ChinaTrip: Difference between revisions

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'''You do not need to be a member of Noisebridge to go on this trip.'''
'''You do not need to be a member of Noisebridge to go on this trip.'''


[[user: maltman23 | Mitch Altman]]<br/>
The trip is limited to 5 people other than Mitch, so the first 5 people on this list (after Mitch) who buy their plane tickets will be able to join us:
David Yao<br />
 
[[user: zaius | David Kelso]]
''[[user: maltman23 | Mitch Altman]]''<br/>
David Yao<br/>
[[user: zaius | David Kelso]]<br/>
bernieS<br/>


''please add your name here''
''please add your name here''

Revision as of 10:48, 15 September 2009

Noisebridge China Trip

My contract manufacturer for TV-B-Gone and TripGlasses and Trippy RGB Waves kits (and a few other things) has a plant in Shanghai and a plant in Ji Ning (about half way between Shanghai and Beijing) (both are SEZs -- Special Economic Zones).

Mike Zhao, an American who lives in San Rafael, but born in Shanghai, is the head of the contract manufacturer, called Etonnet. He's also a total geek, and goes to Maker Faire, and has been to Noisebridge. He's going to Shanghai and Ji Ning starting 20-October-2009, and asked me if I'd like to go, and asked if other NB people (and/or others) would like to go check out the manufacturing scene and China. Mike will return on the 27th, but I think it would be cool if the rest of us go to Beijing for a few days and check out a bit of China-ness there, as well as visit with some hacker-types at Beijing university. We will return on 3-November-2009.


To give a little taste of what it might be like:

A few months ago, Bunny, who manufactures Chumby in China, organized a trip to China to show interested people the manufacturing scene (and China). Evil Mad Scientist went along: Evil Mad Scientist Schenzhen trip


The cost will be very reasonable, as these things go, and the bulk of the cost would be the plane tickets to and from China. At the moment, a round trip ticket costs $694 (SFO to Shanghai, and then Beijing to SFO). When I went last time, nice hotel rooms were about $15 per night in the part of Shanghai I stayed in, and the total cost for me besides the plane ticket was about $350.


Note: We will need to limit the trip to the first 5 people other than me and Mike to buy their tickets, since we only have one large van to take us around once we get to China.


If you are interested, please add your name, below.

Mitch.


People interested in going to China from 20-October-2009 through 3-November-2009:

You do not need to be a member of Noisebridge to go on this trip.

The trip is limited to 5 people other than Mitch, so the first 5 people on this list (after Mitch) who buy their plane tickets will be able to join us:

Mitch Altman
David Yao
David Kelso
bernieS

please add your name here

How to purchase an airplane ticket for $694 (if there are any of these remaining)

If you want to go on this trip, I would recommend buying your airplane ticket ASAP, since these cheap seats might not be available after today. Other seats may be available for $900 on other Airlines, such as Northwest Airlines. But it would be nicer if we all flew in together to Shanghai on the same plane.


Here's how Mitch got his plane tickets for $693.50:

  • go to Kayak.com
  • Click on the "Multi-city" radio-button.
  • Fill in the first two lines like this:
    • From: SFO To: PVG Leave: 10/20/09 Time: Anytime
    • From: PEK To: SFO Leave: 11/03/09 Time: Anytime
  • Click the "Search" button.
  • If cheap seats are still available, the first item on the resulting screen (after a few false screens are possibly displayed first) will be the flight from Asiana Airlines for $694.
  • Click on "select", which is underneath "$694". You can use Orbitz or CheapTickets or Expedia to purchase the tickets (Kayak does not charge anything). I used CheapTickets. Click the "Go" button.
  • You are redirected to the site of your choice, where you can purchase the ticket.