Monthly Archives: November 2013

Hong Kong and Shenzhen 2013

Waiting for the ferry from Discovery Bay to Hong Kong.

In November 2013, I traveled to Shenzhen, China, to be at the press for the printing of Swarthmore College: A Community of Purpose, a new book about the college where I worked from 1990 to the end of 2013. The printing went very well, despite the need to translate instructions from English to Chinese.

Shenzhen is a huge industrial and commercial city that hardly existed 30 years ago. Foreign complains were encouraged to invest in this “special economic zone,” which allowed them to manufacture there and export to the world without paying Chinese export taxes. The American printing company R.R. Donnelley has a large book printing plant there.

Mr. Wong Pei Long was among the most skilled press operators I have ever worked with.

Mr. Wong Pei Long was among the most skilled press operators I have ever worked with.

Following the printing, I spent three days exploring Hong Kong and its environs. Visiting Hong Kong for the first time is a little like one’s first visit to New York—a little overwhelming. But the food, culture, and economic vitality was great, as was the spectacular setting of Victoria Harbor.

HK_Panorama1_LR