Ice show and Skate Asia 2010

Just got the go-ahead to do a major professional ice show in May 2010 and the world recreational event, Skate Asia 2010 in August. You cannot imagine the work on this. The show will be directed by Darren Olivero of Spherical Productions in New York and choreographed by David Liu, a 4 time Olympian who was responsible for the skating in the show we did in 2005 in Shenzhen. David currently is choreographing a huge opera in Germany and will return to New York in a month so we can begin working on our show.

LOTS OF WORK TO DO THIS SUMMER

Well the summer is almost here. Fortunately the temperature is still nice, around 70f on most days but we can expect 100+ in June to August. A nightmare. But, in my office, my team has a lot of work to do. The majority of our purchases is about to begin. Buying 2500 pairs of rental skates for this rink and another 2500 for our Shenyang rink. The Zamboni is here and will be lifted to the 4th floor later this week. Will video and post it here. Our fitting out contractor has been selected so the work on the off ice areas is about to begin. The roof over the rink is underway and will be completed sometime in the next 2 months. We have an enormous amount of work to do to get this place ready for a soft opening in March next year. Hiring of staff will be relatively easy I think but finding coaches isn't. There are a lot of skaters from former national and provincial teams, but these people are not easy to work with. We will be looking for skaters who have the ability to train total beginners but not higher levels. We will bring those high level coaches on later on when we have a need. It is possible we will hire a world or Olympic medalist but not on a permanent basis. We will likely want them primarily for exhibitions and publicity. Anyway, will keep you updated on www.worldicearenahangzhou.blogspot.com not at this site.

MAY DAY HOLIDAY STARTS TOMORROW

The annual Labor Day festival of China begins tomorrow. The government stated it would only be one day plus the weekend, unlike past years when it was 7 days long. For us here in Hangzhou, it will be a sunny Friday and rainy Saturday and Sunday. Oh well, will stay home and make Pizza (I am becoming an expert).

HANGZHOU RINK Apr 27, '09 (Click photos to enlarge)

Photos from our construction site of of course its not easy to see whats going on, but the first two photos are the ice rink area which is 31m x 60m and the ceiling which is 20m above the rink. The third photo is taken outside the entire building. We expect to have ice on the rink 7 months from now and while that might seem impossible, believe me, its possible.

DAILY FIREWORKS A PAIN IN THE A__!!

Everyday in Hangzhou there are fireworks. From 7am in the morning until late at night. You never know when or where they come from. People explode very loud, bomb-like fireworks for any reason. The fireworks on this video were at 11am on Monday and were being exploded from the front of a kindergarden in the estate across from my office. Just listen to how loud these things are. During Chinese New Year it last from 3 to 8 weeks non stop day and night. Funny thing is shooting them off like this is against the law, but no one seems to care and Police are no where to be found.

RAINY DAYS IN HANGZHOU

I guess I should be happy that we have so much rain here in Hangzhou as I have been warned repeatedly that the summer's here are hotter than Hong Kong. Hard to believe, but because we have so much water (a river that is 2km wide and the giant Westlake in the center of town), the humidity combined with 38 to 40c temperatures will be like living in a steam kettle. I live just short of 1km from the office but by summer my office will move to the site of our new MIXc shopping mall which adds another km, so I will depend on my bikes to get me there and back and expect to be sweating all the way. Perhaps thats good too as it will burn off fat.

Just returned from Hong Kong on Friday where I did a medical checkup at Yan Chai Hospital with Dr. Samson Tse, and all seems well so far. Then overnight at the Charterhouse Hotel on Wanchai Rd., which has the most fabulous showers on this planet. Had dinner on Wed night with Robin Lam and Connie and old friend Christopher Chan.

On Thursday night stayed at the Kapok Hotel in Shenzhen and visited my old staff at the ice rink. Lunch with the management team at Watami Japanese restaurant which was nice.

Schedule in SZ was very tight so no time to see old friends there which was too bad, but I'll do it next time I go down. Flew back on China Southern which left a little late but arrived on time and our company driver picked me up and took me home. Best part of any trip is getting home and seeing my little dog Kita who goes nuts when she sees me walk in the door.

