The weird grey zone between Christmas and New Years'

So I'm back in SF after spending Christmas home in Vancouver. It's strange to be back since I'm not taking the days between Christmas and New Years' off this year. So essentially, I'm back at work with no one really here working, and caught in this weird grey zone that exists between these two holidays.

Why a grey zone? Well first of all, what the heck do you greet people with? You can't say "Merry Christmas" because it's over. And you can't say "Happy New Year" because it's not the New Year yet. So I end up asking people if they had a good Christmas. Or "holiday" to be more PC. But then it just get awkward when you feel like you have to tell the other person about your holidays.

Then there's the matter of the Christmas decorations. Poor Eddy (my Christmas tree) is still standing tall, but I don't know if I should be keeping him lit, or just gently letting him wither until Epiphany (Jan 6th)? (...which in case you didn't know, is the official Christmas tree take-down day.)

Anyway, maybe the solution is to just sleep through these 5 days next year... ;-)

Many "firsts", meeting Mr. Darcy, *the* tree, Uniqlo, and fedexing a cow by early AM

Just got back from another whirlwind trip to NYC. This time, I got to hang out with Regina and even met up with our two-time floor-mate Derek from good ol' Huntsman '03. Fun times had by all...let's see...some quick drive-by style highlights:

Many Firsts
- Wayne's first NHL game live and in person. The Devils lost though.
- Me and Regina's first "Christmas"-themed photo -- see below.
- Me and Regina's first dinner under $150.00 in NYC. Okay, take out or room service don't count.
- Regina's first Irish car bomb.

Meeting Mr. Darcy
Okay, so we didn't so much meet Colin Firth as we did just *see* him during intermission at The Vertical Hour. Bill Nighy and Andrew Scott were brilliant. Julianne Moore...not so much.

*The* Tree
We did it. Sucked it up and walked 8 blocks to see the darn tree at Rockefeller Centre. Took our first Christmas tree picture together and had a good laugh about the tree being fat and unshapely this year. :-)

Uniqlo
Giant. Japanese. Clothing. Store. SoHo. Cheap Japanese denim and cashmere. Go there.

Fedexing a cow by Early AM
Don't remember how the joke started, but Regina and I were laughing about a cow, and me getting her one for Christmas and shipping it by Fedex Early AM service. Anyway, you had to be there. That's what we talk about at 11pm while standing in a 30 minute line at Starbucks.

Anyway, on that random note, here are the pictures!

New York City - December 2006

There goes my chalupa addiction...

E.coli bacteria at Taco Bell. *sigh* Guess I'll have to stick to Popeye's. Link

Swiss journey days 2-5: epilogue

So the trip to Switzerland passed by faster than you can say 'Toblerone', so instead of just trying to recap everything, I'll send you straight to the pics. (See link below.) It was a pretty amazing (if not a little crazy) trip, which almost concluded with me purchasing a very very expensive timepiece at the duty free section of the Geneva airport (thanks for being the little angel-guy-thing on my shoulder who stopped me, Wayne). In any case, Switzerland was beautiful and I highly recommend it. Like I told my parents: "It's like Vancouver. Only without the Asian people." :-)

Switzerland - November 2006

Swiss journey day 1: Self cleaning toilets in Frankfurt

It's sort of funny that my last post was a semi-serious post about my observations on airports, and this post is about what one encounters often in airports: toilets. My most recent encounter was in FRA, where I found a self-cleaning, squeegee action toilet. And in true Web 2.0 style, I filmed it. And posted it online. On YouTube. And Google Video. Go watch it yourself below. :-)



And for those who are actually paying attention...yes, I've arrived in Zermatt. This place is insanely beautiful and the hotel room has a view of the Matterhorn! I'm going for the second fondue dinner in two nights in about 15 minutes. I love Switzerland. :-)

You know Germany's not your kind of place when...

So I'm hanging out at the Senator Lounge in Frankfurt awaiting my connection to Geneva and I check out the snack bins. I take off the lid to the promising one containing gummy bears and almost dropped the lid in horror! THERE WERE NO GREEN GUMMY BEARS!! Yes, every other colour was represented...every one except my favourite green ones. Maybe they don't believe in green here in Germany. Maybe green's an unlucky colour? I'm not OCD or anything..

On airports...

Airports are strange places. Mostly designed to be places of transit, most airports are void of any personality or character. Sure, some aiports are beautifully-designed (take Chek Lap Kok for example), and others are just plain horrible (Heathrow, anyone?), they're most designed to be functional--to get people in and out as fast as possible.

Recently (and for most of this year), I've spent a lot of time in a variety of airports (SIN, KUL, LGK, HKG and SFO, for any junkies keeping track) and I've also noticed a very human and sentimental side to airports. Airports are where people sever ties, or rekindle relationships; where families reunite, or young couples say farewell. They're places where ordinary folk mix with the extraordinary--mostly incognito, of course. But at the same time, airports are anonymous places. You can go around all day without ever introducing yourself to anyone, without anyone figuring out who you are, where you're from, and where you're going (unless you happen to be an immigration official, of course). My conclusion? Okay, I don't really have one. Just that I've spent way too much time in airports of late. And that at the end of the day, you really just want to have a a familiar face waiting for you when you walk out into that arrivals lobby so you don't have to be anonymous any longer.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

...at every Starbucks you go! You know it's almost time for the holidays when the cups change to red at Starbucks! Yes, starting today, everyone's favourite red holiday cups are back, along with yummy winter drinks like eggnog latte and my personal favourite--peppermint mocha! That also means the real holidays are just around the corner...have you been a good boy or girl this year? :-)

Who says you can't talk on your phone inflight?

Check out the latest news from Emirates on making mobile calls inflight...yet another reason to go to Dubai!

As for the internet, yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. Just got back from my Asia trip on Singapore Airlines, and by golly, you can definitely access the internet on your laptop inflight. Thank goodness for business class (although something tells me to those SIA people probably offer internet for the entire plane...). The guy next to me kept checking his Yahoo! mail, which annoyed me to no end, for a whole host of reasons in addition to just his screen being bright during a transpacific flight. ;-)

Home sweet home...

Arrived home last night after the crazy 3-country Asian tour. So nice to be home. If only my throat didn't hurt and I didn't have 700 emails in my inbox at work. *sigh*

In happier news, they didn't find my camera, but the next generation version has come out and I just ordered a shiny brown one...or should I say Twilight Sepia? ;-)

Paradise. Lost.

Sitting in the Singapore Airlines lounge in Singapore now, awaiting our flight to Hong Kong, the last leg of this trip. Not feeling peppy today. Mostly because I lost my camera in a taxi yesterday, which contained all of the pictures from the amazing week. Sunrise in Langkawi. Mangrove forests. The bat caves. The Petronas Towers. All gone. Inconsolable (unconsolable?) right now...

That said, Singapore was amazing. So much yummy food here. Hawker centres. Chicken rice. Soy milk drinks. Fried "ham chin bing". Durian pancakes. Pork jerky. So yummy. Wish I wasn't so bummed about everything else.

