Merry XMas from China

The Christmas decornations are still out in full force in Beijing.

While the Chinese have certainly embraced the holiday, they have not necessarily grasped all the technicalities -- like the window for celebration and the whole Christianity connection.

We had a busy day meeting our new project partners. Mr Z, the lead on this work, invited us to a Chinese banquet at the end of the day. While I had heard that they were moving away from the toasts due to new strict drunk driving law, this group was not to be deterred.

There was much celebration to be had. Then we went for a walk around the lakes at Yuyuantan Park --- an expedition that proved to be much longer and colder than anticipated.