Kitchen Rat

After a night's sleep I'm firing on all cylinders and can fully appreciate the sheer size and theatrical opulence of the hotel. Every corridor is twice the width of the average corridor in the UK, the light fixtures in every room are huge and decorative, there's a Ferrari piano in the lobby, million yuan art work adorning every wall, and a double sized replica of a ship Christopher Columbus sailed on the roof of the car park at the back of the hotel. I don't think I need to say anything more about what that might look like and will leave it to your imagination. This Galleon is just as flamboyant on the inside as out. The bar has its own huge micro-brewery, (of course it does, that's what every hotel's been missing now you mention it) managed by a German named Hans (OK it's not Hans but I can't remember the real name they gave) who has 18 years experience of brewing his own beers-he offers three different kinds here called 'Rubia'. The food offering is Spanish and German, and there is an alfresco dining terrace where you can listen to Buddha bar music and drink champagne. If that's what floats your boat.

Inside the hotel, there are six (count em) different restaurants, El Chino is the hotel's Grande Dam, distinguished by Southern Chinese cuisine,  and offers seafood dishes featuring lobster, crab, prawns and shrimp which are plentiful in the region. Mercado is the Spanish restaurant inspired by the Plaza Mayor square in Madrid; La Parilla is the pool side restaurant for casual day dining (incidentally the pool is the biggest pool I have ever seen, and has its own fake beach); Coriander is Thai and Vietnamese; Alenha is Brazilian fare and finally there is Pipette, the French-themed restaurant, which has its own wine cellar that covers 2,000m. The space used here is staggering, and when our guide tells us that the place cost 100m pounds to develop in total, the wealth that is abundant in China today really becomes apparent.

First thing this morning I hit the streets of Shenzhen, which are buzzing with traffic including motorised scooters with wire baskets on the front laden with produce of all kinds. The market is the first indication I've had that I'm in a developing country so far. It is situated down the dirt track narrow side streets in-between the ubiquitous high-rise residential blocks that characterise my view of China so far. There are crates of chickens and Mallard ducks stacked high, and white and plastic boxes filled with large fish covered by an inch of water, their gills flapping furiously. Other boxes contain leaping Shrimps making a last-ditch attempt to escape, crabs with three eyes and what look like black eels. Delicately boned Chinese ladies hack at chickens' heads with the voracity of a man twice their size, all the while chatting and smiling to one another, with perhaps a child glued to their hip at the same time. The smell is a potent mix of blood, dirt and Peking duck. And nobody speaks English. I even try speaking to the younger looking ones, but they look afraid and keep their heads bowed as they walk away. I'm also the only western face here.

After doing this for a couple of hours I return back to the hotel, which now seems even more extraneous, to embark on  a tour of the Holiday Inn Express in Shenzhen. It's actually a nice hotel, basic but clean with everything you might need, and at $50 more affordable for the average Chinese traveller. According to the general manager Shirona, (ay!), they are currently at 50% occupancy 6 months after opening and are aiming at around 60-65% after 12 months. Incidentally IHG now has more hotels in China than it does as home which really does demonstrate the importance of the market here to the group.

Oh and I also found out that the hotel is Spanish themed because Shenzhen means "spirited bull". Get it? Bull? Spain? Yeah...This evening I'm heading to El Chino (that's Spanish for Chinese) so will finally be able to eat some local fare, even if it is translated from Spanish into English first...

Until tomorrow...Adios!