Langkawi: Pregnant lady, limestone eagles, and monkey sex

Today is our third day in paradise, aka Langkawi. We finally got off our lazy asses and left the resort for once! We arranged for a boat tour of nearby islands (did you know that the group of islands that make up Langkawi used to be a haven for pirates?). Our first stop was this freshwater lake that was completely enclosed on this one island. Legend has it that anyone wishing for a child can just bathe in it and she'll become pregnant because the lake is blessed. The island also has the profile of a reclining prenant woman--hence being called The Lake of the Pregnant Lady.

Also about to be pregnant are the crazy (read: scary) monkeys that roam the trail leading to the lake. Some of the monkeys were definitely getting it on in broad daylight. Yes, it was really as disturbing as it sounds.

So why "Langkawi"? As our tour guide explained, about 70% of Langkawi's islands are made of limestone. There are also lots of eagles on the island. Combine the words for "eagle" and "limestone" in Malay and you get Langkawi.

And with that, it's time for another meal. Tomorrow we hit up the mangrove forests, bat caves and depart for Kuala Lumpur.

Popeye's, Starbucks and Chanel united

Where else in the world can you have those three places within 100 ft of each other? Have you ever perused Tiffany's jewels at the crack of dawn? Welcome to Hong Kong's international airport. Earlier this morning, I was treated to a ridiculous sight of a woman trying on diamonds at 7am. (No it wasn't me.) I knew I must have been in HK. Anyway, I guess thy don't call it a shopper's paradise for nothing. After a quick stopover, I've now arrived in Singapore. 8,444 miles flown....580 more to go. What's 6 more hours when it's already been 18, right?

Philly -- take 3

In town again for the third time in just as many months. Feeling pretty quiet today. Lots of reflection (and nap) time on the plane. Not really sure where anything's going anymore. Everything that I was so "sure" of is now uncertain, and even my type A planning alter-ego has taken a beating and is not really sure what to do. Can I go home now?

He's crazier than I am...

This guy is on a quest to visit every Starbucks in the world. Link

(Regina and I hit up every Starbucks in Beijing while we were there in 2001...but there were only 23 there back in the day!)

Phuket is to Thailand as Langkawi is to...

...Malaysia! So there was this whole coup thing in Thailand, which forced us to move our upcoming trip from Bangkok and Phuket to some other tropical destination. After much thought, we've now decided to go to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Langkawi. So what's in Langkawi, you ask? Well, it's a tropical island paradise, not unlike Phuket--in fact, they're on the same sea, just a few hundred kilometres apart. And of course, it helps that there's a Four Seasons there, too. :-)

Vegas, Philly, Vancouver, and sexy McDonald's ads?!

I'm going to be flying 7,500 miles this week. (well, 8 days) First Vegas last weekend, then Philly yesterday, and Vancouver tomorrow. I think I should get some sort of prize for this. Yes, on top of frequent flyer miles. I'm so tired. Here's the last week or so in a series of incoherent bullets:

-Vegas. Tao. Temple at Tao (the club). Eat dinner there. Get the sea bass satay. Ask for the line stamp. Bypass stupid long club lines.

-Ditto at Mix. But no stamp needed.

-Note to the guys: it helps to have ladies with you.

-Blue Man Group needs to upgrade to HD graphics. But I still love the streaming crepe paper.

-Wynn. Fabulous. Housekeeping there. Not so much.

-Calling for room service on your way back to the hotel so that you can have a hot cheeseburger at 3am when you arrive = brilliant. (See bullet point about Wynn above.)

-Philly. Cheesesteak. Yum.

-Scoop DeVille. Now in Houston Hall @ Penn. They even deliver. Life is unfair, eh?

-US Airways = ghetto. (Captain: "Ladies and gentlemen, we have to go back to the gate. It appears that our aircraft is leaking fuel.")

-McDonald's "sexy" ads in China for the Quarter Pounder. Utterly disturbing.

Philly nostalgia

So for the second time in two months, I'm back in the City of Brotherly Love. This time I'm actually on campus doing recruiting at the Undergrad Career Fair tomorrow. Just walked around campus for about half an hour, grabbed a steak at Abner's (that's a cheesesteak, in case you were confused), and took a quick swing through the Penn Bookstore--only to realize that in my 4 years here, I've never bought a piece of Penn apparel. (I quickly and sheepishly picked up a pair of grey shorts ;-)) I stopped by KCEH (Kings Court English House) and snapped a photo of the outside of my freshman year dorm window...if only I can figure out how to get the damn pic off my camera and on to my computer.

And you thought white rabbit candy were the only weird instance of edible paper...

Check out what this crazy Chicago restaurant's doing with food-flavoured ink...mmmm...this menu sure tastes good?

(And in case you're confused, read more about white rabbit candy here.)

American girl(s) in Chicago

(I wrote this right when I got back from Chicago, hence the date stamp...but just never around to posting it, so here it is...)

Just got back last night from our latest "excellent adventure" in Chicago. Regina and I spent three days in the Windy City and even managed to drive down to Indianapolis on Saturday for her friend's wedding. More on the trip later on our trip blog...

What I *do* have to mention, is my introduction in Chicago to a very scary non-even-tween-aged phenomenon--otherwise known as American Girl. Right off Michigan Avenue, there is a temple...uh, palace, dedicated to the franchise known as American Girl. Regina tells me that the brand actually started off as doing books about girls in American from historical (but fictional) heroines, to modern day girls. In reality--it's a money-printing, marketing MACHINE. Three floors dedicated to dressing, indulging, grooming (yes, a doll hair salon) a 18-inch tall doll that looks "just like you". It was the scariest thing I've ever seen. And as for the doll that looks "just like me"? Why she's doll number GT25H (complete with black hair and brown highlights, and side part, of course), and my chosen outfit has *got* to be the sparkly tunic and jeans. HAHAHA! Told you it was scary...

Anyhow--more on Chicago another time. Pics can be found here:

Labour Day Weekend - September 2006

Crazy lunatic

Driving around and hitting people with your car in broad daylight??! What is this world coming to?! Link

You know you're old when...

You think Pluto is still a planet:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/08/24/pluto.ap/index.html

Who made them the boss in deciding what's a planet anyway??

It's been a while, eh?

Oops...didn't realize that that much time had passed since I last posted. What's happen since? Wow...lots of things:

A couple of weeks ago, I was in Philadelphia. Damn that place is hot! And by hot, I mean *really* hot, not cool. Okay that just made no sense. In a nutshell, it was 105 degrees F on the last day. And that translates to 40.5 degrees C -- which let me tell you, is really really hot.

But anyway, hotness aside. I definitely had some fun times in Philly: catching up with Regina, and college friends Jon, Will and Iris; having cheesesteaks at Pat's; shopping on Walnut (I highly recommend Leehe Fai. And remember that there is no sales tax on clothing in Philadelphia!); our crazy-yet-somehow-disastrous meal at Le Bec Fin. Good times indeed!

Of course, coming back from such heat had to have its consequences. I have two words for you: heat rash. What an awful awful thing. It's like the chicken pox only worse because not only can you not stay home from work (it's not contagious), but nothing really stops the itch so you end up having to take antihistamines AND anti-itchy pills (yes, there are such a thing). Anyway, still barely getting over that.