Saturday was mostly at home other than some nearby shopping, then Alex and Raymond from my office came to dinner. Sunday was home all day as it was raining. Made bread in the breadmaker and put programs back into my computer after re-installing Windows XP Pro. Such a nightmare.

Its now Monday and pouring rain outside. Not much else to report as of this hour.

MY FAREWELL FROM WORLD ICE ARENA

Haven't posted this photo yet (I don't think....) of my last day at World Ice Arena. Photo taken on Dec. 24th as I boarded the train to Hangzhou the following day with my friend Eddie Xie, Matt Zheng and Lion Li....and little Kita. Now that's a story as to how I got her on the train.....

NEED ANYTHING FROM HONG KONG?????

I am off to Hong Kong on Wednesday to conduct some business for our project, but also to do some quick shopping for things I just cannot find in Hangzhou. Then on Thursday will go to Shenzhen for a short meeting and then visit my old rink and see the staff whom I miss very very much. Can't wait to see Lisa, Jason, Tony, King, Nicholas, Eva, Derek, Rex, Mark and all the rest whose names I cannot recall at present. Want to see the progress of Phase II as I am sure its getting ready for the big reveal in September when the Grand Hyatt Shenzhen finally opens.

APRIL RAINS

Hangzhou is having a lot of rainy weather these days. Glad I have my trusty Brookstone automatic collapsable umbrella.

AT DUBAI AIRPORT 1981

This photo was taken when the American ISI skating team arrived in Dubai to appear in my show. I am on the front row, second from the right kneeling down. To my left is Kassim Nassir a Dubai police officer. The two Arab men in white dishdash shows Col. Khamis of Dubai police on extreme right. Third from right standing is Pete Streng wearing black jacket. He was in charge of Pan Am in Dubai and was one of our biggest ice show sponsors. Very generous with airline tickets to bring people in and in allowing me to fly all over the world for nothing. Great guy.

WARM WEATHER AT LAST

Not to sure how long this will last but the warm weather finally set in on Saturday and continues today. So nice, hate to be indoors. I think my little Kita must be having a lot of fun running around in the grass at our apartment complex.

My good friend for many years, William Cheng (Photo here), who coaches at Festival Walk, will fly up on Thursday to take a look at Hangzhou. He has Easter holidays in HK and wanted to see our fair city and take a rest.

We're also working toward our Grand Opening events and will either do a large professional ice show or a skating competition and possibly both. We're moving toward this cautiously because of the world financial crisis, but also because our most senior manager of the company has to give his approval, which he hasn't done as yet.

I've just returned from Nanning, China, which is located 300km from Hanoi in Vietnam. Beautiful city and not as advanced as Shenzhen or Hangzhou, but a nice place with friendly people. We are building a large complex there with Grand Hyatt, MIXc shopping mall and of course, World Ice Arena Nanning...a full Olympic size rink. The first ever in that city.

My next trip will be to Shenzhen and Hong Kong and possibly Beijing after that.

COLD DAYS IN HANGZHOU

Hangzhou has had an unusually cold winter which seems to be going on forever. We've touched on summer a few times, but it went away as rapidly as it arrived. I bought 3 electric scooters. Two for me and one for the boy who looks after my home and dog so that he can do the shopping. Love to ride to work on this thing. Makes me feel like I am one of the people. Quite a change from my car and driver in Shenzhen, but a lot faster as cars are always stuck in traffic here and scooters just keep on going. I must say, however, that the way people drive cars and scooters here is a bit insane. They pay no attention to on-coming cars (neither do the pedestrians), run redlights, make illegal turns and everyone is in a hurry no matter who gets hurt along the way. Reminds me of the plane I took yesterday. People were pushing and shoving to be first on the plane. Once on and as the plane had just touched down, they stood up, got overhead bags, and raced down the aisle to be first off...even though we were still rolling along at 300kph. When flight attendants tell them to sit down, they ignore them completely. You would get arrested in North America if you did this. Oh well, life in China is a great adventure. Photo is of Michelle Kwan because I didn't have another to put here so why not.........

