
Freeze-frame: New way to move merchandise...
Written by Sylvain Dromaint on Friday, November 28, 2008Tags: Asia, Freeze-frame
"The mountain is a Buddha and the Buddha is a mountain"
Written by Sylvain Dromaint on Thursday, November 27, 2008Tags: China, Take a Break, travel
One thing I like when I go outside in China (wherever it is), it's that you never know what you may see when you walk on the street. Eat dog in China is something normal especially during winter where dog is consider to make your body warmer while eating it. So be careful when you order some meat in restaurant, you never know what they can serve you. Tags: China, Freeze-frame
Tags: Freeze-frame
Take a Break: Taishan or another way to Heaven
Written by Sylvain Dromaint on Thursday, November 20, 2008
The Mount Taishan is in Shandong Province in China, where famous Confucius borned, located at Tai’an (the town at the foot of Taishan), South of Jinan, capital of Shandong.
Every stair seems to have a story to tell, that it was stepped so many times by monks, boudhists, Chinese, foreigners, ... Anyone of us who climbed the peak left behind a bead of sweat, the best testament of our way on Taishan. We feel like this way have no end... but we still continue because there is this strange feeling which is always pushing us to view the grandiose temples, the numerous stone inscriptions and stone tablets, the landscape that give us the strengh to go ahead. Our body want to stop but our heart doesn't give up. So we still continue to climb, stop and climb until we can reach the end. Sunny or rainy, whatever happen, we always enjoy the place, because we feel in another world, another earth.
We feel tired of thousands of staircases climbed during six hours, but we never give up because we all know we will reach the Heaven at the end. The next morning we will admire a sunrise as never we could see before, oh no never. This is Taishan, another way to Heaven.
Tags: Asia, China, Take a Break, travel
This is our today's lesson for Customer Service: to make your customer love you, you have to start with a Positive Attitude!
* Print the card, keep it with you and read it everyday...
Our trip started in Singapore since we were undertaking an exchange program for one year for our Engeering studying. Three of us was participating to this trip. We flew to Bangkok (Thailand) where, from here, we decided to take a night bus to reach Chang Khong (North of Thailand), borders with Lao.We took a lot of time to prepare this trip, and especially, took seriously the case of malaria by taking daily medecine. Usually, people get malaria by being bitten by an infective female Anopheles mosquito (Stupid mosquito!) - where it is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions like in Lao, Vietnam or Cambodia (especially in Lao).
Lao is one of my favorite destination. I got a good souvenir. Lao is one of the poorer country in this world but people are so simple, relax, enjoyable. They do know how to live happily that most of us forgot in our modern society (just a personnal comment).
Vietnam was one of our more challenging trip. Vietnam is firstly a country which open more and more to tourism and insdustry. A lot of Vietnamese want to go inside the tourism business and some of them have the only target to get as much as possible money from you (taxi, hotel, travel agency...). These people are sometimes completely annoyed and make sometimes your trip not enjoyable at all. That is really a pity because Vietnam have a lot of good things and nice people. Moreover, this country has still the souvenir of its war with US, that it becomes also a part of our trip: disable people hurt during the war, musseum relating to the period,....
Tags: adventure, Asia, myself - My life, travel
We have to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s regarding the originality of some movies made by Asian countries. Then I like to introduce this korean movie, one of my favourite movie, My Sassy Girl. The film was extremely successful in South Korea. When My Sassy Girl was released throughout East Asia, it was well received in the entire region. I was told that an American remake, starring Jesse Bradford and Elisha Cuthbert, was released in 2008.
Watch this movie, you won't regret!
Tags: movie
Weekend is coming, it's time for you who is living in Asia to have a short break far from your usual living and working place.
* Book your air ticket on Tigerairways.com or JetStar. These two low cost companies ensuring flight all over South East Asia (and also from/to Australia).
* From Bangkok, you can flight also with AirAsia.com.
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* You will arrive to the airport (where you can't get loss): Changi Airport. With a taxi or MRT (close at midnight) you can reach any point in Singapore.
* I would start to enjoy the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (164ha with trails through primary rainforest and Singapore's highest hill) or Pulau Ubin Island.
- Some people would prefer to spend time in Sentosa Island (Attractions, beaches, shopping...)
- Zouk is one of my favourite night (club located at 17 Jiak Kim Street)
- Ministry of Sound is temporaly closed for renovation.
* I would go to Singapore River (because it is where the story of Singapore begins). Start your trip at the Merlion Park. Find your complete morning's trip here with parks, museums, Financial Building, Arts for a walk, a look and a visit. Top of the tree is Raffles, a timeless symbol of colonial opulence.
You can find more to visit here. Enjoy your trip!
Tags: Asia, Singapore, Take a Break, travel
China: Thousands of companies are closing in Guangdong
Written by Sylvain Dromaint on Thursday, November 13, 2008
This morning, I was reading the news when I read this article on Yahoo and Le Monde (first National newspaper in France): In China, Thousands of companies are closing in Guangdong. Tags: Asia, China, global crisis

The book is based on years of detailed and empirical research made during few years. He shows, and I agree with it, that most successfull Executive are, first only very few (less than 10), and secondly are the ones who "build enduring greatness through a paradoxical blend of personnal humility and professional will". He gives all details for a type of leadership to turn a good company to a great one, and you may be surprised or maybe shocked.
