You Can't Eat Soup With Chopsticks . . . Very Quickly, That Is

It's the end of Day One of the Trade and Investment mission; after putting in a 14-hour day, the jet lag has started to kick in. Thank goodness for mini bars and chocolate candies.
So here's the summary of the day's activities:

Experienced several new and interesting food dishes, some of which I can't describe more specifically than animal, vegetable or mineral.
Learned that you apparently cannot get Chinese food in China: sweet and sour chicken has not been served at any meal. I wonder if these banquets have a takeout menu . . . .
Discovered that the ritual of offering formal toasts can get you pretty toasted if you aren't careful -- and that was just at lunch.

Met incredibly interesting people at the Cummins supplier conference, the Zhejiang Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, and the Hoosier Club reception. Significant follow up opportunities on numerous deals.
Spent a lot of time driving slowly through crowded Shanghai streets, watching as our bus driver defied the laws of physics to get the bus into places it should not have fit.
Marveled at the growing Shanghai skyline and the Chinese's seeming fascination with building the tallest building in the world.

Tomorrow, the delegation goes off to see Eli Lilly and Company's research facilities; I'm off to an all-day clean-tech conference that features the Governor as a keynote speaker. It's being held at the Shanghai World Financial Center, supposedly the second-tallest building in the world. I'll be connecting with companies in the renewable and alternative energy sectors, looking to spread the good word about Indiana advanced manufacturing and the Energy Systems Network.

More on that conference and the view later. For now, goodnight from tomorrow.