Ten years of great lunches

On 5 May 2023 we celebrated the Old China Hands lunch 10th Anniversary.
Great to see many familiar faces, we even had friends flying over from Xian and Chongqing to join our event. We were 32, with many being away on a trip or meeting.
We look back at ten years of great lunches, not only because of the food but even more because of the community of friends.
Thanks to Claudia from Cheers who brought me a BIG bottle of champagne!

Thanks to Renaat for a great special menu and the birthday cake.
The menu:
Starter: A Combination of white asparagus and smoked salmon
Main dish: Medallions of beef tenderloin with truffle sauce, served with daily vegetables and pan fried potatoes – or – Red Snapper Provençale Style, served with ratatouille and steamed rice
Desert: Happy Birthday Cake

Later I will post a video of the event.

Our famous OCH of the month

Peter came over from Chongqing where he is now a local star. See the article about Peter in China Daily, dated 28 February 2023:  “Love for China highlighted by Belgian pianist”.
I quote:

Peter Ritzen conducts his new symphony, Love for China, on February 22, 2023.
A concert featuring Love for China — composed and conducted by Belgian pianist Peter Ritzen and performed by the Chongqing Symphony Orchestra — was held at Chongqing Guotai Art Center. The concert was conducted by the municipal cultural and tourism commission and co-hosted by the orchestra and Chongqing Opera House.
“The aim of this work is to imagine the impressions of me, a Western artist, in a symphonic work where Western harmony and the ultimate Chinese element go musically hand-in-hand, without mixing them,” Ritzen said.
He has played throughout Europe, Asia and the United States, but he has an especially profound connection with China. So he used some of his former inspirations in China — Chongqing in particular — in his creation.
See the PDF of the article: 230228 PeterRitzen

Here other article in Chinese dated 21 May 2021.

The Belgian ambassador Jan Hoogmartens led a small delegation to enjoy the concert!
Watch here on VIMEO part of his concert!

Back to good numbers

Our Old China Hands lunch 7 April saw improved numbers with 33 attendants. Some people had forgotten about the lunch, but apologized.
We managed to have the service of the restaurant under control as it struggles, as many other restaurants, with shortage of staff.

Time flies, we will celebrate our 10th anniversary of “OCH” during the next lunch, planned for Friday 5 May. Chef Renaat will do a special lunch menu and there will be a surprise artistic event! I hope to see full house.

As always lively conversation and great food.

The famous OCH

Mark continues to flood the media, e.g. about the heartwarming birthday party thrown in Beijing for 75-year-old Mark Levine, an American sociologist, writer, country musician as well as the winner of the Chinese Government Friendship Award. How does he sing his China stories to the world? Again another media post.

But I am also a bit polluting the media, this time with the documentary about the Beijing Central Axis.

On 29 March I was invited to the official launch of the documentary in BRTV. The documentary was aired for several days, I was in the third episode.
I will write a few articles about it later.

What is a normal attendance?

Our Old China Lunch 3 March saw a modest crowd of 28 members. Yes China is getting back to normal which also means people are busy traveling again or simply working! Still hoping we can go back to our pre-COVID figures of around 35. Slowly friends are returning to China.
Anyway we had some interesting guests who were very happy networking.

As always great food and lively chats.

The missing ones

Mark Levine and Peter Ritzen could not make it due to their busy schedule.
Both were all over the news, Mark with his mega birthday part on 18 February (I need to make a post about it!), and several interviews. Peter busy in Chongqing with his concerts, getting nationwide attention.

Hoping to see them again!
Next lunch: Friday 7 April.