They came. They saw. They Sundanced.

The end is just like the beginning. The cabin is quiet. The ski/snowboard crew have left for their final day of snow in the Utah mountains. Their gear has been cleared out. The food has been devoured. Four days of non-stop movie/skiing/snowboarding/eating/attempting to party is drawing to a close. 

And in the end, I wound up seeing* only 6 films:

• Toe to Toe
  
• Rudo y Cursi
  
• Amreeka
  
• Don't Let Me Drown
  
• Sin Nombre
  
• Adam (*later today)
  

Altitude sickness made me miss Tyson and The Carter, the former of which I'm especially bummed about since I hear it was a pretty sweet movie and Mike Tyson actually showed up. In any case, if I had to choose a favourite (without having seen Adam yet), it would probably be a toss-up between Amreeka and Sin Nombre. Interestingly enough, both are stories about immigration (with one being legal and one illegal), and I suppose that's a theme I can relate to. What's your citizenship? Where is your home? Where are you from? They're all simple questions that you'd think you can answer quickly...but can you? It certainly takes me multiple disclaimers to get my answer across. Does who we are and where we're from really matter? Or should we be judged on the basis of our actions alone?

I didn't expect this Sundance wrap-up post to be so hazy. Maybe the lack of oxygen going to my brain is making it all fuzzy. At some point I will do these films more justice by writing down my thoughts and sharing quotes I've been keeping in my notebook all weekend. But for now, the weekend has come full circle. The beginning was just like the end.

P.S. Random people I met/bumped into this weekend: Ricardo Antonio Chavira ("Carlos" on D.H.), Gina Torres, Cary Fukunaga (director of Sin Nombre), and few other cool indie directors. Oh, and Georges Harik, too. You can't escape the GOOG!

(Not really) Live-blogging Sundance 2009

Just arrived at Salt Lake City airport...nothing too different so far, except there are a lot of limo drivers holding signs with names that aren't mine, and there is actually a Starbucks in the airport. No dudes with multiple women in tow. No celebrity sightings. No paparazzi. Nothing out of the ordinary. Basically, I could be in any airport in America. The flight here was uneventful and uncomfortable -- Canadair Jets should really not be used anymore! 

I'm pretty stoked about being here for Sundance 2009!! After two failed attempts, I finally got my act together this year and bought tickets in time! The opening party is tonight, and then I've got around 10 movies lined up over the next four days. Probably won't actually have time to live-blog, per se, but will definitely try my best to summarize each day...stay tuned!

What can you buy with $18,975?

Use a little imagination...the explanation for this random figure comes at the end of the post. So, what *can* you buy for $18,975?

- 19,166 songs from iTunes @ $0.99 each (assuming the fixed price from before)

- 18,975 McChicken sandwiches @ $1 each

- 5,345 Iced tall soy white mochas @ $3.55 each

- 54 years' worth of the New York Times @ $6.70 per weekly subscription, or $384.40 per year

- 421 Muni monthly passes @ $45 each, or 35 years of cable car, bus and street car rides in San Francisco

- 253 MoMA memberships @ $75 each, so either you can be cultured for two lifetimes, or you and two hundred and fifty two of your closest friends can pretend to be for a year

- Dinner for 69 people at the French Laundry @ $275 each. Maybe kick some people out of the dinner party if you want to drink wine with your food.

- 34 nights in a Chateau Marmont cottage @ $550 each. Lindsay Lohan *must* be seen at least once if you stay there for over a month, right?

- 1 first class roundtrip ticket from SFO to DXB on Emirates @ $17824.87, plus a grand for spending money while in Dubai

- 1 PT Cruiser, Mazda 3, Volkswagen Rabbit, Honda Civic, or a bunch of other entry level sedans and trucks @ $18000 or less

...or, you could spend it all on a shoulder capsular repair surgery, like I did. Or well, my insurance company did. That's how much my recent shoulder surgery cost -- $18,975 plus some change. Apparently, the anaesthesia alone cost $2,000 and the recovery room was another $3,000. The American healthcare system is completely, mind-bogglingly frightening to me. Thank goodness for insurance. I'd rather spend that money on McChicken's.

