The joys of introducing China to newbies... and other holiday plans

This is bound to be my last post for a while. I'm on a flight to Guangzhou tonight, where I look forward to hanging out on my old stomping grounds. I've written before about "sultry GZ" (as a friend refers to it), and I can't wait to get back there. (Which reminds me that I've been meaning to endorse the blog Guangzhou Bang. My endorsement doesn't mean much, as I'm not exactly a blogging expert. But from a personal level, GZ Bang is a great way for me to keep up with what's happening in one of China's most important but least covered cities.)

I'll be spending a night in town tonight, before popping down to Hong Kong on Saturday to meet one of my dearest friends and his fiance. I've known my friend since high school, and he doesn't exactly have an extensive traveling resume (not that there's anything wrong with that!). I know he lived in Victoria for a while... and Vancouver... and Ottawa... and Windsor. I know he's been to Chicago. And Bellingham, Washington. Maybe there is another border town here or there that he's made it to over the years. Regardless, stepping off a plane in crowded and noisy Hong Kong will surely be a sensory overload for him, and unlike anything he's ever experienced.

Ever since I've moved here, he's the friend I've wanted to visit the most, if only because he doesn't really go to too many places. I think, like most foreign travelers who make their way to China, he's probably got a lot of preconceived notions about what life is like here. I fully expect all of them to be smashed -- both good and bad.

After a couple of nights in Hong Kong, the whirlwind tour will take us to Guangzhou for a night, and Shanghai for two (where the Special Olympics will be underway). I'll be back in the capital sometime on the 5th, and will attend a wedding on the 6th. So it will be a hectic week.

Anyway, I hope everybody has a great holiday, and I'll see you next week.