First dinner feast in China

44th day in Shanghai (13/10/07)

Work was kind of boring today. Reached the hotel at 8am, had our breakfast and went to find Cherry. Check the schedule of the day and there weren’t many events. All there was were some set-ups and a few small meetings.

Today was the first time out of this 2 ½ month that I feel that someone is showing authority towards us.

So, what happen was we got this new big boss, and he made both Kim and I do things that we thing is stupid. Firstly, he asked if we would want to be his secretary for the day. And since we got nothing to do, we agreed with him.

So, the first thing he asked us to do, was to ask us to go to the Banquet Office at B1, use his computer to print out this email draft that he wants to sent out as he wants to edit things from it (we were at lvl 3 at that time, quite far away from the office).

And after bringing the hardcopy of the draft to him, he edited it and asked us to edit it to his computer. So we went to B1, edited and printed it out, we went back to lvl 3 to show him the update draft. He edited again and asked us to go back to B1 to edit it again.

So after editing, we just stayed in the office. He came back a short while later and started saying that he has got tons of emails to reply. So what he did was he started telling us what emails he need to reply and tell us the details that need to be in the email and we are suppose to type it out for him using another manager’s computer and using that computer, sent an email to his account for him to check and sent out the email.

I mean I think that it’s totally weird and dumb. Can’t he just type it himself or wat??? (oh, his English sucks…and well, his Chinese suck too… opps)

So after helping him with all those email, we slacked in the office talking to Tracy and another BQT staff.

All of us were planning to leave at 5pm as there was this BQT dinner (the dept has got extra funds/incentives so they are using the money to treat the staffs) at 5.30pm for all staffs.

And apparently this Big Boss doesn’t want to go and since he doesn’t want to go, he has got tons time to waste.
So at 5pm, he walked out from his office

‘Let’s go.’

(Both Kim and I looked at each other) ‘Who let’s go? Us?’

(pissed off tone) ‘yes you. Let’s go’

We were like HUH!!! We are supposed to end work at 5pm coz we start at 8am!!

But well, we followed him and once we reached the ballroom, he like totally ignored us. And after awhile, he just asked us to go into the VIP room and take out 2 chairs coz there wasn’t enough chairs outside for a small meeting.

Then we went to find Cherry and told her what happen and she just ask us to go off. So we came all the way from B1 to level 3 just to bring out 2 chairs from the VIP room for him.

Well, and apparently he didn’t ask anyone about where were we after we left. We were just too insignificant!!

So it was then to the Dinner at this ‘Yue Ming’ restaurant’. Dinner was supposed to start at 6pm but it was extended to 8pm coz most of the staffs were being held up at work by Big Boss.. Hmmmm…..

Food there wasn’t too bad but too bad there wasn’t any photo coz when the food came, everyone was like hungry ghost eating up all the food.

The dinner was quite fine and it was quite an eye-opener. I see the way how the locals behave and everything. They smoke and drink like no body biz.

There was a total of 150 bottles of beer and all were cleared. Imagine how much each one of them (esp the guys) drink when there were 10 tables, one not occupied, one table didn’t drink at all and most of the girls didn’t drink.

It was very fun when you see how they behave and talk. I think all this hardly happen in Singapore. Normally after a dinner in Singapore, everyone will just leave and go home. But here, there will stay and make sure everyone drink with them. They will just go around drinking with anyone. It’s like those scenes in those HK shows.. Quite interesting..

But well, some people were quite a wet-blanket.. oh well, don’t wanna talk about it anymore.. In anyway, I think I enjoyed myself… quite an experience =)