Failed househunting again... reflecting on 2012 in HK

Hi again in December 2012.

My previous blogs were a few photos and a chronological recollection of the time past.  However as I reflect on 2012, we are so grateful for several good things this past year.  As always, 2013 we hope will bring new changes and challenges.

Good things include:
- great old and new friends for social, sports and food around Hong Kong
- reconnecting with family around Hong Kong, our parents' cousins; joining family events and meals while immersing more in local culture
- good health and fortune - having the opportunity to see new cities in our spare time
- staying atop of family although remotely. Through video chat, email, phone and the occasional visit, we try to stay in touch with family, grandparents and young nieces/nephews who are growing up too fast
- stable jobs; although work life can always improve, we are grateful for employment in these difficult economic times.  I am grateful that my coworkers and I get along quite well
- tons of visitors in and around HK makes it nice
- meeting a lot of other new people and a ton of self-learning through my involvement in The Women's Foundation Hong Kong
- still so happy living in our current neighbourhood and apartment; responsive landlady; we can't find another area or flat that compares right now


Let's hope 2013 brings some changes such as:

- health recovery and comfort of some relatives here in HK

- improved air quality.  The poor air quality in HK (and Beijing) is driving people away from these booming cities.  For Beijing, foreign companies even pay "hardship" fees to get expats to stay. If we stay outside for a few hours in HK, my throat really starts to hurt - even when the sky is clear!  I think roadside pollution is becoming intolerable and making HK less attractive than other cities. HK government should spend its surplus resources on fighting pollution or limited emissions from cars.

- lowered cost of living.  The housing prices for purchase and for rent in HK are ASTRONOMICAL.  Especially coming from a (relatively) low cost metropolis like Toronto (its easily 2-3x), Hong Kong is sooo expensive  (I hear its even higher than London, NY or Tokyo per sq ft).  This has grave consequences not just on foreigners like us, but on local young people, whose salaries make it prohibitive to move out and start independent lives from parents.  As a result, I think the maturity of some of these local 20-somethings is far behind even Mainland China and certainly North American or European peers.  Any gain on income tax savings is immediately wiped out by rent/mortgage and high food prices (at least in Central)

- better food taste and service in Central area.  I am starting to hate the food choices in SOHO/Central. First of all, the prices are so high yet the service is horrendous.  Waiters do not look you in the eye (even 4 or 5 star places), always forget your order, cannot recommend food/drink/wine to try, and basically do not give a shit!  That said, to be fair, the food is overall quite mediocre in Central, rents are astronomical so overpriced alcohol is expected (despite zero alcohol tax)

- better and enforced living conditions and human rights of domestic helpers here in HK and around the world

- Can they flatten some of the stairs and hills in mid-levels?!  Its prohibitive for us to move to better air/higher ground b/c we hate stairs and the escalator

- Can they reduce the number of time zones between Eastern time and HK/Taipei/beijing time, or the travel distance? Then we could speak more often with family.

We look forward to reconnecting with family and friends in Toronto over the holidays!  See you all soon!

Holiday Dec; another half finished; baby showers

Its been a busy and fun few months ... pretty holiday decorations around town, friends and visitors around, completed our 2nd half marathon and hosted a few baby showers.

I can't believe 2012 is almost done!!! As always hoping for a better next year but thankful for all we have.

Saigon tunnels et al

we enjoyed a long weekend getaway to Ho Chi Minh city formerly known as Saigon. The pho and banh mi sandwiches were really good but the tourist restaurants incl those recommended by Anthony bourdain were over rated! similar to Hanoi there were a kazillion motor bikes but definitely more urbanized even than China. WiFi everywhere too!

highly recommend Pho Le where the locals eat.
forgot that the best thing to do is cu chi tunnels. a lot of controversial history and guns to try...

Happy birthday Stephen!

Young at heart still!











but old enough for casino...to pray for winnings to the (very unlucky) God of luck







Candy buffet at happy hour


















Fun with friends















Nice sleep away from home






















Happy birthday young man!