1988 OLYMPIC CHAMPION, BRIAN BOITANO

Now this is an oldie. Taken in summer of 1986 in San Francisco, its me with 1986 the 1986 world Champion at the Harlick skating boot factory. Left to right is Lloyd and Andrew (India). Front is Isabelle and Oliver Jacquemart (Belgium). We ran into Brian quite by accident at the factory. He was very gracious and spent a lot of time talking to all of us.

SHIN AMANO, FORMER CHAMPION OF JAPAN

This is Shin Amano, the former Japanese Champion who performed for me in Hong Kong and also did some teaching. He's very much in demand as a coach and choreographer. One of his former students is the current 2009 World Silver medalist, Patrick Chan. Shen lives in Toronto.

TOM DICKSON, BRILLIANT PERFORMER

Its not often that you see a skater who does things on the ice that are truly steps away from the typical jump and spin routines of this sport. Tom is one of the most artistic and original skaters I've ever met. He did one of my shows in Hong Kong some years back. He's married to Katarina Lindgren of Sweden, and lives and works in Colorado Springs, CO.

US LADIES CHAMPION, TIFFANY CHIN

One of the truly great ladies of skating, Miss Tiffany Chin. She came to Hong Kong in 1988 where she turned pro by appearing in Holiday on Ice. I looked after her for several weeks until the show arrived in the city. In fact, she slept at my apartment when I objected to the hotel she was stay in. She came with her mom, Marjorie. I hadn't seen Tiffany since that time until early 2008 when I ran into her at Michelle Kwan's new rink in Artesia, CA. We had a long chat and are staying in touch via Facebook. Tiffany is now married with a little boy. She's working at Healthsouth rink in El Segundo. She recently was invited to present medals at the 2009 Worlds Ladies events.

OUR SHENZHEN PROJECT (OPENED 2005)

This is the first of our many China projects, which opened in 2005. The large round area on left of photo houses the World Ice Arena where I was GM for 4 years. This mall/rink is located just 5 min from the border of Hong Kong by subway. Shenzhen is the richest of all the Chinese cities.

OUR HANGZHOU PROJECT

This is another view of the project I am working on now and which opens in about 11 months time. This was designed by Callison of Seattle and incorporates an unual roof-top river...a water feature with a bridge and and some rooftop restaurants and even a spa.

OUR NANNING PROJECT

Nanning is in Southern China and will be the 5th ice rink project I am involved with located in this complex.

OUR CHENGDU PROJECT

This is a model of the project in Chengdu. The rink is in the round section of the mall in left-center of this photo. Its located in a place called 24 City and involves a lot of office, residential and retail.

PREVIEW OF OUR SHENYANG PROJECT

This is a rendering of the Winter Garden at our Shenyang project. This void divides between the mall and the Grand Hyatt Hotel. You can see the rink in the picture which is what I am helping to put together. Shenyang is in northern China. A very cold place in winter.

THIS IS CRAIG CICHY AND FRIEND

Craig has been a friend of mine for many years since he worked for ISI in Chicago. Later he moved to New York and worked for Dick Button at Candid Productions. He has that beautiful dog at his side all the time. Craig is also on the Education Foundation Board of Directors of ISI.

SPRING DISAPPEARED

Well, I thought spring was here. Everything was clear, warm and flowers but suddenly everything changed again and wind, rain and cold air from the north put us back into winter or the end of winter. I am off to Southern China on Tuesday and the weather there isn't exactly warm either, not what it should be anyway. So, lets' see how this goes.

WORLDS IN LOS ANGELES

The World Championships for figure skating are in LA this week and after many years of empty audiences its nice to see the arena fairly full, at least on the lower levels where the TV cameras are located. Evan Lysek just won the title and I must say he deserved it after working so hard and for so many years. Joubert made all his mistakes in the last 30 seconds. Was great to see Patrick Chan of Canada also do very well. Would like to bring him into China to be a part of our Grand Opening. Very happy also for China's Zhang and Zhang who took silver in Pairs. These are two very nice people.

