We had a quick nap upon our arrival at the hotel and got our party clothes ready for a reception at the Gong Wang Fu [Prince Gong Palace] where a banquet and entertainment was waiting for us. The car ride was quite a thrill in of itself.
Mr. Yao, our driver, and Ms. Gao Fei accompanied us to the reception. Traffic was crazy-- drivers pretty much ignored any traffic rule that might be inconvenient at the moment. Nevertheless, we were in standstill traffic [literally] and were running late.
When we
did arrive, we were hustled out of the car and onto the red carpet leading into the palace. There were pairs of beautiful young women standing approximately 5 feet apart on either side of the carpet who each greeted us with "welcome" as we passed. red laterns hung from wires overhead. As we passed little nooks, there would appear a single female musician [in full costume] playing traditional Chinese music. It was awesome.
They opened the Theater Pavilion for us [the oldest roofed theater in China] and we sat at the head table with the Vice Governor of Beijing as well as with a number of high ranking officials. The Vice Governor was very gracious and she made a special effort to see that we were enjoying ourselves despite the fact that she was constantly up and about greeting people throughout the evening. The entertainment was fun. The emcee was a female TV hostess and the line up included the winner of the Chinese version of teen American Idol, as well as a magician, shadow figures, famous Peking Opera singers, and a Chinese comic.
Unfortunately, jet lag took its toll and we had to leave a bit early. Once we returned to the hotel, it was clear that Bill did not have any detail regarding the format and content of the conference. Han, our representative from the People's Bank, was to take care of it in the morning.
