TaiTai's Travel

• Italy
• Individuality vs Homogeneous travel

• Yes, that was me on the Prince's Building - Mandarin flyover     >> MORE

Lawrence, wait for me!   

I could not be more proud - there are so many layers to this street scene in Fez.  Some gallery should be displaying her works.    Nadine is a talented photographer.   
  >>  MORE

Travel Tip: 

 

Lawrence, wait for me!

Moved from Merzouga in the Sahara to Taroudant. Just did the souk & will rest by the pool for this afternoon. Staying in an ancient Pasha's palace.  On to Essaouira tomorrow.

 

Taiwan Medical

Great piece on BBC News today by Cindy Siu on Medical Tourist to Taiwan.

Here's the print version she filed previously.       >>     http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12889648

On Brains

Very interesting specialty Taiwan has chosen to excel at - Brains!

This reminds me of serious smart friend whose Dad trained as a physicist but for many years he could not secure an appropriate position where his family emigrated to decades ago.   So now they are a typical global Asian family - Dad teaching Physics in Taiwan, Mom  the most successful Asian food importer in Canada, son in Hong Kong working in Finance, and daughter studying in U.K.

The new Asian affluent is thinking global. 

Colleen's youngest

• Cool Intern
• Sophie on City Line in Maybelline at 19:00, backcombing hair at 25:00

 

Guanxi

PUBLISHED JANUARY 23, 2014

Chinese leaders' relatives have stashed wealth abroad: report

But no evidence that the politicians were aware of their kin's actions: ICIJ

[HONG KONG] Relatives of top Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping and former premier Wen Jiabao have used offshore tax havens to hide their wealth, according to a mammoth investigation released yesterday.

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), citing information culled from 2.5 million leaked documents, said that Mr Xi's brother- in-law and Mr Wen's son and son-in-law were among those with offshore holdings.

It is the latest revelation to shine a light on the hidden wealth of family members of China's top officials - a topic considered off-limits by Communist Party leaders.

Offshore entities can be legal and there was no evidence that the politicians were aware of their relatives' actions.

For many children of the Chinese elite who are hired by Wall Street banks, it's their business school credentials as much as their family connections that get them a foot in the door, according to a Hong Kong-based managing director at a U.S. bank who is involved in hiring.

"These kids tend to be well educated. If Harvard Business School or Stanford let these influential people in, and those schools are on the list of places we tend to hire from, it's a natural process," said the banker

http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/jpmorgan-china-probe-sends-chill-183811109.html

• Guanxi = Schmoozing
• Connections!
• Chinese Elite - Offshore Holdings
• JP Morgan connections
• Sons & Daughters program
• Many Wall St. firms hired sibling of Chnese
• Well connected
• Capitalists in the new China
• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/10370581/Zhang-Hongwei-profile.html
• Caroline Kennedy in Japan
• More on Guanxi

 

 

Thank You!

Much thanks to friends for voting for my niece recently:

"Big thank you to everyone who voted for me for the Chinatown youth talent showdown! I won the people's choice award. Every vote counted!"

Handbags to Raise Funds?

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Handbag as Collateral: 
Only in Hong Kong!!

• Pawn your handbag to raise funds?
• TaiTai's 太太 in Hong Kong know this place - its where we trade in past year's models of luxury purses

In Singapore, a 2.5 just for them