::: Golden Weekend, Part 1 :::

I am in one of, if not the one, place in the world I absolutely love to be. I am sitting at a pub table over looking the South China Sea from inside a pub at the Hong Kong Airport. In my immediate eyesight are Air China, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Dragon Air, Eva Airlines, South African Airways, and China Eastern...and that is just one terminal.

One of the reasons I love this place is the intersection of the world that it is. Almost 2 years ago my buddies, Crissey and Goza, were traveling back to the states with me through HKG. We had some time before our flight and a Burger sounded real good. We found this pub and sat down to eat. While we were there killing time we met three other dudes, one from Scotland living in Dubai, another from the Gold Coast in Australia, and another from London. They asked if we wanted to play pool and we joined...and listening to them trash each others shots and acts like boys was awesome. Here we are six dudes from all over the world meeting in a random place and extending each other the grace of a pool game. It makes me smile to see people from all over the world intersecting and having fun. Anyway, just a little background.

Back to now.

My two friends Guinness and Jameson are here with me and we are celebrating. Not sure what we are celebrating...but the mood is all smiles! (there is a cigar shop right below me with Cubans...shhhh...don’t tell my mother). If I had a postcard I would write, “Hi Mom! Love you! And, I would sign it...’Torch.’”

I talked with Cheryl the whole way to the airport on my mobile. I love technology and cheap rates...and the fact that my girlfriend works nights in the states! She and I talk for about a penny a minute thanks to knowing the right people. I went from my bank at the furthest end of the MTR line to the polar opposite end all for about $10 and an hour out of my day. The transit system here is unbelievably easy...even though sometimes I make it harder than it needs to be. It is so very clean and efficient. You have got to come see this place. It is NOTHING like you think it is.

::: A.D.D. MOMENT ::: (STARS by Switchfoot is on the speakers above me, and an Air India flight just landed on the runway closest to the water...and Football games are on every TV...real football that is, I believe you/we call it soccer.)

My flight boards in 15 minutes and I hate to leave my seat. It is the first stillness I have had in quite some time. I am heading out to see some friends in mainland China for a long holiday weekend. It is National week here, also called Golden Week...the anniversary of the Communist Party taking over after the cultural revolution and the establishment of The People’s Republic of China...not the Republic of China...that would be Taiwan. Which yes...is still considered China...as is Hong Kong. But leaving out of Hong Kong to China is an “International” flight. This One Country Two Systems thing is pretty freaking confusing if you ask me! So...a three day weekend holiday for those in Hong Kong, but a week long holiday in China. Yeah...that seems fair!

I guess Chairman Mao was feeling, as the Brit Colonials would say, a little ‘cheeky’ when he started all this...give me a week off, and my patriotism goes through the roof too! Now in China the deal is that if you are to take off for a five day work week for the holiday...the Saturday and Sunday before and after are considered work days. So...add ‘em up and you get 4...4 days xtra work to have a five day work week off. Hmmmm...something smells fishy here. That’s pretty much just one day off.

(Announcer voice says...”And the folks in Hong Kong get the award for saving the redundancy and cutting straight to the one day off.”)