It's also been crazy-busy at work, hence the non-posting, and also the posting now at 2 in the morning. (I'm on a work break...at 2am. *sigh*)

On a happier note, there's a lot of travel coming up (although now I can't tell if that's a good thing or not, since I really don't enjoy flying long hours in dehydrated cabins with no eye drops, contact solution, OR lip balm that's not in stick form): Chicago & Indianapolis for Labour Day, some East Coast gig at the end of September for work, Thailand & Hong Kong in October, and the latest addition: Switzerland for Thanksgiving!! Woohoo! Chocolate, snow-capped Alps, and Patek Philippe, here I come! :-)

To catch up on photos of Philly, check out my Web Album:

Philadelphia - July 2006

Jul 29, 2006 - 23 Photos

From my album: Love, from Phuket

Never in a million years did I think I would be returning so soon to this tropical paradise. Here's an idyllic picture from my trip last year. Come this October, I hope to be adding more beautiful images to my Phuket memories...

The view from our hillside villa at the Chedi -- Pansea Beach,
Phuket, November 2005

Philly-(re)bound

It's been a while since I returned to the City of Brotherly Love, but this weekend, I'll be back! Cheesesteaks, Liberty Bell, Le Bec, and oh, even UPenn--here we come! And of course, a weekend on the east coast wouldn't be complete without my travel buddy/partner-in-crime, Regina!

Soundtrack of life: saying goodbye

Don't take this word for word, since it's not all accurate (esp since I don't drive...haha), but the general gist is there. Saying goodbye is a lot tougher than the just uttering the short little word...

You'll Think Of Me - Keith Urban

I woke up early this morning around 4am
With the moon shining bright as headlights on the interstate
I pulled the covers over my head and tried to catch some sleep
But thoughts of us kept keeping me awake
Ever since you found yourself in someone else's arms
I've been tryin' my best to get along
But that's OK
There's nothing left to say, but

Chorus
Take your records, take your freedom
Take your memories I don't need'em
Take your space and take your reasons
But you'll think of me
And take your cap and leave my sweater
'Cause we have nothing left to weather
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me

I went out driving trying to clear my head
I tried to sweep out all the ruins that my emotions left
I guess I'm feeling just a little tired of this
And all the baggage that seems to still exist
It seems the only blessing I have left to my name
Is not knowing what we could have been
What we should have been
So

(Repeat Chorus)

Someday I'm gonna run across your mind
Don't worry, I'll be fine
I'm gonna be alright
While you're sleeping with your pride
Wishing I could hold you tight
I'll be over you
And on with my life

(Repeat Chorus)

And you're gonna think of me
Oh someday baby, someday

I'm tired

Out of quirky quips or deep insights tonight. Just waiting for morning to come so that I'm one day closer to the weekend...

Soundtrack of life: the "Kelly Clarkson 5-step program"

I know...Kelly Clarkson...I should be ashamed of myself. But as I'm cleaning my house my day, I popped in "Breakaway" for some much needed girl power boost, and just realized if you rearrange the order of some of the tracks, you have yourself essentially a 5-step program for breaking addiction and heartbreak/ache:

1) First rule of recovery is to realize that you have a problem: Addicted

2) Then you acknowledge that the situation is no longer as you want it, but you've gotta be strong, right? Behind These Hazel Eyes

3) Spend a short (really short) moment mourning for the other party, and realize that it's not your fault, especially if he's the one that's a disaster: Beautiful Disaster

4) Channel that sadness into anger and take steps to distance yourself from the source of pain or addiction: Gone

5) Rock some girl power and hey, you can do better: Since U Been Gone

Okay, and from this point forward, I will deny all claims that I actually own a Kelly Clarkson CD.

Party in the city where the heat is on...

...all night on the beach til the break of dawn.... :-)

Quick! What song is that from? That's right..."Miami", baby! Just got back from a 3-hour monster meal at Nobu at the Shore Club. The food was pretty good...the sushi was not as fresh as what you get in LA or NYC, but hey, it's 95 degrees (Fahrenheit, so they tell me), and 95% humidity outside, so I'm just impressed they kept the fish raw in the first place! 'Twas a crazy long business dinner--enough said, right? And no, there will be no partying on the beach til the break of dawn for me. Only a lovely 7am flight back to SF tomorrow morning...or well, in 7 hours.

Some people have been asking me how I feel today. And to be honest, I don't really know. I feel like a chapter of life has closed which means that another is bound to start, but another part of me wonders if there can just be a few more pages added to the end of this one so that the story doesn't end so abruptly. But alas, one can't always control everything in life; sometimes you just have to go with the flow and have faith that things will work out by themselves.

And if not, there's always therapy. And vodka.

The last week in pics: Mexico

Rushing off to the airport again (Miami), so I don't have time to do a full trip update. In the meantime, here are some pics from Playa del Carmen!

http://picasaweb.google.com/leungv/MexicoJuly2006

A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse...

Or in this case, a house for my paperclip:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/5167388.stm

(Yes, back from Mexico and Vancouver. Update and pics to come soon.)

Things on my radar...

I'm feeling schizophrenic this week as I prep for the next week away (yay!). Don't have much to report by way of what's happening in my life, per se, but here are some of the things that are on my radar, or just plain WEIRD stuff I've read lately:

• The new Frank Gehry collection at Tiffany & Co. (right, Regina? *wink*)
• Star Jones Reynolds and all her drama on The View
• Smintair , a new all-smoking airline (talk about hazardous to your health!)
• Gowns, gowns and more gowns (I'm talking the evening kind, not the ones you wear in a hospital or at home)
• The Sudoku module for your Google Personalized Homepage
• Picasa Web Albums (ask me nicely and you might get an invite)
• The upcoming season at the SFOpera: Carmen, Don Giovanni, A Masked Ball and more!

Upcoming travels: Vancouver, Playa del Carmen (Mexico), Miami, New York, and maybe Europe in August. :-)

To my friend Chrissy...

I'm so happy that you've found your partner in this journey we call life. The wedding was beautiful, and I wish both you and Hugh a beautiful life together. Here are some of my favourite pics from this weekend...

Chrissy's father walking her down the aisle

Chrissy and me

The beautiful cake

Their first dance

Jen, me and Chrissy--just like old times

More pics here, of course: http://picasaweb.google.com/leungv/ChrissySWeddingJune2006

The weekend in pics: NYC

Another whirlwind weekend in NYC...this time it was Regina's (belated) 25th, and we celebrated at (of course) Tao. Some pics below...








Our second attempt to perfect the "NYC cab" pic











Forget cake...it's all about birthday ice cream platters!









We love Kobe beef and sushi!










Another "from my hotel room" picture - 1103, Westin Time Square





More pics at (where else?) my Picasa web album.

From my album: workaholism

work·a·hol·ism: noun: an obsessive need to work

Yes, this is real. It was not a posed picture. Here are the three of us, obsessively checking our blackberries (on a weekend!) under the watchful eye of the Chairman. -- Beijing, April 2006

Ramen should be its own food category

I'm home sick. :-( Yes, the NyQuil/DayQuil action isn't really doing too much except knocking me out at night and keeping me jittery during the day, so I'm finally staying home in hopes of kicking this thing before I leave for NYC tomorrow. I know I should be eating healthily, but had a major ramen craving today so I just made some for lunch. At least I used chicken broth, so there's my "healthy" component. Wow, I really must be sick...I sound delirious.

