China - Shenzhen
Note - I wrote this first part in 2011. I’m keeping it up as a reminder of how quickly China grew and transformed this city. Something that could take a lifetime happened in about, 7 years. The change cannot possibly be understated. It’s simply amazing.
Shenzhen is a ridiculously dirty place where many of the locals are just gross. Not sad poor disgusting, we’re talking “I have some money and a job but I will still spit everywhere and cough on people and yell and pick my nose and smell like shit even though I have full access to a shower” gross. This is not a tourist area and never will be. Expats come here for jobs (I have some friends who own a bar there and who run other lucrative businesses) and sometimes I feel like they must be wanted by the US mob to live here…ha!
One of the problems I have with meeting people in cities like this is I always feel like they are lying to me about what they do, why they do it, and how successful they are at it. In the US and in other international modern cities you would leave tracks. You wouldn’t tell me that you were a successful banker in NYC for 7 years and now you live in a hovel in mainland china and are complaining about the price of a cheeseburger…simply because you felt like it. Makes no sense cause you know I’d find out. In China, you can be anybody.
Anyway, not going back. If you can stand it, I think building a successful business there would be a breeze. More people than you could imagine, all coming into money for the first time so they don’t know what to do with it. These guys will buy bottle service and not drink one sip, just to prove and publicize that they can get bottle service. Income is growing far faster than the infrastructure. Entrepreneurs know what I’m talking about.
So I went back, and I loved it this time.
Dongmen street area is a fun stroll, even if the beggars and conman bs is constant.
The central business district has expat bars and a bunch of small neighborhoods with tons of bars and restaurants.
The technology zone is a marvel of expansive shopping malls and skyscrapers as far as the eye can see. Not as many as Hong Kong, but many more than New York. It was quite impressive.
Coastal City blew us away. Just a mecca of pedestrian mall, mixed with traditional mall, surrounded by skyscrapers. Pretty remarkable for business.
Every day is a new day in Shenzhen. It’s grown like no city on earth and I find it even hard to believe. Wow.
Notes to self:
-Frankie’s is the shit
-Now apparently…fuck Frankie! (closed now)
-Try a lamb shop. Pick your lamb, grill it at the table, and eat meat and drink beer for hours. Pretty crappy digs honestly, but so much fun.
Hyatt Place Shenzhen - Mar 2018
We wanted to stay in the Dongmen Street area, and this was one of the few that are very close.
Really nice hotel actually. Not the easiest place for cabs to find it turns out, and being dropped off at the grand hyatt at 1am sucked, but this place was pretty sweet. Huge rooms. Huge shower. Big swivel TV in the middle of the room. Great location overall (Shenzhen is gigantic and cabs are cheap and the subway is great).
No big amenities like a pool but this place was pretty great.
Notes to Self:
-The Hyatt Grand might make more sense next time, but this GM was so humble and nice and accommodating, he honestly would make me feel bad if we didn’t go back.
Hilton Grand Shenzhen - Aug 2018
I don’t adore the location, but it is pretty good.
That statement is inherently faulty though because Shenzhen changes daily, and there is massive construction going on around this hotel…
The lobby is nice and the lobby bar area is expansive. They have a nice heated outdoor pool and the gym is fine.
I was on the executive level and that lounge came in handy a few times with snacks and drinks.
The rooms themselves are huge with extremely nice bathrooms.
The TV is meh sized, the mini bar is empty, there is no PPV.
The room service menu is actually extensive and nice.
The upstairs bar Mr. Wong was great but empty I feel like this is so common with hotel bars in China…
Sheraton Four Points Shenzhen - Jun 2012
Not too good. I stayed here because it was near my friends apartment. It’s not that the hotel is bad, it’s just not interesting, and unless crossing the border into HK is what you want to be close to (and you should want to cross asap), then this location kinda blows…
Marco Polo Shenzhen - Jan 2011
I liked this hotel a lot…but at the time I was desperate for anything that had room service. This place didn’t disappoint, and was surprisingly cooler than what I expected. The rooms are pretty slick and have cool color tones and lighting. They aren’t giant, but I was really comfortable.
The staff was traditional. They all wore long Chinese robe-like things and were a little too respectful. Since China blocks most of the internet you can imagine that there were some entertainment issues, but all in all, nice place. Good location too for checking out Shenzhen, but I have zero idea why one would want to do that.