"Network, network..."

... as my mother always told me. "It's not what you know, it's who you know!" So against my better judgement and despite the risks of getting myself into another speed-dating/lap dancing expat shindig, I packed myself off to the YPHH Wine Night at the Ching Pavilon just a stone's throw away from the Forbidden City on Wednesday evening. I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed myself and actually met some potentially useful contacts. It was far less of a meatmarket than the ones I had previously been to and people actually seemed interested in networking instead of finding a bedwarmer for the night. The RMB100 entrance fee must've done something kept the riff-raff of easy lays out.

Featured that night were 5 Californian wines. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am not a wine drinker, a legacy of my university days in England where my mates and I would set aside GBP4 budget to get hammered, pop down the local off-license and make a beeline for the cheapest, skankiest wine with highest alcoholic content. The 1999 (ahem, yesh, that was when I was at uni.) Chardonnay from Prudoe - 13% alcohol (87% white vinegar) usually did it. Needless to say the throbbing 2 day hangovers have done little to make wine my alcohol of choice. So I was pleasantly surprised at the featured wines, knocked back 5 (albeit small) glasses of tipple and still walked out of Ching Pavilon unassisted with no hangover in sight the next day. One thing that hasn't changed though is how utterly awful I look in poloneck jumpers and how much my Asianess erm... shines through when I drink.