Anyhow, check out Picasa Web Albums...my latest favourite online toy. It's so fast and slick. It's by invite only right now, but sign up to get your invite now so you can obsessively post and share pictures like me! Here's my gallery: http://picasaweb.google.com/leungv

Adventures with NyQuil, DayQuil, etc.

Being sick sucks. I should always listen to mom, especially when it comes to weird explanations about "fire" and "inflammatory" foods that are bad for you (very similar to the concept of doshas in Ayurvedic medicine)--such as lychees. So I know that lychees are full of "fire" and yet, I decided to gorge on them last Thursday. The result: an instant sore throat that night, which morphed into a full-on cold/flu/sinus thing, which I've had the fortune of dealing with for the past four days. I slept about 30 hours on the weekend (that's about 15 hours per night, for those who are doing the math), and then ended up trying NyQuil for the first time last night since it was a work night and I really needed my rest. The result? I've decided that NyQuil has GOT to be re-marketed as the poor man's Ambien. (Please ignore that last sentence...I'm currently under the influence of DayQuil and can't be taken seriously.) All jokes aside, being sick sucks.

That said, I'll see you in NYC this weekend :-)

Practicing what you preach...

Maybe I should listen to myself next time...

Even the soundtracks are on repeat: KT, Jewel, James...

Soundtrack for life: contemplating life

Having one of those moments where I'm pondering what I'm doing here, and where I want to be, in life, or just in general. Dido's track just played on my iPod, so here we are...

Life for Rent - Dido

I haven't ever really found a place that I call home.
I never stick around quite long enough to make it.
I apologize that once again I'm not in love,
But it's not as if I mind
that your heart ain't exactly breaking.

It's just a thought, only a thought...

But if my life is for rent and I don't learn to buy.
Well I deserve nothing more than I get,
Cuz nothing I have is truly mine.

I've always thought
that I would love to live by the sea,
To travel the world alone
and live more simply.
I have no idea what's happened to that dream,
Cuz there's really nothing left here to stop me.

It's just a thought, only a thought...

But if my life is for rent and I don't learn to buy.
Well I deserve nothing more than I get,
Cuz nothing I have is truly mine.

While my heart is a shield and I won't let it down,
While I am so afraid to fail so I won't even try.
Well how can I say I'm alive?

If my life is for rent...

The last few weeks in pics: Vancouver, Dallas, and local scenery

The last few weeks were a flurry of activity on the travel front: Vancouver, Dallas, and Sonoma...here are a few quick snapshots. Coming up: New York, Vancouver (X2), and Mexico!

Girls' day *in* at Chrissy's bridal shower - Vancouver








Mommy and me on Mother's Day - Vancouver








This is how we roll...our hummer in Dallas








Outside my window, at 6am - Dallas

Oysters from Hog Island!!

Yes, that's a Starbucks *drive-thru* in Petaluma - I'm in road trip heaven! (I saw one in Dallas, too)

The peaceful and beautiful grounds of the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn

Hwy 1 on the way to Tomales Bay

San Francisco, as viewed from Treasure Island on a detour

Soundtrack of life: this side or the other side

KT Tunstall is this great new-ish artist that I just discovered on iTunes. Currently have this track on repeat...the words are so sad and yet so pretty.

Other Side of the World - KT Tunstall

Over the sea and far away
She's waiting like an iceberg
Waiting to change
But she's cold inside
She wants to be like the water

All the muscles tighten in her face
Buries her soul in one embrace
They're one and the same
Just like water

The fire fades away
Most of everyday
Is full of tired excuses
But it's to hard to say
I wish it were simple
But we give up easily
You're close enough to see that
You're the other side of the world to me

On comes the panic light
Holding on with fingers and feelings alike
But the time has come
To move along

The fire fades away

Can you help me
Can you let me go
And can you still love me
When you can't see me anymore

The fire fades away

California dreamin'

Just got back from Memorial Day holiday long weekend...let me start by saying that the Memorial Day long weekend is definitely my favourite long weekend of the year. It's signals the beginning of summer, not *too* many American flags are waved (see "4th of July"), the weather's usually warm and gorgeous, and there are always big-budget, mind-numbing, wholly-entertaining, but not too much brain-utilizing movies to watch (see "Men in Black" or "Shrek 2"). So this weekend was more of the same...watched X-Men: the Last Stand, took a short road trip up the coast to Tomales Bay (Hog Island Oysters--yum!), and then over to Sonoma for some much-needed R&R at the Sonoma Mission Inn. It was probably one of the nicest spas I've ever been to, mostly because the people there was just so damn nice! More pics to come later...

P.S. I'm now addicted to e-lix-r tonics...doh!

Soundtrack of life: of course it's a good day

Just downloaded this new song by Jewel off iTunes. Don't know if it actually reflects anything I feel per se, but I thought it was catchy so it's now the soundtrack as I drift off to sleep in Dallas...

Good Day - Jewel

I say to myself
Self, why are you awake again? It's one a.m.
Standing with the fridge door wide open, staring
Such a sight, florescent light
The stars are bright
Might make a wish, if I believed in that shit
As it is, I might watch TV
Cause it's nice to see people more messed up than me
I say to myself, as I smile at the wall, let myself fall

It's gonna be all right, no matter what they say
It's gonna be a good day, just wait and see
It's gonna be okay, cause I'm okay with me
It's gonna be, it's gonna be, it's gotta be

I shiver, shut the door
Can't think standing here no more
I'm alone, my mine's racing, heart breaking
Can you be everything I need you to be?
Can you protect me like a daughter?
Can you love me like a father?
Can you drink me like water?
Say I'm like the desert, just hotter.

The point of it all
Is that if I should fall
Still your name I'll call

It's gonna be all right, no matter what they say
It's gonna be a good day, just wait and see
It's gonna be okay, cause I'm okay with me
It's gonna be, it's gonna be

As long as we laugh out loud
Laugh like we're mad
Cause this crazy, mixed up beauty is all that we have
Because what's love but an itch we can't scratch, a joke we can't catch
But still we laugh

I go back upstairs, turn off the TV
You say "I'll be okay baby, just wait and see."

It's gonna be all right, it's gonna be okay
Gonna be a good day, just wait, just see
Gonna okay, cause I'm okay with me
It's gonna be, it's gonna be, it's gonna be...

Random Texan observations

I'm into hour 11 of my 24-trip to Dallas. If this were a season of 24, then hour 11 would be the really boring middle "build up the conflict" section where some intermediate conflict has just been resolved, Jack got to see and kiss Audrey for a brief 30 seconds, and just found out that some other bad terrorist plot was in progress. Alas, hour 11 in Dallas is not *quite* as exciting.

Some random observations so far:
- Everything is Dallas (or Texas, they tell me), is really big. The roads are big, the buildings are big, hell, even the car rental building at DFW is big.

- Apparently Austin is not like the rest of Texas. Some of my fellow travel companions have called it "a nice liberal oasis in the middle of redneck country". I wouldn't know, since we're in Dallas and not Austin.

