Magic Unlimited

First day of the CUMC Convention

What a huge day!

At 9am we arrived at the China University Magic College convention ready to judge the competition,

but first we had to do an interview with CCTV.

I have no idea what I'm doing... they just gave us lines in Chinese to repeat. It was very weird.

Not quite as weird as the randy Sponge Bob Square Pants that was sharing the dressing room with us

So the competition began - with a bunch of cute kids to start with, to stage acts, to close up acts. Then it was lunch and returning again to judge more acts until around 5.30pm

After that it was preparing for the big Stage Gala Show - and by big, I mean 14 acts!!!

Scheduled to start at 7pm, it started late at 7.30pm and went on without an interval until at least 10.30pm! I was the second last act and the audience was still wildly enthusiatic for magic (thank goodness!) What was most bizarre was they encouraged the audience to tweet during the show and displayed all their messages on the video screens live during the show! I guess it stopped them from using their phones to film it...

Here's a shot I took from the stage during the curtain call.

It was a wildly busy and exciting day, and the enthusiasm they have for magic is overwhelming!

However, it's very late and we have an even bigger day tomorrow with lectures and the Gala Awards Show.

Shopping

If you ever want to feel insignificant on this planet, spend a day driving around Beijing. There are so many people everywhere it's amazing that anyone can muster up the drive and ambition to stand out from the masses and succeed in their chosen field.

Today we drove to the fabric market where some of the magicians planned to get some material and have some suits made.

After a long drive to a nearby part of the city (I have no idea how long it took, I fell asleep) we arrived in the fashion district.

It didn't take that long for the magicians to realise they had no idea what they were looking for amongst the mountains of every type of fabric imaginable.

Nevertheless, we strolled around for a while before heading off to a nearby (30 minutes) restaurant for a lunch of China's famous 'Hot Pot'.

From there we were off to the tailors at Ya Show Fashion Complex. Only 20 minutes away, but I'm pretty sure it took over an hour. This was a multilevel bargaining bazaar filled not only with tailors but t-shirts, souvenirs, electrical goods, and pretty much anything you can imagine.

I picked up a few fun t-shirts for myself at around $7.50 each as well as a souvenir, but I did resist getting the official Beijing souvenir T-shirt

I really don't think the first thing Australians would associate BJ with is Beijing...

No suits were tailored today, and we headed back to the hotel through Beijing rush hour and, after a quick meal at the dodgy Irish Pub across the road, I'm settling in for an early night as I prepare for the CUMC Magic Convention starting tomorrow at 8am

I'll leave you with a few other odd sights

 

 

A very long day...

I should be asleep but I know if I don't update this now I'll never do it.

Today started early because our host wanted us to experience the Dinosaur Land as guests and, if we dared, go on the new 4D roller coaster.

First stop was the wet log flume ride... sort of low rent version of Universal Studios Jurassic Park with moving dinosaurs, dark areas, fog, and a sudden drop down three stories with a big splash as the end.

Thankfully we were provided with full body raincoats, including little plastic bags to cover our shoes.

A few more adventures followed as we explored the bizarre couplings of dinosaurs and medieval knights

Watched people get turned inside out

Though we were on a VIP tour and could skip lines and get on any ride instantly, none of us chose to ride this one... but we all rode Dino Mountain, an indoor roller coaster in the dark (think Space Mountain) and then watched a 4D version of Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

Then came time to go on the 4D roller coaster Dinoconda.

Suddenly, I was the only one interested in riding it despite the fact that we could avoid a three hour line. Graciously, our host Borg Yuan accompanied me on the ride and screamed like a girl all throughout it  ;)

This link should give you a Youtube clip of the coaster in action. If not, try this one.

How serious do they take their coasters in China? When you get off you are confronted by the vomitting bin.

After that adventure it was off to lunch at the dumpling cafe and then a quick visit to watch the bird show (with macaws, cockatoos, budgies and even an emu) before taking the bus to ride something even faster than the 4D coaster - the new bullet train.

At speeds of over 300kmh we travelled the 961 kms from the Changzhou station (pictured above) to Beijing in just under five hours. 

Then we were bussed from the station to our hotel at substatianally slower speeds that seemed strangely so much faster...

All through the journey I had a craving for tacos. No offense to Chinese food, it is great but I've had it non stop since I've arrived and I just had this weird desire for Mexican food which, realistically, I knew would go unfulfilled.

Then, at the hotel, I found a Texan Bar and Grill and thought to myself "At least I can get a steak dinner..." But what did they have on the menu...? TACOS!!!

So I go to bed tired after a long, speed filled day, but with a very happy stomach.

No vomitting bin for me!

 

Day three and all 12 shows done

Well it's goodbye to the Dinosaur theatre as I've finally made it through twelve big shows - though tomorrow we are returning to Dinosaurland one last time to go on all the rides.  :)

Our host had a surprise for us tonight. Not only was it the now customary group dinner in a private room at an elegant restaurant, but after dinner we went to the Dino-Valley Hot Springs.

