KARAOKE!!

Today is my last day in China!

But, I feel obligated to share my fantastic karaoke experience from two nights ago!

My time in China flew by and I was concerned that I may not be able to experience the one thing that I promised Liz I would do.....go to REAL Chinese karaoke.

Fate had it's way. On Monday night the store team that I have been working with took me out to a final dinner. I had one more real Chinese dinner in me. The dinner did not disappoint! Everything from raw meets for appetizers to the standards: pig intestines, fish served with the head and tail in the bowl, chicken elbows, squid, the whole deal! I have never been a picky eater, which has helped me here every day. I am in China, I want to experience China. I am quite certain that in my time here I have eaten things that I don't want to know, and I will probably never eat any of them again. I figured it was the least I could do for my team here!

The meal ended and I was about to go home.

Not so fast!! It's karaoke time! Game on!

I will try to paint this picture as best as words can:

Chinese karaoke and American karaoke are two completely different things. In America, you go to a bar and there is a microphone and one or two people sing to the crowd....usually people that can somewhat hold a tune (at least early in the night). The whole concept is different in China. Karaoke is a lifestyle!

My experience started by getting into an elevator and going to the seventh floor of a big office building. We entered the karaoke "establishment" and it looked like an office. Several halls with what seemed to be offices down the hallways. We were led to one of these offices and it turned out to be a private room for our group. Unlike the US, karaoke is a private thing between you and your group...not in front of an entire bar full of people.

I walk into the room and scope it out. Standard living room size, one corner has a big L-shaped couch with a huge coffee table type table in front of it. Next to the couch in the other corner is a bar table with eight stools next to it. In the front corner of the room is one bar stool type chair with a screen in front of it...incase you want to go solo. In the front of the room is a flat panel tv on the wall where the lyrics come up. Next to the couch is a very modern touch screen computer system where you select the song. The whole scene is completed with multiple hand-held microphones strategically located throughout the room.

Shortly after we arrive, someone has picked a song (in Chinese of course) and several people are singing, with no shame. It was on.

I sat down on the couch to observe this situation. Before I know it, there are several cups full of bar dice on the table. Hmmm. I guess we are going to play some dice. Then come the drinks. I see a waiter walk in with a try full of about 35 cans of Chinese beer. Ohhh, I see where this is going. Mind you, there are max 12 people in this room, half of whom are not touching a drink.

Long story short, some people sing, the rest of the people play drinking games with dice. I was later informed that karaoke was less about singing and more about getting drunk!

Did I mention that almost every male in China smokes cheap cigarettes excessively, everywhere? This small room was not option. Five minutes in, there was a thick, nasty, smokey haze throughout the room. This is China.

Of course I learned the games (I was not given an option). It was a good time.

Before I knew it, someone gave me the microphone and the whole room was staring at me in anticipation. I have to be honest, this was the first time I ever actually sang at karaoke. I come to learn that there are a few English songs on there just for the occasion. Paul McCartney would have been proud of my rendition of "Hey Jude". That I can say for sure!

All in all, it was quite an amazing experience! One I am grateful for, and will remember forever!

If you are ever in China, do not hesitate.

PS....I picked up the bill. 12 people singing for two hours and 35 cans of beer: 345RMB ~$50!

Yesterday Was a Good Day!

I spend most of my days in China waking up, going to work, coming home late, and going online to do email or whatever. The job requires a lot of time, and that time is rewarding. Every once in a while, I find time to experience the finer things in China. Yesterday was one of those days!

It began at work, like most days do. Worked a half day and then took off to experience, of all things, the Chinese Ice Hockey League!

It turns out that the company was somehow sponsoring the team so we (my roommate and I) got some free tickets. I had to see this! I love to watch hockey, so I couldn't go wrong!

I got home and changed and jumped in a taxi to go meet up with my roommate. 20 minutes into the taxi ride, almost to my destination, I realized that I had forgot the tickets at home. Oh yeah. Called my buddy, made him translate to the taxi driver that I had to go back, and went all the way back home. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal, but our timing was way too close originally. We didn't even know how long it would take us to get to the rink. Went back home, ran up and got the tickets, and jumped back in the taxi again. Needless to say, that was quite the taxi charge.

Finally met up with my roommate and then we were off. Shanghai has nine subway lines that all kind of start in the heart of the city and go out from there to the deep, deep parts of the city (Shanghai is huge). We took a taxi to the subway station for line nine. Once we got to the platform, it was clear that where line nine goes is very local, there were a ton of people waiting and Rich and I were the only non Chinese. We took line nine to the second last stop (45 minutes away from the center of Shanghai) which is neighborhood called Songjiang. This area is know for colleges. Shanghai is crazy with urban planning and this is no exception. It is a huge place away from everything full of colleges. The colleges then share resources and all is good. Good chance if you are going to university in Shanghai, it is in Songjiang.