We knows that today, many of Executive or General Manager of big companies fail to manage their company and they unfortunattely showed to us only selfish willing with their salary (increase it when the situation is bad for their company) or run away with golden parachute when they failed with their management. Many examples happened so many times these last two months that we do not need to give any details about that.
So, I recommand this book for anyone who have personnal humility and wants to build great things with people. Moreover, we need now to put back a system of morality and humanity inside our economy model and this book will help to show a lot of good examples.
This plan is the signal, that China is facing seriously the global crisis. That is also the prove that the crisis is now global. 4000 billions of Yuan (or 586 billion of US Dollar) is planned over 2 years which has only one target: have a economic growth over 8%, where this one and the social situation have become worse and worse the last months. The exportations, which is only the engine of the economic growth, decreased suddenly with a economic growth at 9% for the third quarter (the lowest level in five years and a sharp decline from last year's 11.9 percent). USA and Europe have decreased their importation so China face a non-demand situation. China, which has adapted its industry to feed the western deficits, is now hurt because there is neither no money nor credits from its western customers.
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The chinese companies, which works for the most famous brand in Europe, USA, or Japan estimate that 3 millions employment have been lost. For example, six companies over ten, from Toys industry, have been bankrupt. More companies are closed for short period (few weeks to one month) in Beijing, Shanghai, or Guandong Province. Many workers are back in their hometown waiting for their companies to re-open.
This crisis, and all sanitaries constraints, for safety and environment, is not going to make things better. China must change is economical model. China is going to focus now to its internal market. But Chinese people do not consume, because they save money, to plan their retirement, hospital fees, or to face to any social issues. Next year, the economic growth should be 7% to 8%. Theorically it's wonderfull, but in reality it's not sufficient for the government to make his budget balance, and more, not sufficient to avoid the unemployment to increase, and social problem to become worse and worse.
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China may not be affected as much as other western countries, but what we have to understand about this economy which is strong, fast, it's this economy has two caracteristics. The first one, the biggest, is the exportations which go all over the world. The second one, very small, is the capabilty for chinese to consume, from people who is trying to save their money to provide us their products. This big plan - which is going to absurb 15% of national ressources - is going to target, in priority, 800 millions of Chinese outside the cities. This government need to offer them a social ensurance and double their income. That means also, they will need to adapt the industrial needs by their own people's needs. Fewer and fewer companies will produce electronics devices and more industrial productions will have to be adapted for 1 billion Chinese's new needs.
Tags: China, global crisis, News
Tags: Books, Customer Service

In his new movie, this adventurer will cross USA and he will try to sleep in a movie star from Hollywood.
If you want to watch more about Antoine De Maximy and discover all his adventures over the world, go to his website: http://www.jiraidormirchezvous.com/
Make your own Experience
If you want to do the same thing, to sleep in people 's house and make it organized, I advice you to go to the web site of CouchSurfing. This network have thousands of adventurers who sleep everydays in other people's house. Discover it, it's also another way to travel!
China, or the impact of the global crisis
Written by Sylvain Dromaint on Saturday, November 08, 2008
During our visit to few factories last weeks and around several cities in China, it becomes a fact now: more and more companies are suffering and closing in China, and most particurlarly in GuangDong Province. This may be the consequences of several things..
If the exportation has been less and less for the past 2 months, another reality for Chinese companies has been to be competitive. The "Made in China" become more and more expensive and it is difficult to export due to several reasons.
First, the salaries have been increased during the last 2 to 3 years in some part of China. An example in our company, most salary have been increased from 2 to 3 to keep our Technicians and Managers. More and more worker are leaving their work to earn 10 RMB more and some companies like ours must increased salary to keep their most skillfull workers.
Secondly, the first materials increased dramatically so the final product was 20 to 40% more expenvive with this factor. Now, material price decreased with the crisis because we finally saw that it was due to speculations.
Another problem become the rate between Yuan and other currencies. The high rate of Yuan make an inflation from 10 to 30% according to exchange rate between countries. So the chinese product become suddenly more expensive and have generate an inflation for its products.
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It's a fact, unemployment become more and more for a Province like Guangdong. More and more people are lay off or suddenly their companies have been closed. China does not have all social protection or retirement plan as in Europe or USA. Without work, a Chinese has completely nothing.
In Sichuan, government is investing 1000 billion Yuan to rebuild the region destroy by the earth quake last May so it could be one of the most attractive province in the future for tourism and industry.
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Tags: Asia, China, global crisis
Changi Airport, an Airport from another World
Written by Sylvain Dromaint on Monday, November 03, 2008
There are few Airports in this world, we never like to spend time especially these airports in Europe or America: old, not convenient to transit, always the mess, always looking for your way, the toilets, looking for taxi or buses...But some others, like in Asia, we could spend a whole day inside because we feel like home. My first love is for Changi Airport in Singapore, one of the most convenient airport: easy to transit, easy to check-in, most beautiful duty free... Singapore, and other countries in Asia, has been considered their airport like the face of the country, the first welcome, the first things visitors have in mind when they arrive in a country, their first image.
As my wife use to say, some countries have been considered their airport as "their ass". The expression is maybe too much, but think about tourists have their cliche about a country, and when they arrrive, what disappointment they have when they see the airport.
I am writing this message from here and I always enjoy to take my airplane from Singapore because we always feel like we never have been waited for an airplane
Tags: travel