Reminiscing: 2008 in food

And I thought 2007 couldn't be topped...but alas, 2008 turned out to be one of the most phenomenal culinary adventures of all time, including not one, but two 3-Michelin star restaurants (and correspondingly, two of the most expensive meals I've ever paid for). To make up for all the caloric intake, I did pick up a Wii Fit to try to work it all off...not sure it's working yet. Anyway, let's get to the list (in no particular order):

Matsuhisa Joel Robouchon at the Mansion A16 Le Pigeon SPQR Hominy Grill The Farm Espetus Farmicia Cav Park Avenue Summer Ted's Bakery Clary's Salumi Buddakan (Philadelphia) Digestif Cha-Bella Restaurant Zoe Aziza Per Se New Sammy's Cowboy Bistro Memphis Minnie's South Stumptown Coffee COCO500 Momofuku Ssam Voodoo Doughnuts Giovanni's Shrimp Truck Bon Chon Lady & Sons Beverly Soon Tofu Park Fora Elizabeth on 37th Lu's Kitchen the girl & the fig Quince Alan Wong's The Herb Box Giordano's

Wow. And that's just some of the more memorable / travel-related places!

Most disappointing canceled food product - Starbucks almond syrup. It's gone, along with my favourite drink of all time -- iced tall almond soy latte. :( They tell me that it'll be back this Februrary with a "limited edition" drink, but still, the damage has been done.

Longest lines for a local favourite - (tied 3-way) Voodoo Doughnuts in Portland, Oregon, Giovanni's Shrimp Truck on Oahu, and sandwiches at Salumi (yes, Mario Batali's family's place) in Seattle, Washington.

Most random location for a gourmet meal - that would be, without a doubt, New Sammy's Cowboy Bistro in Talent, Oregon. Located near the home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, this place is literally in the middle of nowhere, with some of the best locally-sourced ingredients and gourmet cuisine.

Best celebrity chef encounter - Chef Joel Robouchon, at his restaurant Joel Robouchon at the Mansion at MGM in Vegas. Apparently, Chef has "just arrived from Tokyo" and took the time to chitchat and pose for a picture with us. Awesome.

Most random celebrity 'encounter' - That would be Miss Lindsay Lohan herself at Matsuhisa in LA, not too long after she was "cleaned up". She *did* spend a lot of time in the bathroom...suspicious.

Best decor - (tied) the downtown location of Stumptown Coffee in Portland, and Joel Robouchon at the Mansion. The former was a great example of industrial chic, and the latter was the most luscious "living room" I've ever been in, complete with beautifully upholstered banquettes and dark purple floral arrangements throughout.

Most elaborate meal - (tied) 16 courses at Joel Robouchon vs. 10 (?) at Per Se. There were four courses just dedicated to truffle alone at JR. Two of the best restaurants in the country (and in the world), two of the best meals of my life.

Weirdest thing I ate that I really liked - the bacon maple bar from Voodoo Doughnuts. Basically a maple-glazed long john-shaped doughnut with a piece of bacon on top. Awesome. Addictive.

Best eating trip - the Pacific Northwest road trip in July takes the cake. Some of the best the Pacific Northwest has to offer including Le Pigeon, The Farm, New Sammy's Cowboy Bistro and much much more.

Best dessert - this is somewhat unexpected, but I'm going to have to go with the buttermilk pie at Hominy Grill in Charleston, NC. It's not fancy, and it's not fussy, but it was damn good.

Best meal for under a dollar - Turkish pide (flatbread with meat and potatoes inside) from a random store in Istanbul for 1 lira...that's like 60 cents.

Favourite place where I ate repeatedly on the same trip - The Herb Box at DC Ranch in Scottsdale. Awesome sandwiches and salads, and the desserts aren't half bad either. Mmmm cheesecake lollipops...

Coolest "perk" in a meal - the tour of the Per Se kitchen and private dining room after our dinner. Did you know that they have a room dedicated (and climate-controlled) just to making chocolate?! And that the entire French Laundry (dining room and kitchen) can fit into just the kitchen at Per Se?

Favourite protein of the year - pork belly. Hands down.

What culinary adventures does 2009 bring? Not sure yet, but a few places I have my eye on: Alinea (Chicago) , Sukiyabashi Jiro (Tokyo), Momofuku Ko (NYC) and many many more...