Songjiang is the sight of the SUS International Ice Hockey Arena. We arrived near the beginning of the second period of a dramatic clash between the China Sharks and some other team from Korea (I can't read Chinese...or Korean for the matter). Everything reminded me of high school level hockey, from the crowd of a couple hundred people to the quality of hockey being played. I initially thought this was going to be a team of washed up pros from North America, but I was wrong. There were some washed up white guys, but mostly Asians. I guess you must have to really love the game to be a washed up North American player playing here!

Beyond the poor, but hilarious quality of hockey, I had some other observations:

-China apparently doesn't believe in concession stands. All I wanted was a drink and a snack. Thank God someone finally brought in a shopping cart of assorted random junk and sold it like a flea market. It worked.

-The music selection during down times was phenominal. It was pretty clear that they were playing tracks from about four CD's. The most used CD was absolutely Motley Crues greatest hits. I counted seven different Crue songs. Apparently, they love Motley Crue here....though this is the first I have heard it. I am also quite sure that at one point, the loudspeaker was playing the theme song from the game "California Games" for the 8-bit Nintendo system, circa 1989. I was quite interested by this, which then made me think of how cool that game was. There is nothing better than 8-bit hackey sack....hit the bird for extra points.

-Zamboni, what is that?

-International rules means automatic icing. I hate that.

The game was tied when we arrived, but at the end, it was a sad 3-0 shutout. Poor China Sharks. That ellusive 4th win is taking some time; 25 games and counting. Maybe they will get vengence today, I will have to let you know!

Got back on the subway for the 45 minute trek back to the mainland. Our plan on the way back was to take the subway the entire way home. This consisted of about an hour and a half and included three or four line transfers. That trip would have cost me about 8RMB ($1.25). The plan was all set and now it was about execution.

We were halfway done with the first train ride and an announcement came on over the train speaker, only in Chinese of course. Ten minutes later, same announcement. We get to the stop right before our transfer point. We are ready to get off on the next stop and begin the rest of our journey. Next thing we know, the lights on the train turn off. I guess that Chinese announcement said that the train wasn't going to our last stop. So much for the plan.

We got out and went up to the road to catch a cab. By the way, it has been cold here the last few days, so standing around outside waiting for a cab wasn't much fun. (Don't worry, it will be 60 degrees tomorrow...hahaha) We eventually caught a cab back towards home. The driver was actually a woman, which in NYC is rare to find, here I didn't think even existed. She was great.

We then decided to go get foot messages. Yes, feet, get your mind out of the gutter. Though there are many message options, some legal in the US, some not, I choose to stick with the simple $12 hour long foot message. I am going to miss this! It was good. The girl started pointing at the callasses on my feet asking if I wanted here to remove them for an extra $3. Sure, why not. She left and some random guy came in to remove them. As if I care. This guy had my feet cleaned up and good to go in five minutes, no sweat!

Then it was time for dinner. I wanted steak. Rich had just the place, Lawrey's Steakhouse. Lawrey's in the company that makes the seasoning salts (you know Lawrey's Seasoning Salt). They have some steakhouses in the US. I found out yesterday that they have one here too, in a place called Xintiandi. This is the hippest bar and restaurant scene in Shanghai. It is kind of a combination of the kind of bar and restaurants as Manhattan and a scene like Long Beach where you walk around to everything. The prices were just as comparable to NYC unfortunately! I had a great steak. Their specialty is prime rib. They bring a big portable oven/grill type thing to your table and you tell them what cut and what tempurature you want. They carve it for you right in front of you. Great restaurant, great food, worth the money.

After dinner we decided to head out to some of the bars to have some dessert, if you will.

Like most busy bars in Shanghai, the first two bars had classic Phillipino cover bands. They are all the same, two to three female singers and on male playing the keyboards in the backround. We stuck around there for a bit and we ended up in our final destination, a cool bar with a live rock band. This was one of a kind. They were Phillopino as well but they had a full band. Two lead singers who were women. One guy with long 80's hair playing the drums. One normal looking buy playing second guitar and keyboards. And then the centerpiece, the lead guitarist and the bassist were a drop dead Phillipino version of Cheech and Chong. It was great!

The band started by playing Pink Floyd (surprise, surprise). They were actually good....especially Cheech and Chong! After some time they began their specialty, Gun's N Roses! Amazing....obviously right down my alley. The guitars were dead on and one of the female lead singers had a drop dead Axle Rose scream. It was fantastic.

We spent a few hours there. Between the GNR cover band, the gold digger Chinese girls trying to score a white husband, and the high quality prostitutes trying to make a living, the bar was great.

