...away on business

Von Peter Weiermann

What does a so-called businessman do when he travels "on behalf of the company" in the world? Find out and follow him on his travels and business negotiations around the globe. Take part in curious moments, culinary experiences, interesting encounters, amusing misunderstandings, and snapshots of real life. Whether in India, Korea, China, Indonesia, Thailand, England or anywhere in the middle of nowhere. Smile to yourself, sympathize or reflect upon it all – it is encouraged.
Humorous, true to life and entertaining anecdotes. All descriptions are authentic and have been experienced by the author himself.

• Sprache: Deutsch
• Herausgeber: neobooks
• Erscheinungsdatum: 14. Mai 2018
• ISBN: 9783742738387

Buchvorschau

Impressum

Impressum

©2018 by Peter Weiermann

E-mail: [e-mail]

English translation: Cindy Lorenz

German book title: …auf Geschäftsreise 

All rights reserved. Reproduction and distribution only by written permission of the author.

Prolog

It so happened that one day my boss was of the opinion that I would do less harm to the company if he sent me on business trips, preferably as far away as possible, maybe even to Asia.

In fact, I am still amazed at how it is possible to get anywhere with limited English language skills, an even more limited sense of direction and a small credit card. Incidentally, my language skills are really not that much of a problem because most Asians with whom I'm deal are not language experts either. Ironically, I do not know how many times I have traveled around the world over the past 20 years, but it has been several times. Some moments and impressions are actually trivial things that just belong to traveling, but they can also be things a west European would just like to ignore by laughing it away. They can make you smile or be amazed or even make you stop and think. They are simply snapshots that are rarely consciously perceived because other things are of course in focus. You want to get from A to B to do your job there. These impressions are just side effects, but in and of themselves they often look very strange to a so-called foreigner. Also, I notice that the tiny spot on the map called Germany is not necessarily the center of the world, or is it?

As long as one or the other of these impressions is still in my memory, I would like to capture and pass on these moments to you, dear reader, with the aim of giving you a little something to do in your leisure time. Maybe you're on a journey of your own as you read these lines, maybe even on a business trip or on vacation, or wherever, but nonetheless on the go. It may be that you will discover yourself here within this journal because you have just experienced something similar or have already experienced it in the past. Just one more thing before we start, however. If my opinions, which are subjectively expressed, are met with any displeasure, I beg your pardon. No one should accuse me of a deliberate aversion to persons, groups or things because this is definitely not intended. Quite the contrary, we should all respect each other’s cultural background and habits. I have not included my comments in a chronological order because, in my opinion, this does not detract from the contents in any way. At any rate, I sincerely hope you will enjoy reading the following.

Epo

The initial trigger for capturing such little anecdotes occurred as I was once again on a business trip in Shanghai. It is 6 a.m. in the morning and as tired as I am, I get into the taxi in front of the hotel and the taxi driver says to me, Epo??

Uh, what? I answer, trying hard to decide what he means. After a period of deliberation, I guess correctly and answer with amusement, Yes please, Epo! The sophisticated reader already suspects the correct translation, it means airport. Problem solved. A very interesting experience.

The driver's next statement was, Betsching? I understand now (he means Beijing) and I answer, No, Seoul, Korea! Now everything's been discussed and we leave the hotel. Arriving at the EPO, I have the joy of having started the day in good humor and give the driver a generous tip which he probably did not expect. He is all smiles as he drives off and waves at me until he is no longer visible. EPO, how nice to know.

In general, my experience has been that when I smile, I will be smiled back at; if I look grim I will get grim looks in return. Or, as Mark Twain once put it, Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.

Life is composed of many small moments. There are so many beautiful, funny, instructive occasions. They go by and never come back. That's why I like to pause and enjoy the moment. Too soon everyday obligations always bring me back.

Eating

As it is with many people when they are asked how their vacation was, the first response is a detailed report about the food as if this were the most important aspect. Honestly, this is not so wrong. After all, food is an elementary component. So of course it is obvious that the issue of food should receive adequate attention when sharing my impressions.

Once we received a large order from a company and, and as is often the case, the customers invited us to dinner. My colleague and I were together along with 7 or 8 Chinese customers. Even organizing the trip with several cars turned out to be loud and chaotic. Once arriving at the restaurant, we were led into a small private room with a huge round table. This becomes a special challenge to me, who dislikes any seafood that is not clearly identifiable as fish. We are invited to a so-called hot-pot meal. Well, I think, that doesn’t sound too bad after all. A drink of hard liquor is offered as an aperitif. Of course, we are being tested as to how well we hold our drink. Chinese love heavy-drinking as if there were no other variety. I get the impression that it's a shame not to be an alcoholic. Nevertheless, I hold myself back due to an empty stomach, etc. There is a large pot on the table that is divided down the middle and has two different boiling liquids in it. The waiters appear while balancing several trays which are filled with something that looks like striped intestines