SPRINGTIME ON WESTLAKE

It's spring here in Hangzhou, and this scene taken at Westlake on Nanshan Road. This is one of the main focal points of the city, the areas that surround the lake. lots of tea houses, restaurants, Chinese pagoda's, old mansions, art galleries. A very peaceful stoll on Westlake is a thing to do on a nice day.

HANGZHOU TEAHOUSE

This is the oldest tea house in Hanghou, located at Westlake where we spent about 3 hours playing Chinese checkers and drinking tea while we waiting for our delayed flight back to Shenzhen.

WESTLAKE IN HANGZHOU

This photo taken at Westlake in Hangzhou of a pier with a Chinese pagoda at the end. Beautiful picture.

CLICK IMAGE TO MAKE LARGER (HONG KONG)

I've been to cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Dubai, Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai, Vienna, Seoul, Caracas, Toronto, Vancouver, Rome, Geneva, Helsinki, Moscow, Muscat, Manila, Sydney, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur but none can beat Hong Kong for beauty, cleanliness, safety, subways, shopping, food. This photo by Alex Yeung taken during the nightly light show on Victoria Harbor.Right click your mouse on photo to save this photo.

MY COOL NEPHEW, HEATH WILSON

I think my nephew is doing better than me in the car department. His BMW is bigger than mine. Cool guy with a good head on his shoulders. Does graphic design work. Not had an easy life, but seems to be grounded never-the-less. He visited me in Hong Kong some years back.

CRAZY HANGZHOU WEATHER

We have gone from winter to summer, then back to winter, then summer again, and now back to winter again in the space of 4 weeks. Last week we were a balmy 27c with sun, then last night was 0c with snow flurries and today is 14c and sunshine, but Friday is cold and raining again. World weather is all screwed up.

NOT A BMW.

Here's the deal. More than half of the population ride around on scooters. It's one of the primary modes of transport here. So, I go off and buy this cool looking scooter yesterday with motorcycle handlebars. Not even sure if this is a legal machine but will find out once I actually ride it on the street. Goes 50KPH which is fast. Only use it to ride to work and back, maybe over to Westlake. No pollution and no sound. But this little cutie is fast. Oldie on wheels.

UPDATE FROM HANGZHOU, CHINA

Well, its now mid-March and the weather has finally started to change from miserably wet and cold to wet and warm, sometimes hot. Hangzhou summers can get very very hot and humid which will make the walk or ride to work fairly miserably but fortunately my apartment to work is fairly close.

We are now a year from the grand opening of our new mall and ice arena. Busy working like crazy to get everything in order, and in place at the right time.

I am also working on 3 other projects at the same time, and all are big rinks in luxury shopping malls. All have the same name, World Ice Arena, with the city name tacked onto the end.

I am off to Nanning, in southern China, not far from Vietnam, next week for a 3 day visit to meet the people on our project and learn more about the city. Need to get a feel for how this new rink will go over once we commit to spend 5 million USD on the rink.

My little dog Kita is just fine. She is looked after by a young guy who works for me full time keeping the house in order, cooking and looking after Kita. Kita gets to go outside 3 or 4 times in a day to run around and play. Soon I can take her on my bike for rides as I've ordered a special frontpack for her that allows her to be where I can see her while riding. I have both a racing bike and an electric scooter (like a Vespa only no emissions).

Most people ride their bikes over to Westlake which is the number one tourist attraction in Hangzhou and is listed by China as one of the 10 most popular destinations in the country. You look at my photos and you'll see why. Lots of young Chinese come here to get engaged as the lakeside is very romantic.

Today my team and I will go to have middle eastern food. Their first time so I am hoping its reasonably good quality.

My email address here is tedhangzhou@gmail.com. My youtube channel where I keep most of my video's is www.youtube.com/user/tedshenzhen so go take a look.

CLICK THIS MOVIE. MY FRIENDS VISIT SHANGHAI

This is the bund in Shanghai, China. Some of my friends recently went there from Hangzhou by train. Only 70 min on the bullet-train. The Bund is a main tourist attraction of Shanghai but it's better at night. Those buildings on the other side turn into giant TV screens at night. Absolutely amazing. Love this city.