Enough fun for one day. We then headed home and I slept like a champ!

My only regret is not bringing my camera! You all deserve pictures of the world class hockey and the rock band....sorry!!

Hundreds of Photos from Beijing...

I just posted hundreds of photos from our time in Beijing. Click on the slideshow and it will take you to the website with the whole album!

It includes pictures from the Shanghai World Financial Center, The Forbidden City in Beijing, The Great Wall, the Olympic Village, all kinds of goodness.

I tried my best to capture some of the most amazing sights I have EVER seen. I hope I did them justice!

PS.....don't worry, these are just my pics. Liz took just as many with the monster camera. I'm sure they came out amazing! She has plenty more with me in them too!

Take a look!

Thanksgiving in China

It has been a while, hope you didn't miss me too much!!

I have got a lot of questions about Thanksgiving in China. People are wondering what I did for it, if I had turkey, if it was served from a wok, etc.

I am here to give you the scoop!

First, Liz flew in last Saturday AM. I will give you more details about her trip in blogs to come. On Sunday, we actually attended a expat-Thanksgiving celebration thrown by Damien, the director here in China. There were about 35 people there, all expats from the US. They brought in turkeys and all kinds of good stuff. It was also a pot luck situation, everyone brought a dish to share. So, needless to say, we got our fill of all things American. Plenty of turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes. I was going to bring some of my world famous sour cream mashed potatoes and green bean castle, but unfortunately, we don't have an oven. Apparently most Chinese homes do not have ovens, who would have known? So, instead I took on drink duty. I was responsible for drinks at the party. I went to the local expat grocery and bought a ton of everything liquid. They delivered for free, which made the whole experience MUCH easier! Needless to say, I bought far too much! Better to have too much than too little I guess!! The meal was great! The only things missing were my green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, and most importantly, FOOTBALL!!!! All in all, it was a great celebration (with tons of young children!). Liz got to meet my peers here in China all at once; it worked out quite well).

All that being said, that party was on the Sunday before Thanksgiving.

What did we do on Thanksgiving eve you ask?

Well, Liz and I were actually visiting Beijing during the holiday....which was AMAZING! We actually climbed the Great Wall of China on Thanksgiving Day! More of that to come....

Then it came to Thanksgiving eve. We were not sure what to do for dinner. It was very cold in Beijing and Liz had a little cold after the day, so we wanted to stay local. We walked downstairs in the hotel and *wallah* there was a Thanksgiving dinner at the hotel restaurant. So, Liz and I took the easy way out and joined the American celebration in the hotel!

There was a good mix of Americans and Chinese there actually. From what I could tell, it looks like local expats living in Beijing all made reservations to dine at the hotel and celebrate. I didn't expect that.

The dinner was actually a buffet. Most of the buffet had nothing to do with Thanksgiving, but the Turkey and potatoes were good! The rest was quite interesting, sushi, random Chinese food, the standards. The desert was good too, quite good indeed. No pie, but fondue and bread pudding worked.

So, the question of the century is answered, that is what we did for Thanksgiving.

Hope each of you had a great Thanksgiving! Look forward to seeing all of you soon!

Free Time

Well, I have been in China for over three weeks now!

I have been consumed with work since I got here. It is such a beneficial experience and I am SO glad I came. The things that I am learning here will be invaluable to my future international endeavors! I really think that there are few places that I could go to that will have as many cultural differences than here in China. Success in this different of an environment is challenging, yet extremely rewarding. The people here permanently are fantastic. I believe that I have transitioned well over the last few weeks, but these people are at another level. I am not sure at what point during your time here you "get it", but these guys have!

It has been difficult leaving everything that I know. I miss Liz and Nigel! It is tough situation, getting married and having to leave for a while. Liz has been so supportive, which makes it so much easier for me. She understands how beneficial this time will be for our future which is all I can ask for! Her and Nigel just moved out of our apartment in Long Beach and back into her mother's house temporarily. Anne has been a rock in this situation as well! She has graciously taken Nigel in as her own. Without her compassion for our little man, I am not sure that we would be able to go international. All will be better next Saturday, when Liz flies into China. She is at the Chinese Consolate right now....good luck with your Visa!

Though free time has been limited here, I have found some time to experience the finer parts of China.

For example, tonight, on the way home from work, I stopped into the local German bar/restaurant to have dinner. There is nothing like weinerschnitzel, Hoffbrau beer, and a Phillipino cover band singing 80's classics! It was hilarious! I guess this isn't quite one of the finer parts of China, but it is totally worth bringing up!

