Trip to China Part 2 - The First Morning

I awoke at 6:00 – remembering where I was and recognizing that the van was to leave in 2 hours, I collected my strength and rose, like a monster from his cave, from my bed. I walked over to the window, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes and, upon opening the blinds, I came to a startling discovery.

The 35^th floor is a long way up from the ground.

Room 3513 was, in fact on the 35^th floor. To be honest, I’d never been that high above the ground in a static structure, as opposed to a dynamic aircraft. At least, I certainly hoped that static described the building as opposed to the other.

I walked around, gathering the different items that I would need for the day. I opened my computer to check and see if I’d received any word from that now-far-away land called home. My computer had adjusted to the time zone (smart thing that it is) and whilst google mail was coming up, I glanced down at the clock.

7:26

“Funny”, I thought. “My phone, which I personally set to China time says only 6:26”. Looking for some form of confirmation, I looked at my room’s clock.

7:27

Panic began to set in as I recognized that I had to be dressed, packed, and on board the bus in 33 minutes. After showering in less time than I ever have, I gobbled down a pop-tart I’d brought and packed my backpack with computer, cord, phone, and toolbox. I then rushed out to the elevators to head to the breakfast room on floor 39.

Of course, they’d misspelled “breakfast room” on the elevator and instead floor 39 was listed as “executive lounge”, which was funny, I thought, given all the English businessmen they get here, you’d think they could learn to spell things correctly.

What I was very surprised to find was that the breakfast room looked a whole lot like an executive lounge. Glass exterior walls, wood interior walls, marble floors, and palm trees growing out of the floor definitely made the breakfast room look like an executive lounge.

However, I had very little time to admire the place as the clock was ticking. I grabbed a plate and filled it with a very Western breakfast (fruit, bacon, bread) and sat down at a table with two co-workers. At least, if I was going to be late, I’d be late with them. After a waitress came up and asked how I’d like my eggs cooked, I delved into my first Chinese food…

Soon, we were zipping down 39 floors in an elevator I rushed out the door, taking a moment to admire the 3-story tall lobby, complete with marble floors and pillars, and onto a bus. After greeting the remainder of the team, I plopped myself down on a seat and prepared for the trip to the factory.

Our driver was a gentleman in his mid-thirties (I assumed… age seems to make no difference on this populace between the 21^st and 50^th years of their lives). His hair was neatly combed; he was clean-shaven, wearing a suit jacket and white gloves. I expected a perfectly posh drive to the factory.

Have you ever heard the phrase about looks being deceiving?...


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