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.

KELVIN WU AND ME AT DUCK RESTAURANT

Beijing has one very famous restaurant for Peiking Duck and off we went to try it out. Here pictured with Kelvin Wu who is from Beijing. Needless to say this photo makes me look older than I really am.

PIECES OF THE FORBIDDEN CITY

For several years before the Olympic games in Beijing, They disassembled many of the structures in the Forbidden City to restore them to their original beauty. They did complete the job and anyone going there now will see a magnificent place of palaces and other buildings in this enormous complex. This is probably the most important thing to do in China other than the Great Wall.

THE FACE SAYS IT ALL

You can see by my expression that this Burberry trenchcoat was NOT keeping me warm. To say the least I was freezing in -20c windy day. Still was a nice afternoon when I wasn't standing out in the open. Wonder why I always end up in this place in winter....

ENTERING THE FORBIDDEN CITY

This is the familiar front of the Forbidden City that faces Tianamen Square. I've been here maybe 3 times and its so huge you can never really take it all in. Learning how they lived there, however, is very interesting. Occupants could have been living on the moon as they had no contact with the world outside these walls. Very very interesting place.

A COLD WINTER MORNING IN CHANGCHUN

I went to the Asian Winter Games in Changchun in 2007...one of the coldest places on earth. That is a huge river in this picture with a giant ice rink carved out on the surface. 40c below zero is common here. Needless to say this is NOT the kind of ice skating I prefer. Photo taken from my hotel room window.

INCREDIBLE DAVID LIU

I know a lot of talented people on this earth but none are more so than David Liu (www.davidliu.org). An accomplished ballet dancer, choreographer and Olympic skater, David has done a number of shows for me as director and star. This photo was taken at Spherical, a show which I will post on this site very soon. He's choreographed for people like Brian Boitano, Katarina Witt, Chen Lu and many others. David lives with his life partner, Darren Olivero, another gifted and creative individual.

RYAN AND KILBY MAHONEY

Not married. Brother and sister. They and their mom, Linda, own the largest real estate company in the middle east, based in Dubai. Kilby was one of my star skaters in Dubai and performed for me in Hong Kong several times. Ryan is her brilliant brother who is GM of Better Homes.

HANGING OUT

The photos are in reverse order. Here is Paul again, this time hanging out on a cliff and feeding a friendly elephant in Thailand. Is there anything this guy won't do????

PAUL BELSITO, A MAN OF THE WORLD

This is the same guy in the next photo below. Talk about adventure. This guy will do anything and seems to always be wrapped around a snake, a monkey or hanging by his fingers from a cliff somewhere.

THE GREAT PAUL BELSITO

Maybe once in a lifetime you might meet someone like Paul Belsito. The son of my former boss at the Hyatt Regency in Dubai, Paul is the most entertaining, clever guy I know. Comes from a wonderful family in Vancouver. He is an absolute nut for soccer and goes to every world cup match. A great snowboarder, skater, comedian, talk show host, actor, restaurant manager, bartender, etc. Super super nice guy.

SOME OF MY STUDENTS

This is an old photo taken around 1989 in Hong Kong. All of these kids have grown up now. The little guy in front was a vice president of HSBC. Little girl on left is a coach. Interesting how little kids grow up and become into their own....

TONY WONG

Good friend, Tony Wong. Graduated with a medical degree at Chinese Univ in Hong Kong but moved to Sweden where he never really pursued his career in medicine. Talented guy. Just made contact with him again and so happy. Wish I had been a better friend to him in Hong Kong. Super person to know. He also loved my dog Lucy very much. Saved her life actually.

ALEXIS KWONG IN HONG KONG

Alex is a good friend who lives in Hong Kong. He's with STAR tv, a satellite channel that serves all of Asia and middle east. I think he's conntected with Channel V, which is all music. He and once did an around the world trip and flew on the concorde from London to Paris.

GURINDER SINGH

Another shot of Gurinder when I knew him in Shenzhen. He's an engineer and was last working on a nuclear power plant project in China, but think he's doing the same now in India. He's actually British and lives in London.

KELVIN WU UP IN BEIJING

This is Kelvin Wu, a good friend who lives in Beijing. Over 6' tall and a super nice guy. Helped us with Skate Asia in 2006. Lives near the Birds Nest national stadium with his parents.

THE MODEL OF OUR MALL

I am working on the ice arena which is pictured here on this corner of the mall. As you can see its an enormous part of the structure. Ice is 31m x 60m

GOOGLE EARTH SHOWS MY APT

This view of Hangzhou shows Westlake on the left and my apartment on the right. Bike ride to the lake is 20 min.

SKATE ASIA 2006 PRESS CONFERENCE

Before we held Skate Asia, we had this press conference. One of the few photos I also have of Raul Gomes who is next to me in this photo on the left. Randy Winship is on right wearing glasses. He was our competition director for this event. 1100 skaters took part over 8 days.

PARIS? NO, CHINA!!!!

This replica of the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe are located at Window of the World park in Shenzhen, China.