- Even though it's in the south, they don't eat southern food here. The iced tea is unsweetened, and they eat burritos, not jambalaya.

- Starbucks, however, is still the same. But more people seem to order venti-sized drinks. (see point above re: big)

- They're still mad at the Dixie Chicks. Go figure.

Okay, off to bed before my early morning flight back to SF.

From my album: then and now

Last week I was in Vancouver attending my friend's Chrissy's bridal shower hosted by another one of our friends, Jen. Before I scrambled to the airport, we managed to get a picture with the three of us. I was looking through my pics tonight and found another one the three of us took--five years ago, also in Vancouver. It's amazing how much can change in 5 years...back then, we were all in university, and now, Chrissy's engaged, Jen's in law school, and I've moved to San Francisco. As our parents would say: "We're all grown up!" I know it's cheesy, but friends forever, Chrissy and Jen. You both are the best.

Hanging out at the Cactus Club -- Vancouver, Summer 2001

Chrissy's bridal shower -- Vancouver, May 2006

Vancouver, Dallas, Sonoma, and then some...

So I've been quiet on the blog for a while. Work's been busy and two weekends ago I was in Vancouver for Mother's Day and my friend's wedding shower. (pics to come soon) Last weekend was catching up on errands and so forth in SF (aka do laundry), and tomorrow I'm off to Dallas for 24 hours for work. The long-awaited Memorial Day long weekend is coming up this weekend and I'm off to Sonoma---ahhh wine, food, and general R&R.'

Random interesting things I've seen/heard/read about recently:

-the Katamari ball at last weekend's Bay to Breakers

-playing "Kings" is fun, especially as you get more and more drunk

-Dallas-Fort Worth are two cities, not just the name of the Dallas airport. Dallas. Fort Worth. Damn American twin cities that confuse non-Americans! That said, a new W hotel is opening in June in Dallas, so that obviously makes it the cooler of the two.

-exercise your inner stripper at S-Factor. You know you want to...you can even wear stripper platforms. ;-)

The weekend in pics: birthdays and tea fit for a queen

Okay, yes, it's a lot closer to THIS weekend than last weekend, but for some reason I've had zero time to catch up on life this week. Last weekend I went to Mendel & Derek's joint birthday party (Derek bakes a mean chocolate brownie creamcheese cake!), and then had a non-stellar dinner at Jack Falstaff followed by a non-stellar viewing of MI:3. Okay, so the movie wasn't that bad and totally met my expectations of a 2-hour multimillion dollar blockbuster (translation: stuff was blown up every five minutes). On Sunday I had tea with Arielle--the weather was so beautiful that we were both wearing sundresses and had a high tea fit for a queen! (or I guess it's two queens in this case.) Good times overall!!






The birthday boys and their cake












Arielle and me enjoying the sunshine and the tea

From my album: Hey Day

A couple of weeks ago, Penn rising seniors celebrated Hey Day--an annual tradition on the last day of Spring term that dates back to 1916. Today, it's basically a day of (drunken) revelry, with canes, red shirts, and foam hats which you get bitten off by your friends (yes, really) after you are proclaimed seniors by the school president. Here's a look back at my Hey Day...

See those holes in the hats? Those were created by fellow seniors. ;-) Ahh, to be in college again... - Philadelphia, April 2002

When your life becomes SATC episodes...

[Warning: highly flaky, "girly" post up ahead. Skip today if you still want to believe that I'm intelligent.]

A scary thing happened to me this past week. I've always appreciated the humour and just general awesomeness of Sex and the City, careful to note that it is FICTION and not in fact, realistic in any way, shape or form. (Come on, she writes for a column in a second-tier newspaper but wears Oscar de la Renta couture? Riiiiight...) But recently, I've come to the understanding that these seemingly silly (and sometime outrageous) storylines actually happen in real life! (*gasp* Can you imagine?) A couple examples of how events in my life are starting to make it feel like a bad mashup of SATC episodes...

"+1"
So my gal pals C and S (didn't get their permission so I'm using initials) are both getting married this summer (not to each other--I figured I had to clarify since I live in San Francisco). I'm decidedly single. Both of them were kind enough to have "+ guest" (C telling me over the phone, S actually in writing on my invite), but now I've run into this problem of finding the right "+1". Remember that whole silly episode when Carrie was freaking out about Big being her "+1" and why he wouldn't sign the damn card on her wedding present. Well, I don't have a Mr. Big, but I'm definitely missing a +1. I think the resolution is to not have any +1's and be happy that I'm a 0!! :-)

The Old Woman and Her Shoes
I've always known that I've had a lot of shoes. Not too long ago, I've had to move my shoe collection out into the entry foyer of my apartment because it was sucking up too much closet space. I had to up my rental insurance because my shoes exceeded my personal coverage limits. Then I had to start cataloguing and photographing them. And now that I'm single, there are serious fears that I will just die in an earthquake under my pile of shoes as they collapse on me...I'd be that young-but-dead woman with her shoes.  AHHH! And yes, I can't afford a damn downpayment because all my money went to shoes...or it's because the fact that anything decent in San Francisco costs almost a million dollars...or both. But hey, at least I can do the math and I know that $400 X 100 is NOT four thousand. ;-)

Conclusion: I need to be like Samantha and get me a hot bf like Smith Jared. Hopefully before I turn 40 like her. Or 30 for that matter.

From my album: Santa Monica

Oh, don't I wish I could be here right now? As Memorial Day rolls around, this one quiet moment on Memorial Day two years ago on a beach in Santa Monica comes to mind.

The world through the view of my flip-flops - Santa Monica, May 2004

Three Times (and more)

The past week was a haze of jetlag- and fatigue-induced sleepiness. I actually went out to dinner last Thursday (on a weeknight!) at Winterland, which was fun and chic but the entrees came out a bit salty. The appetizers, wine, service and ambience were good, so I definitely recommend going anyway. (My comment card to them warned sternly about the saltiness of the food, so hopefully they'll fix it.) It was also the tail-end of the SF international Film Festival (one of my favourites!), so I got to check out a movie. Cycling Chronicles: Landscapes the Boy Saw was probably the worst movie I've ever seen at any film festival--period. Enough said. But the key takeaway of the night was that I had dinner and a movie on a Thursday night--surprisingly normal-sounding, but definitely indulgent for me. I made a comment about how this was what it must feel like to have a normal job!

Saturday was more sleeping and more film festival. This time we saw Three Times, a movie by Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien. Okay, so I don't like Shu Qi, but I had to say that the movie was beautifully crafted and I truly enjoyed it. It dealt with three different "love" stories through different periods in time--1911, 1966, and 2005, and had thematic names like "Time for Freedom", "Time for Love", and "Time for Youth". All in all, a good flick. I hear it just opened in NYC and will be opening in SF soon in a limited engagement.

Sunday was again, more jetlagged/fatigued slumber, followed by brunch at Citizen Cake and some much-needed spring shopping. It's a tough life, I tell ya.

Soundtrack of life: repeat track...

Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I'm not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I'm still waiting...

