We learned over dinner on Monday night that it was our colleague Danh's birthday on Tuesday. We'd already been planning to go out in a fun area called Houhai on Tuesday night to celebrate our last night in China but we now had reason to celebrate, Danh's b-day!
Houhai is a man made lake in central Beijing. The lake itself is nice and full of recreation (boats, swimming, etc. but the area is really known for it's nightlife.
It's full of bars and restaurants...many of which have lake side tables and then 2-3 stories of restaurant inside. They also have cleverly built in a bunch of rooftop bars. We had a great dinner at a Hotpot restaurant. Hotpot is basically a Mongolian way to eat...they give you boiling broth and a bunch of raw meats, noodles and veggies and you cook them up in the broth. Pair that with some Yanjing Beer and a wet nap or two and you are in business. Steak and lamb are common, tons of greens and mushrooms as well.
They also served min-kegs of beer which was quite novel. After dinner we walked around the lake and found a quiet rooftop bar to relax at. It was hot but nice to relax outside in a quiet little spot in an otherwise very busy city. We managed to stay out past midnight which was our "biggest" night since we'd been in China.
I slept hard and then hit the office on Wednesday morning for one last hour of emails and goodbyes before heading to the airport and off to Seoul! I was excited to have the chance to thank and say goodbye to the Chinese Googlers who had helped us with and attended the trainings. They were all incredibly warm and fun spend time with. They also were incredibly appreciative of our time and efforts. One of the folks even sent me an email that read "Elliott, Thank you so much. It's really helpful. You are really a great sales man. Have a nice day!" That quick email was a highlight for me. Good reminder to thank people when they help you!
Next post...Seoul!
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