For real though, the Chinese food is awesome. I am delighted to inform everyone that I am now to a level of 7 or 8 with the chopsticks. I would consider this proficient....at least good enough to not make a fool of myself! As long as you are willing to try things, the food is great. I have had some great sushi here....it seems fresher. I went to a Japanese restaurant last night and had several parts of a cow. They were all very tasty....trust me....they were not normal parts. They often serve things raw here as well. Sometimes you look at things and think to yourself "that might actually taste pretty good". Then you put it in your mouth and realize it is raw. Not that it tastes bad, but you are not planning for the cold, raw food in your mouth. Once you adjust, you can appreciate it. I have also learned that if you don't mind staring the fish you are served in the eyes, the body tastes pretty good! The same applies to the shrimp!

My saving grace have been movies. There is something about buying new movies on the street for close to nothing! "The Office" specifically has been clutch (the American version). Every night, I watch an episode or two before I go to sleep. It keeps me laughing, and that is all that matters (Dwight is the man for all you Office fans out there!).

That is about it for now. Take care....I will see you all soon!

New Developments....

Not much new been going on here. Just spending a lot of time working! Every day I am here is valuable for me to help make these stores into real Best Buy stores!

I have gotten a lot of questions rather or not Liz is going to be able to make a trip to China. Thankfully, my boss offered Liz a trip to China as part of the package to get me out here.....yet another reason why I love my company! We booked her trip earlier this week. She will be flying in next Saturday! I can't wait to see her and experience China with her, it is going to be unbelievable! We are also planning to take a couple days and fly up to Beijing. This is tourist central....we will get to see the Great Wall of China, the Forbidden City, Tian'anmen Square, and the Olympic Village. It is going to be a great trip. I just can't wait to see Liz's face when she sees what China is really like!

That is about all for now.

I thought I would share a couple of photos I took today (there have been more added to the slideshow too). Very few people in China have cars. That means that bicycles and mopeds are the preferred method of transportation. What amazes me are the different uses people have for their bikes! In a quick walk today, I saw one guy with a bunch of bundles of boxes on the back and another guy selling flowers from his bike! Check it out......

Tourist!

I finally took some time for myself to be a tourist!

Not like it was that hard. I took all of the pictures within a mile of my apartment!

Check the pictures out....click the slideshow on the left hand side of the main blog page.

Scott

Where do I live?

I have received several requests to show where I have been living, so here it is!

It is a high-rise apartment in Pudong, Shanghai....on the 27th floor.

It is a nice place! Beautiful hardwood floors and fully furnished!

I still think that the best part of the apartment is the free laundry and maid service!


Here is a quick pic of my room....nothing special. This is my communication headquarters! I work on my computer and make my calls from here.

There is a small TV. There are about forty channels, one in English. China Public TV! It is a good thing that I have no free time! The TV does work great for watching and falling asleep to $1 bootleg DVD's that you buy on the street!





There is a nice kitchen here too! Believe it or not, I have been cooking quite a bit! Mostly breakfast: that is the only meal that I can find normal food for in the grocery store! Eggs and toast have kept me somewhat American!




My bathroom (the apartment has two beds and two baths) is my favorite room in the house! It has about twelve different lighting options including heat lamps. It is nice to wake up to in the morning.

I also really like the bathroom because that is where I put my clothes for the maid to wash.....did I mention I love that part!

That is pretty much it for the apartment.

The last few pictures are taken from the balcony of the apartment. As you can see, there are several high-rise apartments right around us. We also have a view of the Huangpu River that splits Pudong from Pushi. Also note the park at the bottom of my building....notice the feng shui...

Two Weeka in the Books.....

So I just finished my second week in China. It has been a great ride so far, and I only foresee it getting better!

Some updates on the work front:

We opened our third store today! This is the store that I was brought out here to help. The opening went really well. This store is in a place called Ba Bai Ban. I am not sure if that is the name of the neighborhood.....I think it is just the name of the shopping area. It is in Pudong, Shanghai, China. It is one of the most unique Best Buy's I have ever had the pleasure of stepping foot into!

The area is full of electronics retailers. We actually share a wall with one of our biggest competitors in China. All of our biggest competitors are within one block of the store....literally! We also have what China calls PC Mall's right next door to us. I compare it to a big flea market for computers and computer products. The PC Mall itself is quite interesting. It is about thirty different booths all owned by different people that all sell the same computers. It is also like a flea market in that everyone barters the prices. That is a standard in China....haggle for everything. Best Buy is going in trying to change that culture. Our prices are competitive and as is. We offer a completely different experience.

The store itself is also quite different than any Best Buy any of you have ever seen. It is three levels. The first level is more of a lobby. The second level is HUGE! It is long and narrow, like a bowling alley. I would guess 30 yards wide and two hundred yards long. I think that is accurate, but I give no guarantees....I am tired! The third floor is also quite large, but only half the length of the second floor, all appliances. The store is 100% marble tiled and has a bunch of windows, unlike most Best Buys. The store completed is amazing!

