CHINA: Great lessons learned

I have always enjoyed having the last word. Let me try to do it here regarding the recent Chamber of Commerce sponsored trips to China.

My wife and I were fortunate enough to be travelers on one of these trips and can only say "congratulations and thank you!" Our trip was a great success and, truly, the travel bargain of the year.

As a past Chairman of both the Savannah, Ga., and Moscow chambers of commerce I understand what an undertaking this was for the local chambers. Venturing into these uncharted waters and attempting to both lead and satisfy nearly 300 local travelers was no small undertaking. Fortunately, the effort was well worth it.

Certainly, a few curmudgeons may criticize the frequent shopping opportunities or the fact that the schedules each day were packed full. To them I can only say, "get over it." We and our great group of fellow travelers were excited to see a vibrant, developing country coming into its own. We stayed in some of the finest hotels anywhere, sampled excellent Chinese cuisine and were treated royally, wherever we went.

We observed a generation of young Chinese who are striving to speak perfect English, who greatly value education and who are rapidly learning the lessons of capitalism. We rode on one of the fastest trains in the world and actually had meals with impeccable service on our Chinese airline.

It was a great experience and, hopefully, a lesson to all of us about refocusing our efforts here in America.

ROBERT COLVIN

Worley