You'll excuse me if I didn't take any photos, despite the beautiful architecture and extremely lush gardens, but we were busy moving from one specially designed thermal spa to the next.

Now it's after midnight. I'm waaaay to relaxed to be blogging plus I have to get up early tomorrow morning to pack, so I'll leave you with some examples of classic Engrish I saw at the Springs.

First, a sign above the paper towel dispener:

Next, a basket sitting next to one labelled RECYCLE:

And there was one particular Hhall we found especially restful:

Day two completed

These are the posters advertising my show and Arthur Trace's show here at Dinosaurland.

(Insert humorous caption here *g*)

Another four shows back to back and it's feeling like a gym workout! I'm only doing four tricks (razorblades, bill to banana, Runaround Sue and the 6 Card Rap) but my show is running at 30 minutes. I have a feeling the translation is doubling the length of the banana routine but, surprisingly, it's one of the highlights of the show - for me as well as the audience.

I have no idea what the translator (Borg Yuan, who is also the booker, pictured below) is saying, but when the Chinese ladies reach into my pocket and feel the banana the reactions are off the charts! One lady, after diving in five times finally pulled the banana out and was so shocked she threw it in the air and in landed in the moat in front of the stage. (Yes, our stage has a moat in front of it...) It was hilarious.

Another lady, when I asked her to hold the banana up so everyone could see it, held it in the middle and slowly tightened her grip until the banana split open at both ends and started oozing everywhere. Again, I have no idea why she did it but it was hilarious!

The humidity here today was even worse, but Borg delivered on the promise of some talcum powder and, though my arms looked even more ghostly white than usual, I was able to perform Runaround Sue without any technical problems. 

However, doing a 30 minute show, then having a 30 minute reset, immediately followed by another 30 minute show (repeat) is pretty exhausting even under the best of conditions, but performing in this weird dinosaur cave theatre with non-existent air conditioning is extremely challenging.

The best thing, however, are the audiences. They are really loving the shows which is absolutely staggering to me. Maybe it's one of those enigmas like how the French really love Jerry Lewis?

I'm also pleased to report that I'm being very well looked after and we get taken out to dinner every night with several of the other magicians who are doing street shows in the park.

The picture below is an example of the little magical touches we encouter even in restaurants. It's a tomato rabbit. How cute!

 

Good Morning Shanghai!

It's 10am and I think I've finally had enough sleep to be able to get up and do four shows... leaving here in two hours time.

Of course, looking at this beautiful hotel room, you know I really don't want to leave...

But one look outside my balcony and I'm not only overlooking a golf driving range, but a huge theme park complete with roller coasters, waterslides and lots of screaming guests (I can juuust hear them if I open my window).

It's hard to see due to the omnipresent Shanghai mist... and I can hear fireworks going off right now.. at 10 in the morning..

There are several other magicians here as well. The only one I can remember from my meeting last night at 3am is Arthur Trace.

It's going to be an interesting day!

Back in the USA

Tomorrow we're leaving for Vegas and the IMX but we have wrangled a few "days off" to visit The Magic Castle on the way. So, if you're in the LA area and you want to say g'day, we'll be in on the 19th and 20th catching up with friends and hanging out in the most magiciany place on earth.

After that, it's Vegas baby and three days of non-stop magic!

How Virgin turned a difficult gig into a near-impossible one!

Yesterday morning I headed off to the airport ready to do a 30 minute show at a dinner dance for a mining company in Dysart, Queensland.

For such a short gig, the travel was quite extensive.

Head off early for a 9.15am flight on Virgin to Sydney. (When I arrived, I looked at the departure board and thought my flight had been cancelled, but that was the 8.15am flight). From Sydney I was to take the 11.15am flight to Mackay, arriving at 1.40pm where I would pick up a rental car and drive three hours to Dysart arriving around 5pm. That gave me enough time to check in to my hotel, freshen up and get ready for my 8.15pm performance at the Civic Centre.

However... the first sign of trouble was when I arrived in Sydney and found the 11.15am departure was delayed "10 minutes" due to "the late arrival of the aircraft from Albury".

After about half an hour the arrival of the light from Albury was 'cancelled'... I have no idea what happened to it... did it vanish mid flight over the Goulburn Triangle?

Another plane arrived at our gate and we were told engineers were on board checking the plane, and there would be a "short delay".

Finally, we were told to board, almost two hours late. At this stage I was very anxious because my preparation time before the show was being cut dramatically. My booking sheet had me arriving at the venue at 6.30pm - now I'd be lucky to arrive in Dysart by 6.30pm.

But Virgin had another surprise for me... and this sounds unbelievable but they actually made this announcement... apparently, because the plane didn't have enough fuel to make it to Mackay, they had to offload half the baggage to make it lighter!!!

I tried to explain to the Virgin staff that I really needed my bag, but they were adamant they had no control over which bags would stay or go, but assured me they would courier it direct to me as soon as it arrived in Mackay. 

I arrived in Mackay at 3.30pm and, you guessed it, my bag didn't arrive. 