Soundtrack of life: angry chick music

The latest Dixie Chicks single makes me smile, even though I don't usually dig the Dixie Chicks...and even though it's supposed to be angry. But I'll all for angry chick music. Especially when they say things like "I'm still mad as hell"... ;-)

Not Ready to Make Nice - Dixie Chicks

Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I'm not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I'm still waiting

I'm through with doubt
There's nothing left for me to figure out
I've paid a price
And I'll keep paying

I'm not ready to make nice
I'm not ready to back down
I'm still mad as hell and
I don't have time to go round and round and round
It's too late to make it right
I probably wouldn't if I could
'Cause I'm mad as hell
Can't bring myself to do what it is you think I should

I know you said
Can't you just get over it
It turned my whole world around
And I kind of like it

I made my bed and I sleep like a baby
With no regrets and I don't mind sayin'
It's a sad sad story when a mother will teach her
Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger
And how in the world can the words that I said
Send somebody so over the edge
That they'd write me a letter
Sayin' that I better shut up and sing
Or my life will be over

I'm not ready to make nice
I'm not ready to back down
I'm still mad as hell and
I don't have time to go round and round and round
It's too late to make it right
I probably wouldn't if I could
'Cause I'm mad as hell
Can't bring myself to do what it is you think I should

I'm not ready to make nice
I'm not ready to back down
I'm still mad as hell and
I don't have time to go round and round and round
It's too late to make it right
I probably wouldn't if I could
'Cause I'm mad as hell
Can't bring myself to do what it is you think I should

Forgive, sounds good
Forget, I'm not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I'm still waiting

Asia Tour day 8-9-10?

I've lost track of how many days it's been sine I left home. The last few days were a blur. Not sure if it's due to the smog or just my fatigue. We had really long meetings and managed to squeeze in a couple of bubble tea sessions at rbt (aka the green bunny place--thanks, Jen). We finally ventured out to Houhai last night, but I've gotta say that it wasn't quite the same without the APMM crew.

Now we're sitting at a random restaurant at PEK awaiting our flight. I can't say I'll miss this place much, but at least it's endearing in its own way. That, and I know I'll (have to be) back soon...

And with that, I leave Beijing the way I found it--chaotic, dusty, and smoggy. This was quite the Asian adventure.

The weekend in pics: Beijing

Never thought I'd be back so soon, but that's what keeps life interesting, right? Last time I was here, I remember crazy nights at Houhai and Banana, as well as cold days and the Olympic Friendlies. Here are some different images from this time around...


One of the two giant stone sculptures (it's one solid piece) in the Forbidden City. Back in the day, anyone except the emperor who stepped on it would get executed!









It's an optical illusion--the Forbidden City is never this empty ;-)











It's the Starbucks. Inside the Forbidden City. No joke.

Of course, I had to get the Chairman in a pic

Grilled scorpions and other "delicacies" at the night market

Me showing off the "duck cards" that told us exactly which numbered duck we ate during our meal. We just called them Dan and Ann.

Asia Tour Day 6-7: Beijing (again)

So I'm back in Beijing again. Can't say it's much different from the last time I'm here other than it being not as cold and about three times as dusty due to the recent sandstorms. Spent yesterday showing folks around the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. (Oh yes, we did enjoy the ridiculousness of walking around the 600-year-old forbidden city with our bourgeois Starbucks latte and frappucino's.) Last night was a quick dinner at Yong He (aka my favourite Chinese fast food joint) and we all collapsed after our crazy night in Seoul and travel morning caught up with us.

I slept for 14 hours.

Woke up today and had a surprisingly "normal" Sunday. Had Canto noodles at GL Cafe and then shopped around China World Trade. For dinner we went to the famous Quanjude in Qianmen (the *original* branch) and had some insane amounts of Peking Duck. We even got the official "duck cards" that told us we ate ducks number one-billion something or other and one-billion something or other plus one...we affectionately named our ducks Dan and Ann. (Dan and Ann lived fruitful and purposeful lives.) Duck and duck-happy people pictures below...

The chef carves up our first duck

Sarah and I bask in our post-duck happiness

Not sleeping in Seoul...

As opposed to being sleepless...bus leaves in 4 hours, and I still have get to a Seoul Starbucks so I don't miss my Starbucks travel quota (must hit at least one Starbucks in each city if one exists). But I thought I'd leave you with something equally yummy...

I love football!

Asia Tour Day 6: CJK - "Curry, Japanese-style, in Korea"

Apologies about the dorky "CJK" reference in my blog title--my colleagues will know that it's a reference to how we refer to the three major countries within the APAC region (China/Japan/Korea) when we talk about localizing our products, hence this work trip. Nevertheless, CJK is the name of the game, and tomorrow we hit China, the last leg of the trip.

Today I finally got my fix of curry katsudon (thanks to Sasank for rubbing in the fact that he had good Japanese curry in Mountain View when I'm the one who spent four days in Tokyo without any curry). It was served on a sizzling hot plate with udon and rice on the side. And just to make sure we had the proper Korean touch, there was a tiny dish of kimchee on the side, of course.

I think I'm coming down with something, which is really helpful since the air quality of Beijing isn't exactly stellar. It was freezing last night in Seoul and I think my body must be battling the yuckiness that often comes with drastic weather changes and excessive traveling. (Wow, did I just use "excessive" and "traveling" in one sentence? I really must be sick.)

Tonight, our Korean colleagues took us out for some good old fashioned Korean BBQ. We were also introduced to the "Korean car bomb" (okay, it's not called that but that's what I'm calling it), which essentially is a shot of soju that you put in a shot glass which you then drop into the glass of Korean beer of your choice. (Sounds like an Irish car bomb, right? Yah, see?) Nothing but beef, beer, beef, and more beer all around. (see pic below)


It was great to see many of my co-workers half-drunk by 8pm and stumble their way to the karaoke place. A couple hours of what I like to call "white-people karaoking" (ie. when they yell into microphones in groups and don't even attempt to be in tune) ensued, and good times were had by all. I can still see Richard singing "In da Club" and pretty much knowing all the words--this is funny because Richard is a self-proclaimed "the whitest black man you'll ever meet".

In about 4 hours we're headed to the airport for Beijing. (Yes, that means it's 2:30 am here and I have neither packed nor slept.) I'm a little sad that I didn't get to see Seoul, but I guess I've been here before and it's okay. Tomorrow is a new adventure...annyoung, Seoul!