Now, my work really begins. I have five and a half weeks to be the best coach I can be. I am charged with making this Best Buy into a real Best Buy. I love the challenge!

Enough about work!

What have I been doing outside work? Not too much.

I feel that I am about as adjusted to China as I am going to get. I feel comfortable with the area that I live in, but outside of that, I am pretty clueless. It is kind of hard getting around in taxis because I speak no Chinese! At this point, I think I am good for somewhere between five and ten words. I can get around in the taxis only three ways. One, hand the driver a map with the place I need to go in Chinese; two, call a translator and give the phone to the cab driver and let the translator tell him where to go; three, get a cab with someone who knows where they are going. Needless to say, I stick with option three almost always! The problem with the first two options is that you can almost guarantee that in some point in the ride, the taxi driver will ask you a question in Chinese. At that point all you can do is shake your head! At first I was amazed at how little the cab drivers seemed to know about Shanghai. I would give them a map, or have one of the bilingual people at the hotel tell the driver exactly where to go. Then they start driving and end up not knowing where they are going. After a few days, I realized how huge Shanghai is, so I don't blame them so much.

I have worked every day since I have been here, so I have had little time for sight seeing so far. The half day I worked last week was rainy, so the night I wanted to go out did not work. I think I am only working a half day tomorrow and will definitely have a little time off next week. I plan on definitely hitting the town and being a tourist! There is AWESOME architecture here. There are tons of skyscrapers. Unlike the US, almost every skyscraper here looks very unique. I think they pride themselves on being different! I also have to get out shopping. Things like clothing and watches here are dirt cheap. A lot of the stuff is fake, but they are world class fakes! What kind of watch can you expect for $20 US.....a beautiful fake Rolex! The thing I am looking forward to the most is getting dress clothes made for me. I can get a weeks worth of custom made slacks, dress shirts, blazers, and suits for a couple hundred US dollars. To say that I will be heading to London with a new dress wardrobe would be an understatement! I plan to have to buy another suitcase for my new clothes on the way home!

The most of China that I have got to experience is the food. We all work really hard out here, and we all like to go out to dinner together at the end of a long day. Some of the guys out here have been here for a while, so they know where to get the good stuff. On a scale of one to ten, I am probably up to a four with chopsticks. I have found that forcing myself to use them makes me a lot better at it.....shocking! The nice thing about where I live is the food selection. There are tons of restaurants within walking distance of the apartment (I have to get some pics of my apartment.....I have to remember that). I am really trying to eat as much local Chinese food as possible. Not only will I probably not have the chance to eat Chinese food in China ever again, but it also gains respect with the locals....which means the world here!

That is about all for now.

Let me remind everyone, my personal email is stgoeke@hotmail.com. Don't hesitate to write.

Write again soon!

Street Vendors Galore!

One of the coolest parts about China is the street vendors!

I really think that in one place or another, one can buy everything they would ever need.

What kind of random things have I seen?

-Street meat (raw meat that they will cook right in front of you)
-Stuffed Animals
-Sweet Corn and Sweet Potatoes
-Frogs
-Turtles
-Kittens
-Birds
-Umbrellas (it is amazing that whenever it rains, the umbrella people magically appear)

These are just a few things.....I will have to get some pictures for everyone to see what it is like.

Getting the right price is the art. I was told day one that if you don't get at least 60% off the price, you are bad at haggling!

Sad Day for DQ

I have been very good this week at forcing myself to eat traditional Chinese food.  It has been great!  I might not know what I am eating sometimes, but it is still an experience (and the Chinese appreciate it).

I have been avoiding Western food.

Until today.

For those of you who do not know, I am a bit of a Dairy Queen junky.  Well, not really a junky, but I thoroughly enjoy a Butterfinger Blizzard every now and then.  I do not get them often (especially since there are no DQ's in New York).  But, if I am in a pro-DQ zone, I try to get myself a sweet snack.  So, when I saw DQ's all over the place in China, I thought, it is my lucky day!

So, I went to Dairy Queen today.

I was excited for the party that was going to happen in my mouth.

Then I looked at the menu.

They had the crappiest selection of Blizzard flavors imaginable!  Green tea?  black tea?  Raspberry?  

I had to leave. 

It was a sad day for DQ.

Blog Note - Pictures

Do you want to see the pictures I have taken in China?

If so, click on the picture on the left hand side of the page (where it says slideshow).  That will open a site called Flickr.  When the site opens, just click on "stgoekes photostream" on the right side of the page.  This will open a photo album of all my China photos.