The Virgin staff explained that my bag would arrive at 5pm and they would rush it to me. I explained that even if it arrived at 8pm, it would most likely be too late... but I did need my clothes and toiletries so it was agreed they would send it.

After I'd lined up to get my rental car, then lined up to let them know where to send my bag, it was after 4pm before I was able to leave the airport. That meant I would arrived just over an hour before I was due to go on stage... but without any props. 

A quick stop at Woolworths on the way and I had $50 worth of "props" ready to create a show with, which is what I did during my 3 hour drive. 

Just after 6pm I got a phone call from the Virgin baggage staff saying my bag had just arrived and they could get it to me by 10pm or 11pm, where did I want it delivered? I explained, in my nicest voice, that I'd be asleep at that time because I had to be up at 6am to leave Dysart and drive back to Mackay. 

They suggested they would hold the back at Mackay for me to pick up when I checked-in the next morning. They saved on courier costs and I had no toiletries or change of clothes, but at least I didn't have to stay awake waiting for a bag that may or may not arrive.

Finally, after a few wrong turns as the rental car didn't come with a map and 3G coverage for Googlemaps was limited, I arrived with just an hour to spare.

The crew were fantastic and gathered up the few extra items I needed for the show plus they had an extra radio mic for me to replace the one that was in my suitcase.

Luckily I had my costume as carry-on (except for my belt and shoes...) so the show was able to go on.

My "supermarket show" ended up running 45 minutes and consisted of:

• CARD IN MOUTH - (Borrowed cards & sharpie)
• TOAST ROUTINE - (Pepsi Max, crushed can, paper bag, plastic glasses, pin, marker)
• BALLS OVER HEAD - (Toilet paper roll, chair)
• STAND ON CHAIR BARBET - (Chair, $50 bill)
• CUT & RESTORED ROPE - (Borrowed rope, scissors)
• BILL SWITCH - ($20 bill, no tip)
• BILL TO BANANA - (Bills, no tips, lighter, envelope, tray, bananas, marker, tape, scissors)
• BUNDY RUM APPEARANCE - (375ml bottle of Bundy rum) 
• NEWSPAPER PREDICTION - (Newspaper, scissors, tape, huge paper sheet, marker)

After a little bit of mingling magic after the show, I packed up and headed off to the hotel, which was closed. 

Half an hour later I was finally in, and very grateful for shampoo and a hairdryer.

This morning it was a 3 hour drive, return of the rental car, and time to be reunited with my bag. Ironically, the client had bought a top dollar Virgin airfare for me which included 32kgs of baggage... a bit pointless now. I asked the Virgin check-in guy who I needed to write to to lodge a complaint. He asked around and came back telling me to go the website. He said there was no point telling him as they were only contractors, not Virgin.

What an adventure...

Travel update

After our visit to Denny & Lee's, Sue-Anne and I lectured for the Long Island Mystics and the Parsippany club in New Jersey and had a lot of fun at both events. (First time we've ever lectured in front of a camel too!)

[You can keep up with our travels on a more frequent basis on FaceBook].

Now we're here at FFFF and last night Shawn Farquhar (filling in for Nicholas Einhorn who couldn't make it due to some volcano somewhere....) gave the opening lecture and was very well received. He had some extremely innovative idea which were eagerly snapped up during the sales session after his presentation.

Now it's the morning of the first full day of FFFF events and it kicks off with a lecture at 11am by Antonio Romero. 

By the way, this is the 40th anniversary of FFFF and they've gone all out with an amazing array of goodies and souvenirs PLUS they've promised surprises galore over the next few days as tribute to the Head Forker himself, our guest of honour, Obie O'Brien

V Australia & US Airlines

We flew over to the USA on the new airline V Australia. We usually fly Qantas but, since they seem to be doing everything they can to discourage our loyalty, we made the change.

I'm glad we did.

V Australia's service was exemplary, the plane was fresh and new with coloured, mood lighting and a light up sign telling us when we could use electronic equipment replacing the old no smoking sign.

It was a long flight from Sydney to Los Angeles and, sadly, they didn't give us any little prizes like toothbrushes or razors or anything. But they did give us eye masks, ear plugs and headsets in a variety of bright colours and towels that actually kept us warm and cosy. 

The meals were even yummy!

Travelling to the USA we had the "two bag per person" luggage allowance. We took three bags in total. However, as a warning to fellow Aussies heading over Stateside, once you are in the USA the domestic luggage allowance has completely changed.

You can take carry-on, but ANY additional bags cost money. You can take up to two per person at an average (depending on airline) of $25 per bag. PLUS you get up to 50 pounds per bag weight or you pay an extra $90 per bag! 

If, like us, your travel agent doesn't warn you about this you'll be in for a nasty shock. They charge for everything on the airlines over here now. Extra leg room seats and exit row seats, head phones, snacks, drink, videos or movies, and texting, phoning and wifi all come at extra costs so what ever you do DON'T fly without your credit card! (And I just heard that one airline is now charging for carry on bags too!) How do the American magicians cope getting from gig to gig...?