Blogger has been incredibly flaky here in China this past week - I don't know who to blame, the hotel's ISP or the Great Firewall - and so I've not had the patience or time to try and post anything. My apologies to those of you who have stopped by expecting regular updates. Gmail has also been going up and down like a yo-yo (more downs than ups; I'll consider myself lucky if I can post this), and I haven't been able to check that mail account very often.

Other than that: China is amazing, and Shanghai is one of the best cities I've visited - up there with New York, San Francisco, London, and Tokyo. It really is another world, and it suits me well. Ni hao! I have taken a bunch of pictures the past week and a half, and promise to post some of them here when I get a chance.

Tomorrow we're heading north, to Beijing, where we're spending one week - starting with a sightseeing-packed weekend (it's not all business). Looking forward to that, even though it's sad to leave Shanghai...and this hotel suite. As I write this, I'm watching the sun setting behind the downtown skyscrapers, from the 17th floor. Through my floor to ceiling windows. Life is good.

The food has been amazing, the people even more so - even though it's hard to make yourself understood here - and the nightlife is particularly vibrant. There have been some very late nights, and I'm quite sure our final evening in Shanghai won't break that pattern. Lots of work, too, of course, but it's been good.

I'd love to come back soon, and see more of the country, but for now I'd heartily recommend Shanghai to anyone. It's cheap, it's easy to get around in, it's safe, and you're guaranteed to make new friends.

More tomorrow (I hope).
  ¶ 11:56