Your Guide To Dalian

...About My Career in Advertising:

"I have been a Creative Director, doing advertising work for over 15 years (thankfully I was a child prodigy and started employment very young). I have an extensive list of top international clients, and have worked directly in America, England, Japan, and China."

...Then as a TV Host:

"While working at the top design studio in Dalian, I was offered a job at the only TV network in the city, to be the first foreigner to host the daily evening news broadcasts in Liaoning Province (and all of Northeast China). I had spent a lifetime behind the camera, and suddenly found myself in front of it."

"Even though I had been honored with many awards over the length of my career, I was not prepared for the celebrity status that the TV experience unexpectedly vaulted me into."

...As A Novelist:

"As exciting as it was, I left after almost two years to pursue other interests. I had just published a novel of historical fiction, Blue Sky Red Tears, set in Dalian during its colonial period, and enjoyed this creative direction."

...As a Photographer:

"I also found myself needing to be behind the camera again, to focus on my photography and documenting the drastically changing world around me."

"As a result, another rare honor was granted me when I was awarded the top prize by the Municipal Government for the 2005 Dalian International Photography Competition."

...As a Photojournalist:

"From this I landed a position as Director of Photography for a major Japanese language magazine published in Dalian."

"This gave me even added exposure to Dalian culture, and access to local individuals who shape the direction and future of the city."

...As a Virtual Developer:

"After designing and building virtual islands for IBM and ABN-AMRO in the 3D world of Second Life, my goal is to create a replica of Dalian in the metaverse."

Nine (9) of my Dalian Photography Exhibits are currently on display in this computer simulated environment, touted as the future of the Internet."

...Again as a TV Host (Updated):

"I anchored the evening news full-time during the 2004 and 2005 seasons. After taking a break over 2006 to work exclusively on other creative projects, I have returned part-time to the network from the 2007 season. For my program, I will also cover the Dalian Olympic Torch Relay stop in July 2008, and Olympic event reports from Beijing in August 2008."

"I currently host the mid-day news program. Because the show is recorded very early in the morning, it does not interrupt my day. This flexibility allows me to do the broadcast with no conflict to the rest of my regular schedule." Note: Dalian Channel One News was awarded the "Best Foreign Language Program of 2007 in Liaoning Province" by the Liaoning Municipal Government (June 2008).

...And simply as a Foreigner:

"My experience in Dalian, for good or bad, has been real. I have not lived in an isolated foreigner-exclusive community. I live day to day like anyone else here, pushing my way onto the bus and waiting in lines. But I have been lucky, in that my positions have opened doors to many private areas off-limits to even local citizens." "Being a foreigner and having these opportunities is an even bigger priviledge, and I take the responsibility that comes with them seriously." "An example of this is my official appointment by the American Consulate in Shenyang as the Warden for Dalian. Because there is no office in this city for citizens, I have been designated as the official contact person in case of an emergency." "Even though I have friends and contacts within the municipal government here, I still have to work hard and actively pursue the things I wish to accomplish. It is this combination of effort and luck that keeps pushing me closer to my goals."

Why Discover Dalian?

"The answer for this is rather simple. I may have received many honors in my life, but the quest for glory was never my goal. Being creative and enjoying the people around me has been my focus (aside from the practical need to earn an honest day's wage along the way)." "Therefore, the idea for Discover Dalian is the perfect combination all my personal experiences, talents, passions, and interests."

About My Chinese Name:

"To make a very long story short, my name in English has been a burden my whole life. So translating it to any other language came with no less complexity. The Old European names used untraditional spellings which often confused their pronunciation and my gender." "When I moved to Japan, I selected Kanji characters that fit the phonetic sound of my first and last name (dropping my middle name for simplicity)." "When I moved to China, I continued to use the same Kanji characters, which existed in Chinese but were spoken differently. This was chiefly because I could not find suitable Kanji in Chinese that had a good phonetic sound for my name, all my documents already used these characters, and I did not want to learn how to write my name - yet again." "The long story, complete with background details about the Japanese and Chinese languages, is available upon request."

Trivia Note:

"Chinese people like using Kanji with sounds that have dual meanings. Therefore, ironically, "Song Li" has the phonetic sound similar to giving a gift."