CHAMBER OF COMMERCE'S 'CHINA 2009' TRIP: The business of learning
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It can be fun as well as informative; China trip promises to be both
10/6/2008 - 10/7/08
Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Suzhou are some of the cities on a trip to China the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce is planning for April 2009.So far, more than 50 people — both chamber members and others — have signed up for the event, with 100 seats available in all. Bookings must be made before Jan. 1.
The tour dates are April 6-14.
In charge of organizing the trip is Lacie Mackey, the chamber's communications and marketing director. She has never been to China and will take part in the forthcoming trip.
"I'm so excited about it," Mackey said. "It's quite an opportunity."
Mackey expects the trip to be sold out by the end of this month.
Cost of the trip is $1,799, which includes an Air China flight from Los Angeles to Beijing, four- and five-star hotels, three meals per day, bus tours, guides and admission to tourist sites.
The cost is well below what such a trip would cost normally, thanks to the Chinese government. "They've taken 400 chambers and over 10,000 people," Mackey said. "They subsidized this kind of trip since 1996."
Simon Brackley, president and CEO of the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce, will also be off to China next April.
"We are excited to be able to lead a group from Northern New Mexico to China to learn about the culture and way of life," Brackley said. "China is emerging as a world leader, and our group will have a chance to see firsthand how business operates and the opportunities that are available."
In addition to sightseeing at such famed tourist destinations as the Great Wall of China, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven and Lingyin Temple, participants will also visit the Hangzhou Economic Development Zone and the Pudong Economic Development Zone, which will give visitors a chance to see Chinese business operations.
Jamie Koch, owner of Daniels Insurance, took the trip to China with the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and came back full of enthusiasm for China.
"The trip was fantastic," he said. "We saw so much, and it was inexpensive."
Koch said participants visited silk and pottery factories, but he pointed out that the purpose of the tour was more to "send a message that China is a place to do business" and that "China has very strong economy."
Mary Stramel, owner of General Mailing and Shipping Systems, is planning to visit China with her husband, sister and others, and, she said, "I can't wait."
Stramel is interested in Chinese culture and history and looks forward to seeing the Great Wall and Tiananmen Square.
"I never dreamed I would be able to go there," she said. "It's going to be a good trip."
Peter Hippauf, of Hippauf and Associates, a real-estate appraisal firm, is also going on the trip, along with his wife, daughter and others.
The trip is a reward for his daughter, who has been reading about China and is fascinated with the culture, he said.
And then there's the price of the trip, which "you can't beat," Hippauf said. "The Chinese government is subsidizing that a lot." He and his family are also keen to visit the Great Wall of China.
If there's an expert on the trips, it's Mike Cully, president and CEO of the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce in Southern California.
"I started working with Leo (Liu, the principal in Citslinc International, the company that offers the trips to China) seven years ago in Visalia, Calif.," Cully said. "Now Leo is working with 350 chambers around the U.S."
Cully said the trip, "in terms of the quality of the experience, is really unparalleled." That includes the guides, all English-speaking, he said, and particularly hard-working and knowledgeable.
He did caution that the trip was intense, with participants on the go through the day, with little chance to rest.
"When you come back, you almost need another vacation to recover," he said.
Michael Gaylor, vice president for leadership at the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce, went on the trip earlier this year with a group of 200.
"The overall impression was quite overwhelming," he said. "Even the villages were a million people. It was remarkable."
Gaylor was also impressed by the scale of building going on around Shanghai and elsewhere.
For more information about the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce's China 2009 trip, call Lacie Mackey at the chamber at 988-3279.
Contact Bob Quick at 986-3011 or bobquick@sfnewmexican.com