Just after breakfast we were supposed to go to a nearby lake that had some value. Unfortunately, due to area storms we were not able to go. However, that turned out good for me since I was not able to update the blog on Tuesday due to a very busy day and a late night. I was also able to catch up on some e-mails and read the Brunswick News on line. I also enjoyed my time to prepare for class today. For lunch we had rice, tofu and peppers, soup, which is served at every meal, no fish at lunch today, a mushroom and egg dish, a type of green in the shape of a green bean and very spicy, some type of noodles that had a fish taste and watermelon. They usually serve some type of fruit at every meal. With the exception of the watermelon I have no idea what type of fruit they are serving.
At lunch we had a conversation about home ownership. In the City a person buys a house and can live there for 70 years. They only own the inside part of the house and the land is owned by someone else. If you die before the 70 years are up your children can live in the house, but as a family your limit is 70 years. Then either you have to buy the house again or someone else buys it. In the country you own the house and the land and it can be passed from one generation to another. We also discussed the ease or lack of for a Chinese citizen to get a visa to travel outside the country. Apparently it is very difficult to get a visa to travel abroad. You have to have a very sound reason for the travel without any hint that you may not return.
In class today I discussed Glynn County government. They found great interest in our organizational chart. I showed them a picture of the Board of Commissioners and they were interested to know what type of work each commissioner did. They also wanted to know what type of qualifications one had to have to run for elected office. They were surprised that most elected positions did not require any qualifications to run. I also showed them a picture of the management team and they were interested in what each person did. They wanted to know if county employees had a contract and if they had to have qualifications to be hired or could be hired like a person is elected without any qualifications. My interpreter is doing a great job and we have developed a nice routine. They were interested to know what were the priority services of the County. When I showed them the organizational chart, I explained the difference between city and county government and how county government was far more complex than city government in terms of our multitude of boards, elected officials, etc.
For dinner we were hosted by the owner of a large construction company who has 20,000 employees and builds all over China. The President of the company actually hosted us. There were two round tables that sat ten. The Chinese people enjoy meal times very much because that is their opportunity to build relationships. The President brought in a private chef to his company who prepared 18 dishes for us. One was a duck that had been cooked and laid on a platter head and all. We had fish, soup, pork, veggies, rice, chicken, noodles and egg and 11 other dishes most of which I was scared to ask what they were. 14 of the 20 people smoked so the room was filled with smoke. 99% of the time dessert is not served unless it is fruit. Tonight Fey, who is from Carl Vinson Institute, celebrated his birthday so they had a cake for him. It was very nice to have something sweet to eat. I am looking forward to my wife's pound cake when I get home :) I am amazed at the amount of food that they cook for a special dinner. It is my understanding that they do not eat like this all of the time, but only at special dinners.
The President of the company was a great host. One of the members in the group had been to Brunswick before and I certainly invited him back. Another lady indicated that she would like to visit our community, as well. In class today I invited anyone with any friends who wanted to invest in the US to call me. I told them I had extra business cards that I could share. I think they appreciated me promoting my county. The drive back to the institute from the construction company was very interesting; we had so many close calls with other vehicles and motor scooters. You have to have a quick brake foot here. Motor scooters are a big thing here. We passed at least 30 stores all in a row where they were selling motor scooters and there must have been a hundred in each store.
On Thursday I will continue with information on Glynn County and then I will talk about planning and our strategic planning process. I am scheduled to be taken on a tour in the morning, but I am not sure where at the moment. Two days left here teaching then it will be off to Beijing!
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