Reminiscing: 2008 in travel

Another year of crazy plane-hopping, jetsetting, and general travel mayhem. I think this year, there was generally more restraint and more domestic-ness in my travels. I did my first ever day-trip to LA for work, and even flew coach to Europe. (Don't try it at home...babies and people who kick your seat for 14 hours straight suck.) Didn't make it back to 1K, but at least I'll be Premier Exec again next year. :)

So here are 2008's cities in no particular order:

Tahoe Honolulu Savannah Portland Orlando New York City Boston Munich Las Vegas Vancouver Charleston Whistler Flagstaff Scottsdale Napa Seattle Klamath Istanbul Ashland Phoenix Albuquerque Sonoma Grand Canyon Los Angeles Denver Chicago Frankfurt Arcadia Mcminnville Kaneohe

Miles flow - 51,509

Most surprising hotel - W Istanbul. Cooler, hipper, and way less tired-looking than any of its Stateside cousins. They really *do* do things differently in Europe.

Most random flight itinerary - SFO - Denver - Orlando - Chicago - Portland - SFO. Ew. The things we do for work.

Shortest trip - 12 hours in LA. Took the 6am flight out, and came home on the 6pm flight. Again, the things we do for work.

Longest trip (without a plane) - 10-day road trip up the Pacific Northwest. I love the Pacific Northwest!

Most nerve-racking travel moment - (tied) Locking the keys in the trunk of a car during said road trip (I had to climb through the luckily-open sun roof to pop the trunk) in Ashland. Being almost run off the road coming back from the Grand Canyon in the middle of the night by a giant trucker going 90MPH. Uphill. My crappy rental PT Cruiser didn't stand a chance.

Most awkward place to visit - Albuquerque, New Mexico. Went there for a friend's wedding -- turns out that every other Asian person we saw at the airport, the restaurants, and the city were all there for the same wedding.

Most awkward tourist attraction - Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia. It was eerily beautiful, and extremely popular due to the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. But I still felt like I was trespassing the entire time I was there.

Most visited cities this year (and frequency) - Vancouver & New York City (3), Los Angeles, Boston & Las Vegas (2)

Shortest time between 2 continents - 15 minutes. We went from Europe to Asia in just 15 minutes on a ferry in Istanbul. There was no "Welcome to Asia" sign on the other side. I was disappointed.

Most thematic tourist destination - Ashland, Oregon. Home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, almost every hotel, restaurant and store in town is named after something Bard-related, including the Best Western Bard's Inn.

All beds, and breakfasts, too - This year, I finally took advantage of the actual breakfast portion of B&B (unlike last year). My two favourites would be Morical House in Ashland for its contemporary modern design and yummy food, and the A'Tuscan Estate in Mcminnville for its delicious gourmet breakfasts (ostrich egg omelets!).

Best "3 Days or Less..." destination - Well, it was more like 4 days, but Istanbul, Turkey takes the cake. So it's a bit crazy to fly halfway around the world for 4 days, but hey, why not?

This year, I'll probably be taking it easy due to my shoulder recovery. But there are still some interesting travel destinations on the horizon...including my first Sundance in January, maybe cherry blossoms in Japan in March, and some eating trips here and there. :)

Reminiscing: 2008 in words

Another year. Wow. I always love doing the "Reminiscing" series of posts each year...especially since that's how I first started this blog. In addition to the usual "Travel" and "Food" reminiscing, I wanted to add a new category this year -- "Words" -- general thoughts and words about the year that don't fit into the travel or food categories.

So here goes:

Slow down - my new motto for the year. Slow down so you don't trip and fall and end up having shoulder surgery. Slow down so you don't give yourself a concussion in the bathroom mirror. Slow down in general.

Happily ever after. But not for everyone - Congrats to many friends who tied the knot this year, especially to Mendel and Derek. While I'm still shocked and dismayed that Prop 8 passed in California, I'm so glad that M&D were able to get married in Boston. My hope for 2009 is that *everyone* can tied the knot and live happily ever after as they choose.

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose - Still working on this one. Still complicated. Still somewhat unresolved.

Recession - ouch. Horrible year in 2008 for money and all things investing related. How it will actually affect us remains to be seen in 2009.

Obama - almost made me want to be American! (Emphasis on the word "almost") I love his mind *and* his body (LOL). Well done, Americans.

3 Days or Less... - new blog. New identity. New outlet!

Angels - never underestimate the presence of angels in your life. They are present in friends and family members all around you. I'm grateful to all of you that have helped me out in some way/shape/form this year. Thank you.

2009, here we come!

P.S. Travel and Food reminiscing to follow...stay tuned!