) and they will draw it up and then build it once everything is settled. We also have to get new bedroom furniture for our bedroom as the rooms are a little smaller. So, for the time being we are sleeping on the mattress which is parked squarely on the floor. It’s great, Henry’s bed is snuggled up right next to ours…so, when I wake up in the morning I get to either look squarely into Henry’s big brown nose…or if I am unfortunate…I get a canine butt shot…what a way to wake-up. We are pretty sure Henry enjoys being at eye-level with us, as in the middle of the night he has a tendency to covertly crawl into bed with us and snuggle himself up right between Randi and I.
As far as Hong Kong goes, we are definitely learning our way around and we definitely do not feel like tourists anymore. We can negotiate the streets with ease, the MTR (Mass Transit Rail) is an old friend and we know where streets cross and how to get from point A to point B with relative ease. Randi has the Central area down fairly well as that is where she is working and I have the Southern, Central, Eastern and Peak down pat. We purchased a car shortly after we got here and I have been zipping my way all around Hong Kong for the past month or so. I love driving in Hong Kong as you really get a feel for the city and you definitely learn your way around. I have been temporarily disoriented a few times…but, since we are on an island there is no fear of getting lost…sooner or later you are going to hit something that is familiar.
Randi is still a little nervous about driving…the streets are narrow and the buses and the mini-buses drive with little regards for the well being of those they share the streets with. I have seen several mini-bus drivers that are geared up as if they were preparing for the Daytona 500.
I had a run-in with a mini-bus driver yesterday that was geared up with sunglasses (Aviator style), black driving gloves and a bandana around his head...I think he was the Tom Cruise from Days of Thunder of Hong Kong. He was driving his mini-bus like he was at the wheel of a Porsche Carerra GT…tailgating me like he was drafting me on the final turn at Daytona. He was all about trying to cut people off and take them off the line. We squared up at a red light, he veered over into the left lane…a lane that ended right after the light…he knew it but, he thought he would get the drop on me. The lights in Hong Kong are just the same as in the US…the only difference is that you always transition between Yellow…even when you are going from Red to Green. So, when that light turned Yellow he gunned it off the line. I let him have about half a mini-bus length before I let the car off the line…just enough room to make him think he had me. I quickly closed the gap and he had to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting the parked delivery truck blocking the lane. Sure enough I got the evil eye from him as he realized he was now pinned and was going to have to wait for the 20+ cars behind me to pass before he could pull back-out…lesson learned…you never mess with an American behind the wheel. It’s a lesson he soon won’t forget.
I have yet to see a speed-limit sign in Hong Kong…so generally everyone moves at about 60kmh through the city which is just about 37mph. I have to admit…there are a lot of bad drivers in Hong Kong…and I mean really bad drivers. I think the fact is that most people have never driven outside of Hong Kong and when you drive in a small area your whole life, you really don’t get that much of a driving experience. For the most part…the drivers are extremely slow…extremely cautious and ride their brakes like it was their national pastime. They also stop for no apparent reason and don’t think about using your turn signals…apparently they don’t teach that in drivers’ education. The most enjoyable part of driving in Hong Kong is sharing the road with the 8 trillion taxis. To them time is money and they are not afraid to take a mile even if you don’t give them an inch. When it comes to taxis you have to fight for the road…otherwise you are going too screwed. All-in-all I am enjoying it…Randi was a little worried when I first started driving and occasionally she will still close her eyes and let out a little shriek…but, I have told her driving in Hong Kong is cake compared to driving in Iraq.
Randi is working at Robert Half here in Hong Kong and she is enjoying it much more so than she did in the US. The work environment is about a thousand times better and the “fear” culture that existed in Memphis does not exist here. Although, Randi has to adjust to working without the constant threat of being fired every day; I am not sure what management school the Memphis management people went to but, I am pretty confident having your employees constantly fearing for their jobs is not the best method to maintaining happy employees…maybe that is why they had such a high-turnover in Memphis…could it be? Needless to say, Randi is much happier here and her colleagues are great people. I think she will really enjoy it over the next few years.
As far as the reason why we are in Hong Kong, my job is going great. We just got back from Australia and finished up our first project. It looks like we are going to be fairly busy over the course of the next fiscal year. We will be traveling a lot and really getting to see a lot of the Asia Pacific area. The group of people I am working with our second to none and we have hired three great locals that are going to augment our team and really create a stellar group. I see this group growing over the next few years as China and the Asia Pacific area are in such a high growth stage right now. FedEx is definitely committed to the area and I am sure we will see our business grow rapidly here over the next few years. It is hard to believe but, we have been in this area for over 20 years now, I do have to say Fred Smith has made some excellent strategic decisions. We are in a great position to capitalize on the current economic growth that is occurring all over the region. The office here is great; we are working out of the Asia Pacific headquarters in Cyberport, which is a new high-tech development on the Western side of the island. The folks are extremely nice and everyone has been very helpful. We have had to get use to their work culture…they don’t joke around as much as we do in the States and when we joke around with them, they don’t often get it right away. So, there are some learning curves there…as expected.
Randi and I are both learning a bit of Cantonese here and there and we are supposed to be starting our Mandarin lessons soon. I can’t wait to learn Mandarin and it is one of my goals to be conversational by the time we leave.
We are definitely looking forward to having visitors and we will guarantee that you will enjoy your time here…the food is marvelous and the place is amazing…so much to see and do.
Till next time.
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