Asia Tour Day 5: Chicken Soup for the "Seoul"

First full day in Seoul was filled with food, food and more food. (Yes, it was filled with work, too, but you know how I don't/shouldn't talk about that.) Almost missed the meeting time this morning since my very high-tech beside dashboard (aka Star Trek-esque command console) failed to execute on my alarm. I quickly stuffed down some hotel buffet breaky and headed through the underground mall to get to our Seoul office. For lunch we had a quick bim bim bap in a restaurant in the food court, before I located a 7-Eleven and found azuki (red) bean Haagen Dazs--yum! More meetings later, it was finally time for dinner and I strongly championed us getting samgyetang, a Korean ginseng chicken soup where they essentially stuff a whole (mini) chicken with sticky rice, ginseng, and other yummy things and stew the darn thing until the meat fell off the bones. (see illustrative pic above) It was definitely what I needed after constant traveling and the windy Seoul weather. A quick pit-stop to BR with Sarah and a mint-chip ice cream cone later, I was a happy camper. So no, I didn't get to see any of Seoul, but I guess I've been here before so that's okay. I'm just happy that my tummy is happy. :-)

Asia Tour Day 3-4: Everyone's a rockstar

(written earlier yesterday at Narita)

So jet lag finally hit yesterday (Tuesday) and I woke up at 4:30-something in the morning and knew there was no hope for me. I ended up doing the only thing that I knew how to do in the wee hours of the morning in Tokyo--go to the Tsukiji Fish Market again for more sushi breakfast. (FYI, it *does* get more expensive if you order a la carte and keep asking for toro.) Ended up also buying some wellies (aka gum boots) there which will come in handy when I head back to the still-supposedly rainy San Francisco.

After breakfast, it was time for work. The rest of the day was pretty much a blur of heavily-caffeinated haziness, to the point where I couldn't even go out for the group dinner. I ended up running out and grabbing a quick bowl of yummy ramen and sleeping off my jet lag. This morning I woke up and had to pack up quickly before grabbing a bowl of piping hot soba down the street. More work, sushi lunch (I know understand why you don't eat sushi on days when the first market is closed. It was closed today.), and a two-hour bus ride later, I'm now hanging out at Narita awaing our flight to Seoul.

Before I leave Tokyo, some more random observations:

- Everyone wears sunglasses all the time. Forget rockstars. In Tokyo, you'd think that everyone's a rockstar judging by how many people wear their sunglasses indoor. Even when it's cloudy.

- The Japanese are obsessively clean, even though there are never garbage cans anywhere. Maybe they are so zen they can make garbage disappear magically.

- The Japanese are obsessively clean. You have to take off your shoes even when going into a dressing room to try on clothes in a store, and not to mention the disposable face masks they give you so you don't smear your makeup on the clothes.

- The Japanese are obsessively clean. You don't eat while walking in public. When you get food to go, that means you're taking it to go home or to the office to eat it, and not to eat it in public. Ever. Ice cream cones are perhaps the only exception..., or at least I like to think so make myself feel less like the dumb foreigner for eating mine while strolling the streets of Shibuya.

- They are big into vending machines here. Even for restaurants! For small ramen and soba joints, you literally "buy" your noodles from the machine, and then hand your ticket to the attendant when you sit down at the counter.

- Small is beautiful. Food portions, pastries, flower bouquets--everything is small and delicate and people are okay with that. When's the last time you saw short-sized drinks at Starbucks? (That was so 90's, by the way.) Here, they're the norm.

- Adam Smith was right. Division and specialisation of labour is the way to go. This philosophy extends to food in Japan. Sushi restaurants serve suhi, robata serves robata (grilled) food, tempura serves tempura, and noodle joints serve noodles. None of this multi-food-types silliness! And yes, there are even restaurants dedicated to tonkatsu (deep-fried pork chops).

- You don't eat sushi on the days when the fish market is closed (Sundays plus 2 Wednesdays each month). Period. Don't question it.

Domo arigato, Tokyo. I'll definitely be back.

Sleepless in Tokyo...

Totally having a Lost in Translation moment, only I'm not lost, and no one's speaking to me. Funny how I didn't really have trouble sleeping all weekend and suddenly jetlag is upon me. I woke up at 4:34am and knew there was no going back. This is the view outside my window...

Asia Tour Day 2 - A sea of calm amidst Monday chaos

So Sarah and I courageously charged through the rest of our morning after the fish market visit without a nap. We sadly said goodbye to the Grand Hyatt and checked into our home for the next two nights: the Cerulean Tower Hotel in Shibuya.

We then had our first adventure on the JR line on our way to the Meiji-jingu, the largest Shinto shrine in Tokyo. It was nestled inside a serene park, and we had to walk about 1km on a gravel path marked by giant torii (made from cypress wood from Alishan in Taiwan, of all places) before arriving at the main shrine. I can't really explain the calm that I experienced while I was there--everything from the soft trickle of water in the cleansing station to the overwhelming sense of peace in the courtyard was a wonderful and welcome contrast to the bustling chaos of Tokyo on a Monday morning. We left our wishes on the votive tablets and quietly strolled back outside the park. I can still feel that calm resonate whenever I see my "body and soul" protection charm from the shrine that now dangles happily from my cell phone.

After Meiji-jingu, we ventured down Omote-sando, known as the most fashionable street in Tokyo in the Harajuku district. Unfortunately, I guess Harajuku girls have to go to school/work, too (except maybe the ones that now work for Gwen Stefani), so we didn't actually get to see any of them. Omote-sando was less "trendy" than I thought--I guess that's what happens when they start building big malls and you have stores like Jimmy Choo and Prada instead of street fashion.

And so, our sightseeing/vacation time in Tokyo draws to an end. My co-workers are due into Narita any minute now, and after tonight, the real work begins.

The weekend in pics: Tokyo

Sarah hard at work on grinding the sesame seeds for her tonkatsu sauce












A rainy day at Sensoji












Yummy baumkuchen cakes at Club Harie, Mitsuokoshi department store











Ginza shopping madness

Check out the vanity area in our bathroom (yes, that's a TV)

Oh the glorious tuna at Tsukiji Market

Me at...guess where?

Asia Tour Day 1.5 - Something's fishy

We woke up at 5am this morning. Let me qualify that statement by explaining that we did go to bed at 9:30 last night so it wasn't that bad. We got up nice and early to check out the start of the week (in fishermen's terms anyway) at the Tsukiji Fish Market. It's said that about $2.2 million dollars worth of fishy business is conducted here *daily*--that's over $6 billion per year (and yes, this is dollars and not yen). After almost getting lost on the Oedo line, we made it to the Tsukijishijo station and headed into the chaotic market. There are no words to describe how crazy or overwhelming the vast number of fish and fishmongers were in this market; or in Sarah's words, it was simply "f-ing insane". (I'll show you the uncensored video another day.) We mostly tried not to get run over by the tuna trucks and eventually found the tuna auction happening towards the back of the market. It was crazy! This guy was muttering the tuna lot numbers with buyers making complicated hand signals to signal their bids. One tuna got sold probably ever 5 seconds!

Then we were off in search of Daiwa, one of the most well-known old-school sushi restaurants adjacent to the market. We almost tricked by another line that had formed in a restaurant two doors down, but luckily we read the signs and finally ended up in the right line. We squeezed into these two tiny seats at the sushi bar (there were two bars and about 20 seats total in this place) and said hi to our hunky sushi chef who almost immediately started to make us sushi in rapid-fire motion. One piece after another of insanely-fresh sushi were placed in front of us: toro, uni, ika (squid), half-rolls of ikura and tuna, anago (freshwater eel), hamachi, more toro, and tamago. Top it off with green tea and miso soup and we had ourselves a perfect Japanese breakfast. It was by far the freshest sushi I've ever had in my life. And this was all eaten before 7:30am. Craaazy.

