An Englishman in Shenzhen ( By Nick)

My first visit to China was to attend in Nepcon South China (Shenzhen) in 2006. I was looking after the UK group of exhibitors which involved making sure that the set-up went smoothly, they had everything they needed and to assit them onsite during the show. Seeing as we were all so far from home, we all had dinner and went out together most evenings too. Now there are two sides to every Englishman: the reserved, professional dignified character who is perhaps the most well-known in China and the rest of the world, and the one who has had a few drinks... Now this was also my first electronics exhibition and I discovered a lot about this particular brand of exhibitor: they knew each other from old, they saw each other at shows all around the world, and liked to enjoy their evenings very much!

Overall the show was a great success for most exhibitors, they conducted good business and were happy with the outcome of the show. But that's not the story I'm going to tell...

On the first night we went to one of Shenzhen's famous "copy markets." Everyone had different items they were after, from electronics to clothing, from golf clubs to handbags. Naming no names, but someone working with the Association that organised the UK pavilion bought over 30 bags in one go, then went straight back for more! Everyone came away weighed down by bags. As for myself, I bought a suitcase on wheels that I thought would suit me well on my travels for the coming years. It got as far as the Star Ferry port in Hong Kong before one of the feet broke and it fell over. Then the zip broke at the airport, and in the end I was happy it made it home in one piece! There's an expression that comes to mind, something about you get what you pay for...

During the 2nd day of the show myself and Graham from X-Tek were told by the X-Axys crew that the planet Mars was the closest it had been for hundreds of years, and at about 10.30pm each night that week it rose huge and red, and you could watch it move majestically accross the sky - not to be missed. So at 10.30pm we were installed at the bar at the top of the Shangri-La (trying not to make any friends), beer in hand, watching out the window for Mars. I'm sure they thought we were mad. It wasn't until about 11pm that we realised it was a joke. So we went off to find the others, and found them in the bar downstairs with Phil Stoten from EMSNow enjoying a cabaret act. I am happy to report that karma had repaid the X-Axys guys for their joke. They had been out to a local restaurant for dinner and had eaten cow's penis! Their distributor only told them afterwards what it was. Phil was unimpressed with any of this, and clearly missing out on the fun, so challenged us all to a tequila drinking contest, and sent off for 2 bottles. And so the night went...

Needless to say, by the end of the exhibition, not only was I in need of a week's sleep, but I was also on very good terms with all the exhibitors, and had enough stories about all of them to last a lifetime. Well, until at least Nepcon Shanghai the following April, where the great footballing rivalries of Solderstar and EVS International from Manchester and Forwessun from Liverpool exploded onto the streets of Shanghai.

But that's another story....