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Published on host. Milano. on 27th February 2015:
Also available in Italian
Chinese New Year was once a stay-at-home family affair where everyone huddled around home-made dumpling feasts and watched CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala. In the days preceding the new year, hundreds of thousands of migrant workers would flock home from all over the country, and sometimes the world, for a family reunion. The country would grind to a virtual stand still for the few days of mandatory public holiday.
Today, Chinese New Year is a much more varied affair, often taking place at the banqueting tables of restaurants. The fare inevitably varies from region to region but, rest assured, abundance is the theme. The drink of choice is beginning to reflect China’s prosperity in the last few years with more grape wines gracing the banqueting table but toasts still fall back on the traditional baijiu.
Chinese New Year is being celebrated in a big way around the world too. International hotel chains, especially those with properties in China, are sharing the celebration at their other properties around the world. For instance, W Hotels is hosting a Chinese New Year party in London, where they have a hotel just by Chinatown, to celebrate the opening of the group’s new Beijing hotel. Hakkasan, meanwhile, is taking inspiration from the wishing tree in Hong Kong and showcasing the theme at its restaurants around the world.
Wherever Chinese New Year is celebrated, there are a few similarities. Red, the most auspicious colour in Chinese culture, is used liberally whether in decorations, table coverings or little red envelopes. Symbols of prosperity such as the Chinese character 福, whole fish and lucky plants can always be found close at hand. But most importantly, Chinese New Year remains a family-focussed occasion so expect multiple generations gathering at one dinner table.
Inspired by the many wonderful podcasts out there (including the viral series Serial and James Ramsden’s wonderful The Kitchen is on Fire) and my current addiction to audio books (great for on the go listening), I decided to start my own podcast. On drinks.
So, after a week of jiggling and editing, and another couple thinking, planning and organising, I’m proud to present my first podcast: Heard on the Grape Vine.
For now, Heard on the Grape Vine, or #HOTGV, will nestle on my wine blog, Amateur Wine, where you’ll find it under the category of HOTGV Podcast. The first episode, available now, is on whisky – you can find it here.
The podcasting process
If you’ve listened to the podcast, you’ll have noted a few hiccups. As my first attempt at podcasting, it’s far from perfect. Most notably, you’ll notice the difference in sound quality from the introduction (before the music) to the main segment (after the music).
Let me explain.
I was doing some equipment research before embarking on the podcast and had read wonderful reviews about the Roland R05. At around £150, it was a heavy investment and, as it was primarily used for music recording, I wasn’t sure how well it would fare for audio.
Roland kindly loaned me a R05 to try for the podcast – this is the high quality introduction you hear at the beginning of the podcast and the outro at the end. The middle segment, that is, the interview bit, was actually recorded with the Olympus WS-321M that I already had. Both were recorded indoors and in a relatively noise-free environment, though by no means a professional studio.
I intended to record the interview on both but, because I didn’t realise that the Ro5 goes into standby before recording (you have to press the record button twice), I only had one audio sample by the end of the segment. Actually there were a couple of other embarassing bloopers on the day but needless to say, not having the required recording came up top.
As I had already recorded the intro and outro separately, I decided to just go ahead and edit the two recordings together. If nothing else, it perfectly demonstrates that sometimes not knowing your equipment well enough is enough to foil the best laid plans.
So with my recordings to hand and a Royalty Free Music jig from Incompetech, I was ready to edit.
I downloaded Audacity, which I think many podcasters turn to. It’s free and fairly easy to get to grips with though all the files must be in WAV of mp3. (R05 records in WAV and WS-321M records in WMA and had to be converted.)
My 36 minute first offering was too large at 34mb to be uploaded to most free hosting sites for podcasting so I turned to podbean. My plan is currently $3 a month when paid annually – about £20.
And finally, after setting up feeds to iTunes and the likes, we have Heard on the Grape Vine.
Some tips on podcasting
If you’re thinking about podcasting too, here are a few take away tips to save you some time:
Published on Eat. Travel. Live. on 16th February 2015:
There’s an old Shanghainese saying, “I’d rather have a bed in Puxi than a house in Pudong”, referring to the gap in wealth between the western and eastern banks of the Huangpu river.
Standing under the towering skyscrapers of Pudong today, it’s hard to imagine why. Many of Shanghai’s super-structures, home to its numerous financial institutions, are based in Pudong. Shanghai’s tallest building, the 492m Shanghai World Financial Centre, and its most iconic viewpoint, the Oriental Pearl TV tower, both make up the city’s infamous skyline on, you guessed it, Pudong.
From the sanctuary of a Mandarin River View Room at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, a bed in Pudong looks pretty good too. It’s king sized with goose down pillows and luxurious linens. Of course, there is a pillow menu.
You can upgrade to a “Club” room which means that, after checking in with your personal butler in the cosy Club Lounge, you get to enjoy sweeping views over Pudong and the Huangpu river.
The breathtakingly obvious panoramic of Shanghai instantly captures your attention as you enter the room and the Mandarin has made the most of this with floor to ceiling windows in the bedroom and the bathroom. In fact, the big-enough-for-a-party tub has front row seats to the view – the perfect place to settle in with those Shanghai Tang bath salts and a glass of wine.
On the other side of a sizeable flatscreen TV you’ll find double sinks perched in front of brightly illuminated mirrors. Across from that, a dressing table is in a well-placed spot; they thought about the ladies in this one.
Beyond, a small cloister hosts a wardrobe area offering ample storage space. Conveniently, next to the wardrobe sits the coffee machine and kettle to help you settle in with a cup of something warm and comforting as you unpack.
If you did go for that upgrade, you’ll definitely be tempted to head back to the Club Lounge by the offer of Afternoon Tea and daily cocktail hour. Though of course, you can opt to enjoy some pampering at the Spa which boasts a crystal steam room, tepidarium chairs, aroma experience showers, sauna and an ice fountain.
For the gourmet, the best thing about staying at Mandarin Oriental hotels is that they always have a great restaurant offering. At Pudong, head to Fifty 8° Grill, a casual restaurant under the helm of Michelin-starred chef Richard Ekkebus, or Tony Lu’s Yong Yi Ting. And after dinner, instead of trekking across the river to The Bund, grab a cocktail at Qi Bar where local DJs play late into the night.
And should you find that you’ve stayed up way past bed time, worry not; there’s always Club late check out.