We headed back on the Hibiya line to our hotel and decided to stop in one of the 3 or 4 Starbucks in Roppongi Hills. First they made Sarah's chai the wrong size, then they made the espresso shot in my drink too short, and then they remade Sarah's drink wrong. *sigh* Maybe those bad fortunes from Sensoji hadn't been completely blown away by the wind yet! We decided to give up and buy new drinks at SBC (I know...it's a heresy for me), and now we're back in our hotel room enjoying them as we download our pictures from this morning's adventures. And it's only 8:30am.

Asia Tour Day 1 - If it's good enough for Bill...

First full day in Tokyo! Woohoo! After passing out for 11 hours (me, 9 for Sarah), we got up and started our day right with some Seattle's Best Coffee (yes, it was all for Sarah since she's hails from Seattle). Then we went to Nadai Katsukura, this restaurant that specialized in Tonkatsu--yes, they only serve deep-fried pork chops. After trying to figure out the difference between regular and 'special' pork (the latter costs more--duh), and sirloin versus fillet (the later also costs more, but sirloin has more fat), we were handed a mortar and pestle with some seasame seeds to ground the base for our tonkatsu sauce. Needless to say, it was super yummy (and fun!), and it was a great start to our day.

Then we were off on our first Tokyo subway adventure to Asakusa where the Sensoji (largest Buddhist temple in Tokyo) is located. Just like the first time I was at Sensoji, many many years ago, it was rainy in a calm, zen-like way. We went to get our fortunes from the fortune sticks, but both Sarah and I got the worst fortunes possible. (The little slip of paper was like: "Your wish will not come true. Sick patient will not recover. Lost item will not be found. Marriage and career are both bad...and on and on.) Of course, we didn't believe it and did it again a second time, when we got the exact same fortunes. We chalk it up to not actually being Buddhist, and so we tied our fortunes to the rack (no tree here) and waited for the wind to blow them all away.

On our way back from Asakusa (where we randomly bumped into Sunny in the subway station), we headed to the original Mitsuokoshi store where we explored the crazy food court floor, including Club Harie--this insane spongecake maker that had a 10-minute line for its baked-on-a-giant-toilet-paper-roll shaped spongecakes (aka "baumkuchen"). After some more browsing and eating, we went back to the hotel to prepare for our outing to Ginza and tempura dinner.

Ginza was...well, Ginza. Rampant consumerism reigns supreme here. Everything from the 6-story Mikimoto flagship to the multiple Louis Vuitton stores within a 3-block radius reminds you just how fashion- and brand-conscious the Japanese really are. (The average markup at Louis Vuitton is about 30% more than US prices.) After window shopping for a couple of hours (Sarah: "Prada makes some fabulous loafers!"), we almost got lost but made it to Ten-ichi, a famous tempura restaurant in Tokyo. They have 10 locations, but the one we went to in Ginza is the original and once frequented by Bill Clinton *and* Nelson Mandela. (We chose tempura because we were sternly warned by our concierge that no one eats sushi on Sundays because the fish market is closed...that made way too much sense. Who eats day-old fish?) Needless to say, the tempura was ridiculously yummy (we even got a bonus piece of shrimp + scallop cake), and our perfect meal was topped off by deliciously sweet mango halves that definitely made our day.

Blogger's misbehaving so I'll have to upload the pictures another time, but it was definitely a fabulous day.

P.S. It's 10pm and I'm going to sleep now. We're waking up at 5am to go to the Tsukiji Fish Market. Wish us luck.

Asia Tour Day 0.5 - Tokyo Tranquility

Yesterday we got into Tokyo in the early afternoon. After surviving a two-hour bus ride from Narita, we got into the Grand Hyatt Tokyo at Roppongi Hills--which I must say, was absolutely gorgeous. (Sarah says that I did well in my hotel choices...haha.) We were pretty pooped and decided to all out in our first night in Tokyo: sushi dinner and 90-minute massages in our hotel. We went to Sushi Seizan, one of the 5 million restaurants in the Roppongi Hills complex connected to our hotel. The sushi spread that we had was INCREDIBLE!! (Well, that and we were really hungry. Then it was off to the Nagomi Spa (my new favourite spa in the world) in our hotel for Japanese baths, steam room / chilling, and our 90-minute "Tranquility massages". After that, we were set for bed at a comfortable 10:30pm bedtime -- jet lag be damned! I didn't even get to use the rain shower in our bathroom!!

Random Tokyo observations: there's a lot of bowing. Bring your own kleenex. They love their Cold Stone Creamery. And their Starbucks.

The world through rosy-coloured...uh, contacts

(written earlier yesterday during UA 837 from SFO to Narita)

I like to think that I've always been jaded about the world. Spending your formulative years in, okay, near the mean streets of West Philadelphia can do that to you. So can watching someone get shot right in front of your house in said neighbourhood. And how about watching not one, but two women get mugged across the street during your friend's housewarming party? Okay, enough dramatic scenarios, that's not what this post is about. My point is, in reality, I think I've always viewed the world through rosy-coloured contacts. We may have been through tough times in my family, but for the most part, the part of the world I was exposed to was pretty sanitized. People around me growing up had nannies and summer homes, and "trouble" at school was if you wore nail polish by accident (or on purpose) or if your uniform skirt was hiked up too high, not guns or kids killing each other. As for the people in my life, I never realized this, but they were all really really nice. And of course, I mean people just beyond my immediate family (who really have no choice but to be nice to me), but friends, teachers, co-workers, bosses, acquaintances. Hell, even the baristas at Starbucks are pretty darn nice. All this had led me to come to understanding that I'm really just naive, and not jaded about the world.

Not too long ago, I had my first experience with disappointment in humanity. No, not like in Crash where you felt sickened by the racism or ignorance, but more like in a "wow-I-can't-believe-people-really-can-be-mean-in-certain-aspects-
and-still-look-pretty-normal-and-nice-on-a-day-to-day basis" kind of way. I guess I've just been lucky that I've never been exposed to any real "mean-ness", let alone someone who can rationalize that there was nothing wrong with it. It sort of just hits you like a brick, and then you realize that you've been watching yourself in a slow-motion trainwreck the whole time---you just had no power to stop it. Many would say that I brought this onto myself and let it continue longer than it should have, but in retrospect, I don't think I could have prevented any of it, except not to have started it at all. It's funny how your view can go from a most amazing experience to realizing that there never was a relationship to begin with. It's like someone once said, a relationship is like magic--all it takes is one person to stop believing, and it's as if it never existed at all. No, I don't have any regrets, just a lot of great experiences; regrets aren't really my style anyway.

But I did make one change to my life: I'm wearing glasses today.

From my album: Beijing

I've always had a love-hate relationship with Beijing. My fellow ISBers who went to Beijing with me would argue that it weighed more heavily on the hate side, but nevertheless, it seems that I can't ever really escape the place. Next week, I'll be back in Beijing again (for work this time, and the second time in 6 months). I thought I'd dig out a pic from my old albums that I really liked from waaaay back when. Maybe this will be a start of a nice little regular "feature" on my blog ;-)

This is from a side street in a hutong off Houhai. Many of you may know this area today as the trendy lakeside party hotspot, but many moons ago, it was just a quiet Beijing neighbourhood...and that's the way I like to remember it. - Beijing, October 2001