And End and a Beginning

Helene and I are now in Montreal, dazed and slightly jetlagged, now trying to figure out our next steps: finding an apartment, getting back in touch with friends, figuring out where 3 years in China leave us back home...

And so... This is the end; the end of this blog, that is. I started it 2 years ago with the goal of sharing my experience of living abroad with friends and the occasional straggler, and in those respect it's been a phenomenal success for me.

I will soon restart this blog and rename it Gaming Moments; as I did during the days leading up to E3, I will try and share the life of the videogame industry experts, as I join Ubisoft Montreal and get ready to once again get into the grind of AAA videogame production.

So, watch this space! And thank you so much for taking the time to read this blog.

е†Ќи§ЃпјЃ

The Last Night

This is it. My last post as a resident of Shanghai... at least for the time being.

Tomorrow at 10 AM, our landlord comes around the apartment to take care of the minutiae of final checkout. Then, with our suitcases and Xi Shi in her cage, we take a cab to the airport. I've left Shanghai through Pudong Airport so many times now, it's gonna feel awfully weird to know I'm now leaving and not returning for a while.

As with every departure, I've been through rounds of spending time with dear friends drinking, chatting, and otherwise signifying to each other how we will stay in touch and see each other in the future for sure. I don't know if I'll see everyone again; I sincerely hope so, because I've met some incredible people while living here.

With so many people at Ubisoft Shanghai having moved on to greater things now that Splinter Cell Double Agent has shipped, spending time here almost feels like I'm visiting the Ghost of Shanghai Past; it's an empty place, almost, already filled with memories. I miss some of my friends already, but am comforted by the fact I will see my friends in Montreal again.

And here we are now, all done, Helene and I, save for some last-minute packing (you know, such as dirty underwear and last-minute presents), and a bottle of white wine to empty before we sleep. In approximately 12 hours, we will be ex-Shanghainese.

We came to Shanghai with barely a suitcase each, and no friend on an entire continent. I now leave with so much, it barely fits in my head and my heart.

Splinter Cell Double Agent now Gold

Aaah, the sweet moment we expect throughout the entire production of a videogame...

Splinter Cell Double Agent X360 has now gone gold and is now being manufactured for distribution. This means it will hit the shelves on October 17th in North America.

Three days before I arrive myself. :)

Of Uni and Onsen

Hello from Tokyo!

Two weeks into our Japan trip, I have to say, Helene and I are having an absolute blast. We started out in ultramodern Tokyo, enjoying cozy little bars in Shibuya, and late night izakaya rampages filled with delicious food and umeishu (plum wine.) Afterwards, we zipped to Kyoto by shinkansen (bullet train.)

Kyoto, for very personal reasons, turned out to be something of a disappointment. This owned mostly to the fact that we ended up in a ryokan (traditional japanese inn) on the wrong side of the train station, and entirely too cruddy and small to enjoy. This made getting out a chore in the morning, and we ended up shopping quite a bit, and seeing just a little of the innumerable temples dispersed throughout the city. The highlight for us was Grotto, a cozy izakaya near the shopping district with its delicious Kyoto-style pizza, and the nightingale floors of Nijo palace, special floors emitting a soft bird-like whistle when a would-be ninja stepped on them.

Slightly deflated from our 5-day stay in Kyoto, we were in for a treat, however: off we went to the outskirts of Shimoda, a small town (pop. 40,000) on the Izu peninsula, reknown for its seafood and its onsen (hot-spring baths.) We stayed at Kanaya Ryokan, a delightful inn featuring reputedly one of the best onsen on the peninsula. Our room was not just spacious; it felt positively royal after our small Kyoto cubicle. What followed was 5 days of pure relaxation, as Helene and I multiplied leisurely baths in hot springs, and quick outings to nearby Shimoda. On Thursday night, I achieved some sort of culinary holy grail, by eating traditional sushi in a small family-owned restaurant near the ocean. The meal was absolutely divine, and made all the more pleasant by the quiet owner who held her sleeping daughter in her arm while she expertly cut nori for her sushi chef husband. The uni (sea urchin), my favorite sushi by far, was so absolutely perfect and delicious I had to order two more and close my eyes to enjoy them properly.

And so, a little bit sad, and a little eager to return to civilization, Helene and I made our way back to Tokyo on Friday night. We're now in a modern little Western-style hotel near Roppongi, which is a drastic if somewhat pleasant contrast to our delightful ryokan near Rendai-ji station. At least, as Helene would surely be quick to point out, we can surf the web without worrying about the 8-inch monster millipede sleeping on the wall. (True Shimoda story, I'm afraid; I'm sure the pictures will make it on Helene's website soon. I initially wrote '6-inch', but Helene made sure to correct me. 'Including antennaes,' she asked me to add.)

Come Thursday, we'll be back in grey Shanghai, then one week later, will be bound for Montreal. But fortunately, we still have 4 days to wander around Tokyo and sample its many delights and surprises!