Scott

It Has Been a Couple of Days!

Hello all!

Sorry I have not been able to update the blog for the last few days, it has been very busy at work!  Friday was the grand opening of our second store in Shanghai.  We had a blast with all of the customers for the last few days!  I have spent the week preparing the original store and the new store for the promotions for this weekend.  It has been a lot of work, but the work here just seems more meaningful!  You are dealing with people who have no idea and they really want to learn.  I have worked a lot, but all with reward.  Starting Monday I start my new task at the next store we have opening.  This is where the real work begins!  A lot to do and not much time to do it!

I have had some interesting China experiences since the last post; here is a sample:

-I took my first taxi ride in which my driver told me he knew where he was going and actually had no idea.....thank god for translators and cell phones!

-I ate my first Chinese tofu.  It tastes like nothing, just like in the US.

-I have taken the subway a few times.  So far, this is the nicest subway system I have found.  The lines are easy to understand and go straight.  Everything is in Chinese and English.  The cars are new and nicely air conditioned.  The funniest part of the experience is watching people get on and off.  In NYC, people get off the train and as soon as they are off, people get on.  NOT HERE!  The door opens and it is a struggle to get on and off....everyone goes at the same time!   

-I visited my first small Chinese grocery.  A nice selection of fresh fruits and vegetables as well as a good assortment of recently killed fish and other random animal parts.  There are chicken feet everywhere....it is apparently the best cuisine in China!  I had to pick up cereal....great selection of Cherios, Frosted Flakes, and Trix!

-I had my first home cooked Chinese meal (no, not cooked by me....let's not get crazy here).  My roommates girlfriend came over last night and cooked us some serious Chinese food!  She made tomato, egg, and spinach soup as well as noodles and greens with fresh fish.  The fish was great....but boney.  Then she finished it up with a Chinese desert!   The desert was a Chinese fruit (translated to English it is called a paw paw) on a bed of white rice covered with Chinese flower wine.  The whole meal was AWESOME!

-I watched my first Chinese bootleg DVD.  I have yet to see a place in China that sells real DVD's.  I get bootleg DVD's are real DVD's here.....a movie for $1 is a good deal anywhere!

So, that is what has been going on.  

I posted some new pictures today, so go check them out.

If all goes well, I want to try to get out and be a tourist tonight.  If I do, I can guarantee some nice pics.  Unfortunately it is raining (like it has almost the entire time I have been here....we will get into that another time), and I do not want to go out in the rain to take pictures.

We shall see.

Bye for now.

Scott

Follow the blog....

Quick blog note,

If you wish to subscribe to my blog, click the "follow my blog" link on the left side of the page.  This will give you notification if I post new info.

Just an FYI!

Bathrooms.....

Not a lot of new information to report today so I suppose I will give my own little editorial on bathrooms in China......

First, let me note that none of the following notations apply to my apartment, thank God!  My apartment bathroom is fantastic!

On with the show!

1.  People do not flush their used toilet paper.  They throw it in a trash can by each toilet.

2.  Bathrooms smell like crap (because of #1)

3.  They light incense in the bathrooms to cover the crap smell notated in #2 (it doesn't work)

4.  The urinals have little urinal cakes....like super balls; I guess they are there to cover the scent of urine (which is already overpowered by the smell of crap).

5.  Some restaurants don't have bathrooms in them....you have to walk outside to another building.

6.  A lot of public restrooms have no toilet paper.

7.  The stalls are not made for people over six feet tall!

There is my quick editorial on bathrooms.....if there is any new info, I will be sure to let you know!

Getting into my groove....

So I think I have finally started to get adjusted to my new life in China (for the next two months).  The reality of where I am has finally started to set in which I am grateful for.   The original luster of waking up to Shanghai is beginning to become the norm!

My company had a big ceremony today for the launch of our second China store.  The ceremony was focused for Chinese government officials....that is how stuff works here.  There was a stage with music and cheerleaders, quite a set up for some government folk.  The president's of BBY China and BBY International both gave speeches as well as the Chinese Consolate official.  It was a nice kickoff for the store which officially grand open's Friday.

As for the China experience; I moved into my apartment yesterday morning.  It is a nice place!  It is in a high rise right in the middle of Shanghai.....we are on the 27th floor.  I moved in with another international GM who has lived here for seven months.  He is from MN....a cool guy!  We get along well.  The apartment is great......nice wood floors, balcony, two full bathrooms, nice kitchen, maid service, free laundry and dry cleaning.  My only complaint is the mattress!  It is as hard as a rock!  I can't fault the apartment, it is Chinese standard to sleep on concrete apparently!  Other than that, I am happy to move out of the hotel.....now this experience will feel more authentic!

I have had some interesting food experiences the last two days.  

