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Party’s over, camera’s gone, back in Beijing

I knew it couldn’t last forever. What was five days of spot-on seamless travel, turned into virtual disaster. Maybe disaster is too harsh a word, since I’m back in Beijing in one piece, but nonetheless, the final three days on my Dongbei trip have to...

Published Sun, Jul 07 2008 11:28 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, travel

Harbin, initial thoughts and observations

I’ve been in Harbin about 24 hours now, and here are some quick first impressions and thoughts. -Everything here is extremely cheap, even for China. Last night I stayed in a small hotel for 20 RMB (about $3 USD). I had a tidy single room, with TV...

Published Mon, Jul 07 2008 2:34 AM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, travel

Michael Jordan and the Great Wall

Whenever you are a foreigner out walking the streets in China, you usually get asked where you are from at least about 1.5 times per hour. When I would tell people I’m American, the next logical question is always “What city?” This is when things would...

Published Mon, Jul 07 2008 9:07 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, Chicago, pop culture

Chinese Vending Machines: Peanuts and Condoms and Sex Toys…Oh My!

In a country where raw materials are proportionately more expensive than labor, it doesn’t make much sense to invest in machinery to take the place of human work…yet. At least not as much as it does in more developed countries with higher wages...

Published Tue, Jun 06 2008 8:24 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes

Chinese Vending Machines: Peanuts and Condoms and Sex Toys…Oh My!

In a country where raw materials are proportionately more expensive than labor, it doesn’t make much sense to invest in machinery to take the place of human work…yet. At least not as much as it does in more developed countries with higher wages...

Published Tue, Jun 06 2008 8:24 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes

How to Obtain a 90-Day Chinese Tourist Visa

As an American, securing a Chinese visa can be a real pickle. I use the word “pickle” rather than “nightmare,” because 9 times out of 10, I have been able to obtain the visa I needed, but only after jumping through a series of arbitrary hoops which rarely...

Published Mon, Jun 06 2008 2:47 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, travel

Sweet Home Chicago (personal update)

Generally when blogging, I try to keep myself out of the spotlight, but it’s been a while since I’ve written a personal update, so I wanted to scribble down a few words to let readers know what I’ve been up to of late. As most of you probably know, I...

Published Fri, Mar 03 2008 1:13 AM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, Sino-US, announcements

The Year of (Eating) the Rat

In 2007 we saw the coming of the year of the pig, the main source of protein for China’s mass population. In 2006 it was the year of the dog, and dog ownership in China skyrocketed like never before. 2005 brought us the year of the “***,” and I don’t...

Published Thu, Feb 02 2008 7:17 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: food, festivals, personal anecdotes, local customs

Skiing and the Art of Chinese Toiletry

Last week I spent five days in Colorado for a good friend of mine’s bachelor party. Part of the bachelor party itinerary included a day of skiing. For those of you who have never enjoyed the sensation of downhill skiing, it is one of the most intense...

Published Thu, Jan 01 2008 12:34 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, culture difference

Do You QQ?

Do you have QQ? Chances are if you live in the People’s Republic of China, you have heard this sentence multiple times…in the past week. If you have never been to China, you probably have no idea what I am talking about. QQ is one of the world’s...

Published Wed, Jan 01 2008 4:02 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, society

Robbed in Chicago…Lenovo to the rescue

Just wanted to write a quick note to apologize/explain the recent lack of content on the blog. I was having an excellent holiday season until my apartment was burglarized the day after New Years. Fortunately, all they took from me was my laptop, a 3 year...

Published Tue, Jan 01 2008 2:46 PM by Ben's Blog.....小本的博客

Filed under: personal anecdotes, Chicago

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Party’s over, camera’s gone, back in Beijing

Harbin, initial thoughts and observations

Michael Jordan and the Great Wall

Chinese Vending Machines: Peanuts and Condoms and Sex Toys…Oh My!

Chinese Vending Machines: Peanuts and Condoms and Sex Toys…Oh My!

How to Obtain a 90-Day Chinese Tourist Visa

Sweet Home Chicago (personal update)

The Year of (Eating) the Rat

Skiing and the Art of Chinese Toiletry

Do You QQ?

Robbed in Chicago…Lenovo to the rescue