AT HOME WITH SURYA BONALY

Surya and her mom live in an enormous mansion just outside Las Vegas. The house with an amazing pool and waterfalls, sits between the tennis courts and the house. This photo was taken just after Surya had an accident. Seem to recall it was during a Gymnastics practice, not skating. Surya is a great friend and we're always in touch. She skated for me several times in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur.

INCREDIBLE SASHI KUCHIKI

Sashi Kuchiki has been a friend for many man years, from the days in Ice Capades when he first arrived and didn't know a word of English until many years later when he and Ronnie Robertson used to fly to Hong Kong and teach at Cityplaza for a month each year for 10 years. He's a national level coach in Los Angeles and despite his age, is still on the rink everyday with his students. His daughter Natasha was World medalist in Pairs with Todd Sand.

GUEST STARS AT CITYPLAZA 1987 TO 2002

During my 15 years as manager of the Cityplaza rink in Hong Kong, we hosted numerous famous skaters. The list is shown here. Those were amazing times on that small rink. Everyone from Richard Dwyer to Dorothy Hamill skated with us. World Champions like Charlie Tickner, Valova and Vassiliev and Ronnie Robertson. The list goes on and on.

VIVI-ANNE HULTEN - OLYMPIC BRONZE 1932/36

In 1932 and 36, Swedish champion Vivianne Hulten won the Bronze against Sonja Henie in the Olympic Games. After she completed her pro show career, she began teaching and was my first coach. She continued to skate and teach until her death at age 87. She was married to Gene Thesloff of Finland and who was one of Sonja's movie skating partners. They have a son, Gene Jr. who lives in Orange County, California.

ME WITH MICHELLE KWAN'S DAD, DANNY

Everyone in the skating world knows Danny Kwan. A dynamic figure, and a great father. Look at how Michelle turned out and you will realize its the product of her parents upbringing.

EAST WEST ICE PALACE - MICHELLE KWAN

I was a small part of this before it was built working with Danny Kwan. This ice rink is in Artesia, Ca. and is owned by Michelle Kwan and her dad. Before accepting the job in China, I was designated as the General Manager of this rink. Never go the chance however as I was already in China by the time it opened.

SAN CLEMENTE 2005

This photo taken in San Clemente on our way to dinner at the pier. L to R is VJ Novales, Raul Gomes, Mike Novales, Thomas Choi and Dave Chen. Ted is the photographer. This is where I left the keys in my car with engine running for 3 hours and the doors unlocked...and no one stole the car. Shocking.

ASIAN GAMES LUNCH 2007

This photo taken at a luncheon with Chen Lu, Denis Petrov and competitor Mike Novales in Changchun for the 2007 Asian Winter Games.

NICE TO WORK WITH NICE PEOPLE

Lisa Lee and Alex Yeung, two people who helped me run World Ice Arena in Shenzhen. Alex and I have worked together since 1988 in Hong Kong. Lisa Graduated at No. 1 in her class at Guangzhou University and Alex graduated at U of Calif in Berkley as an Architect.

ANDY KUO AT WORLD ICE ARENA

Andy was in our marketing department at the rink where I was GM for 4 years. Nice guy and knows a lot about iPhones.

THE MALL AT TAIPEI 101

Taipei 101 was the world's tallest building for many years and has now been surpassed by The Burj in Dubai. The mall, however, was very elegant and this is a photo from inside. We didn't go on top of the building because it was too new and wasn't yet open for sightseers.

TAIPEI 2004

In 2004 Alex Yeung and I went to Taipei to do a presentation on Skate Asia for 2006. Taipei certainly has a lot of things that are great but my favorite was the night market which was very crowded and with lots of things to do and see. I love the lemonade most of all. I don't know how they make it there, but its unlike any I've had before. Worth the trip just to get it again.....