Yesterday I went to lunch at a Korean BBQ.  There was a table with a hole in it; at the beginning of the meal they loaded it with smoldering charcoal.  They put a metal griddle over the top and brought out a bunch of raw meat.  I am not sure what the meat was (better not to ask questions) but it tasted good.  Then they brought out squid and cooked it which also tasted quite good as well!  I have been working at the chopsticks....I am OK with the wood ones....unfortunately the Koreans use these tiny metal chopsticks which are even harder to use.....trial by fire I guess!

My other food experience last night was at a Napoleese restaurant.  It was tasty curry food.  It was pretty funny getting to the restaurant....we had to go off the main road down a dark alley (past some street meat carts and some poker games) and into a little hole in the wall.  They make their own beer there too which I thought was really strange....  All and all,  the food was pretty good.

That is about all for now.  I hope to post some new pictures in the next couple of days.

Take care all!

First Full Day of Work

I had a nice full day of work today!  I am quite impressed with my lack of jet lag at this point.    My luck, I will probably get destroyed by it tomorrow.

We have a store opening officially this Friday.  I got to walk the store and give my feedback today. Then, I spent some time at our store that is already open.   It is an awesome store.  We carry some very random things in China:  message chairs, water softeners and heaters, toilets, TONS of Asia cell phones.  It is very interesting.

I went to lunch at a real Chinese restaurant today.  Yeah, I ate with chopsticks, it was painful.  I couldn't actually told you what I ate, all I know is that it had lentils in it.

I spent the rest of my day at the store I will call my own.  It is our third store in China and we plan to open it in two weeks.  The store name is Bai Ba Ban.  The store manager is pretty new into our company and I have been charged to be his coach.  It will be some interesting work, that I can guarantee.

I am about to go out for dinner.  Who knows where I will end up.  I am meeting up with my future roommate (I will be moving in tomorrow).  He is going to show me the local spots.

Wish me luck!

Check out my pictures.....I will be adding momentarilly... http://www.flickr.com/photos/stgoeke

That wasn't so bad....

I am now in Shanghai, one short 15 hour flight later.

I am not going to write much....have a little jet lag!  But, let me share some of my random observations from the trip to China:

1.  Always fly business class (as long as you are not paying for it)!

There were at least 100 people waiting to check in for the same flight as me.  There was no wait for business class.  There were another 50 people waiting to drop their baggage to be scanned; the airline took mine for me.  I was ticketed and done in five minutes max.  Then they sent me to the Air France club....though it was funny, it was excellent!  They came and told me my flight was boarding....I proceded to the gate and walked through 300 Chinese people and got right on the plane.  Not to mention the seats that extend to nearly flat to sleep on, the full a/v system with a complete catalogue of movies and music, the free slippers earplugs and eye cover, the excessive food and beverage services, etc.  The cherry on top was waiting at the baggage claim in Shanghai.....the first bags that came out had a sign for first class and business class.  Bags in two minutes.  I give China Eastern Airlines an A.  The 15 hour flight felt like a trip to California from New York....amazing!

2.  Chinese love their anime.

Even the safety video they show on the plane has world class anime action!

3.  Real Chinese food is tasty....just be ready to be baptized by fire!

They served us a meal at 3:00 AM NY time.  They called it dinner.  You could choose pork or seafood.  It was serious Chinese food!

4.  Tetris rules.

I probably spent three hours playing tetris on the airline video system.  It never gets old!

5.  I don't know Chinese.

As soon as I got to the gate at the airport, I was reminded that I was flying a Chinese airline to China.  I have heard more Chinese in a day than I ever have, and I have only actually been in China for four hours.

6.  China's stop lights are neat.

The green light flashes before it turns yellow.  When a light is red and about to turn green, the yellow light comes on.  It was cool....though most drivers didn't seem to care what color the lights were.

7.  Is smog really that big of an issue in China??

Yes.

8.  Chinese music is awful.

All I can say is the first song I heard was Ace of Base...I saw the sign.  That song was bad enough, imagine the same song with Chinese lyrics!

Those are some of my random thoughts thus far.....

PS....if you are calling my international cell phone, don't expect to get connected to voicemail.  I forgot to set it up before I left.  I talked to AT&T today, apparently it is impossible to set it up outside the US......LOL!

And the Journey Begins

So I sit here in JFK Airport asking myself "what the hell am I doing?"!

On the plus side, I am sitting in the Air France lounge, which is not too shabby.  All you can drink Perrier and all you can eat finger sandwiches; what more could anyone want (besides maybe a newspaper that is in English)?

Back to the question at hand, "what the hell am I doing?".

Well, let me try to explain in a few words.

As most, if not all of you know, I have been working for Best Buy for nearly the last ten years.  For the last few years, I have been running stores in New York (specifically Long Island and Brooklyn).  Time came for me to look to expand my horizons a bit; so the story begins!

About six months ago, Best Buy Europe became a reality.  I can remember the week in early May, we were in our annual company meeting (this year it was in Anaheim).  One early morning (surprisingly I can still remember that morning) Best Buy announced the had bought half of Carphone Warehouse (CPW), the largest mobile phone carrier and store in Europe.  Five minutes after that announcement, I texted Liz "want to move to London?".  At that point it was just a joke (kind of).  The reality was, BBY bought half of CPW for one reason: to enter Europe.

A few months go by and the thoughts were lingering.  

August came and I got engaged to my lovely wife Liz.  That is another whole story for later....

A couple weeks later, maybe one week later, the job to open London was posted.  What timing!

So, it was the moment of truth.  Liz and I talk it over, go over the pros and cons, and eventually decide that it is worth applying for.  I mean, applying for a job doesn't mean you are going to get it, right?  We were conscious of the reality of what I was applying for, but it was just an application!

The process began!

Many, many, probably too many people applied for the job.  Ultimately, 96 people applied for two jobs!  At that point, Liz and I were very pessamistic.  Usually five or six people apply for these jobs.  Almost 100, that is crazy.  Either way, we were involved in the process, the long process!

A couple months went by.  I had multiple interviews with several people.  Every time I had another interview, more people were eliminated from contention.  Every time I had an interview, the chances of me getting this job became more and more real.  Every time I had another interview, Liz and I starting gripping what reality could be.

Then came the moment of truth.

They offered me the job of General Manager International Assignment.

IT WAS ON!!!

So I got the job!  It was such a great feeling!  I felt like all the hard work I have put in for the last ten years had all paid off!

The job in a nutshell:

My role is to go to London and build an operating model.  We have no stores in Europe, these will be the first.  We know only what the data tells us.  I, along with a peer, need to get into London, understand the competition and the environment, build an operating model to open a BBY with.  When the model is built, we need to help the people running the stores open the stores and create sustainable business.  Ultimately, create a foundation for the rest of Europe.  That is all :)

So, the job was mine.  Originally, the plan was to spend the next month on and off in Mexico (where we are currently opening stores there for the first time too).  After that, we were going to spend a month in California.  The plan was to fly the managers we hired in London out and spend a month with them in BBY stores in the US.  After that was over, I was to have off for Christmas and eventually move to the UK at the beginning of January.  Liz would then move to London at the end of February or the beginning of March.

That agenda came through and it looked great.  Not only would I be able to start traveling and immersing myself in my new role, I would also have time at home in between trips (usually 7 days).  That way I could see Liz, move, all that good stuff.  Sounds great to me!

At this point, Liz and I go into high gear trying to figure out when to get married.  We came to a mutual agreement that we wanted to be married before we moved to London.  So, we were trying to figure out how to work a wedding into my travel, and do it before December.

It was tough.  We were having a really hard time figuring out a wedding conclusion that worked.  It became clear that if we wanted to get married, we were going to have to do something quick and simple.

Then came the phone call.

My new boss called from China one night.  I thought he was just checking in, saying hello!

There were alternative motives.

He called me to plead with me a bit.  Turns out that we got some permits to open stores about six months sooner than expected in China.  That is great!  Unfortunately, being that we were expecting another six month delay, BBY only hired the store manager a month ago!  

My boss was a bit concerned, to say it mildly.

He posed the question:

"I want you to think about helping us out in China for a couple of months."

There was no pressure.  Only a desperate new manager and a tough situation.

We already have one store open in China and it is crazy.  For us to open another without strong leadership would be a recipe for disaster.  

The choice was in my hands.

The choice was a bit loaded.  They offered my business class direct flights to Shanghai ($$$).  Then they offered to fly Liz out to China for a free week vacation....not bad!  Plus, there was the experience of CHINA!!!  Who gets that chance?

Liz and I began the decision making process.

She was all for it the moment I hung up the phone.  She couldn't see me turning down the opportunity....thought it would be stupid of me.

I was intrigued.

Ultimately, I agreed with Liz.  I would be an idiot not to take the opportunity!

So, I accepted the opportunity.  Then Liz and I went and got married....time was a bit limited!

That was last week.

The week since has been crazy!  Preparing for the trip.  Buying supplies, setting up a moving company, getting ready to go, dealing with old business from the previous job, going to dinner every night with one friend or another.  It went by quick.

Today came.  It was hard on the family.  Liz and I were sad that I had to leave.  We spent the day together and did the best we could.....Nigel too of course.

Now I am here, at JFK Airport.......and now my flight is boarding.....yeeha!