ON THE BUND IN SHANGHAI

Shanghai is one of the most interesting cities I have ever visited. I like it because so much of it's past is still there. The Bund still has all the old pre-war buildings; the old French concession is filled with beautiful tree-lined streets and quiet elegance of the past. Shanghai has all the modern things too including a great Metro system and wide variety of restaurants and stores. I do not think its as up to date on shopping as Hong Kong, but it certainly has more to show in terms of history and old world elegance. LOVE IT!!! and I only live 70 min by bullet train from Hangzhou.

DOWN IN MANILA

This is a photo of some friends. L to R is Nardi Aranton and his student in from Manila. Indy Wong (Festival Walk) and Alex Yeung (the Vice Dir on this Hangzhou project and who is a friend going back to 1988 in Hong Kong). This photo taken in Manila in 2007 before Skate Asia.

HEY CARLOS, HERE YOU ARE!!!

My Dear friend Carlos just wrote and said WHERE'S MY PHOTO!! I was certain this photo was already uploaded but just in case, here it is. Carlos and I went to Tokyo in 2006 and shopped till we dropped. Had such a great time although the hotel we finally ended up with wasn't to our liking. Still we had a great time. Carlos is the only person I know in all of Asia who is a true classy gentleman in every sense of the word. He knows great liquor, fine cars and the significance of brands whose quality lasts forever. Carlos is not into trends so much as getting good quality. A dear dear friend.....

CLICK THIS MOVIE. MY DOG KITA PLAYING

This is a short video of my little long haired Chihuahua, Kita, chasing after one of her dolls. This little creature is a joy. Totally house-trained, quiet, and loves everyone she meets. A dog with a good nature and always seems happy.

CLICK THIS MOVIE. LUNCHTIME IN TOKYO

My friend Carlos Choi from Hong Kong and I went to Tokyo for 3 or 4 days in 2007 and had a great time. This is Shibuya and is one of the most crowded places at all times of day and night. Great restaurants and shopping here.

HANGZHOU SCENE - PEACEFUL MORNING

If this looks serene and peaceful, I can assure you it's really like this. Summer or winter, Westlake always has a mist and the lake is calm. Hundreds of small boats ply the lake with tourists who are just drinking in the scenery. Hope this entices you to come and see for yourself. Hangzhou is one of China's most important tourist locations and I live here...lucky me.

HANGZHOU SCENE - DRAGONBOAT

This unusual boat is used for dinner parties and I understand its only for government use. Quite a sight to see this huge thing floating on the water around Westlake.

HANGZHOU SCENE - HOUSE BY THE LAKE

This beautiful home is situated right on Westlake. Not sure who might live there but they would have to be very very wealthy. Likely this is owned by the government for senior cadres to use for entertaining. Took this photo from a small boat I was riding in while drinking Chinese tea.

HANGZHOU SCENE - MORNING ROMANCE

Even at 7am, young couples walk around this enormous lake which has scenes such as this. No wonder many young people come here to get engaged.

HANGZHOU SCENE - A GARDEN

This is a garden in a private home on Westlake in the center of Hangzhou.

HANGZHOU SCENE

I took this photo early one morning. The fog on the lake obscures the distant features. Westlake is the main tourist attraction of this city.

A DUBAI SCENE

This is just one of many impressive scenes in Dubai when I visited there a few years back. The Burj al Arab hotel in the background.

GUARDING THE FLAG AT TIANAMEN SQUARE

With more than 2 million in the armed forces of China, to be selected to work at Tianamen Square is a great honor. This photo taken at sunrise when they raise the flag with great fanfare each morning no matter what the weather. The changing of the guard is a big ceremony that takes place just as the sun lights the square.

CHEN LU AND HER MOM

Lulu was world champion in 1995 and won bronze medals in the 1994 and 1998 Olympic Games. She is currently working at our rink in Shenzhen as school manager and his one little boy Nikita, with her husband Denis Petrov, himself an Olympic silver medalist in 1992.

IN BEIJING WITH FRIENDS

Me pictured here with Kelvin, my assistant Lisa Lee and staff member Chris Zhang in front of the Peiking Duck restaurant on a cold day.