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Protests against Chinese 'national' education and prepare for KK mountain hike

I'm definitely now very aware and interested of local Asian news, politics and context - especially when talking with my hong kong colleagues. This week there will be tons of protests and possible hunger strikes ongoing with students in hong kong -- who are smart and aware enough to realize that Beijing-based "China" education is pretty damn close to brainwashing. The beginning of the end of free thought and free speech here in HK if this bill goes ahead at LegCo soon... fingers crossed that Hong Kong families will emerge victorious. I also hear that university students (while not affected by the upcoming national education) are protesting and not attending classes this Tuesday... in solidarity with parents and primary/secondary students. They will also offer to baby-sit students in the event of teacher / school strikes.... I had long chats with my local colleagues to more deeply understand the whole situation.  In truth I am really glad that Hong Kong people who enjoy a relatively developed society...  are not just worried about near-term money and do act upon values beyond material things (my earlier views were narrow)!

 As an analogy, its no surprise that my mainland friends 'hate' the Japanese more than other nations under Japanese occupation in WWII and thereafter, and that my generation of mainland friends/colleagues seem to revere the Communist party while many also refuse to give up their Chinese passports.  I hope I am wrong, but brainwashing and persistent and broad-based national 'education' does work from a government perspective!!! yikes!  

I've been traveling a bit less often now for work... which is a welcome change... and we've been eating out quite often due to visitors in town, etc.  We're planning a vacation to Kota Kinabalu soon for a hike up SE Asia's highest peak. In addition to our multiple runs per week training for our end Nov half-marathon... we now have to climb stairs!!  Tiring....

And for the record, Walter White from Breaking Bad is so very evil.  At least I know better what money laundering is.  Its literally a way to clean your money.  Happens all the time here in China - trust me!

And finally. please say an extra prayer for my relatives here in Hong Kong and Singapore who are suffering from major health issues.

Two Years in Hong Kong!

Two years in Hong Kong has flown by.... its hard to believe but its been quite a ride... up and downs... and around the region:

- hiking and outdoor activities such as trails, beach and boating are still awesome
- people still walk slow and randomly. probably because most people carry iphone 4's.  Even my carrier relegates my blackberry to a 'business service only'
- air pollution is pretty bad, especially worse with latest series of this summer's typhoons. Its scary when Hong Kong air rivals Beijing for world's worst
- the seafood and pork far better than the chicken or beef.
- China economy has slowed down and food and infrastructure safety standards questionable
- Hong Kong MTR subway travel world-class (excluding Tung Chung line)
- HK Airport is still my second home sadly; lots of work travel
- we can't find a more convenient location to live in Hong Kong besides Sheung Wan :). 5-10 mins walk to the bars, lounges and escalator... I initially landed here at a service apartment, we later moved next door and haven't relocated since (we've looked but nothing 'stuck')
- Food in Kowloon side still tastes better than on Hong Kong Island
- a handful of tycoons still rule Hong Kong. There are no Costco or non-local big box retailers here, and rental prices are out of hand per sq foot (purchase prices are even crazier)
- Hong Kong has become LESS democratic recently with the 'election' of CY Leung
- electronics and brand name household and clothing prices are easily 2-3x North America
- great friends and family make up for the tough urban living standards here
- training for our 2nd half marathon already. We still love Bowen Road
- most shopping areas like Causeway Bay and TST are dominated by mainland Chinese tourgroups
- despite the very low 15% income tax rate... the overall cost of living here excluding transit is VERY VERY high compared with Toronto (groceries, RENT/REAL ESTATE, restaurant tier, clothing, bedding, appliances etc).  I find that friends from London or New York are less shocked by the cost difference than we are

Like I said, it's been a ride these past years.  Who knows how long we'll stay in Hong Kong but its all just part of our adventure!

Thankful for Grandma, Family, Typhoons and Olympics!

Its been a whirlwind few weeks... my popo grandma was suddenly hospitalized for pneumonia (she is 89 this year) due to aspiration.  After a big scare, I flew home at last minute to be with her. Thank goodness she slowly recovered and stabilized.  Also it reinforced how important family is - despite being far away.  Even my grandfather is 93 years old and we remain close and enjoy time spent together in person.

Thank you also to Stephen for organizing a surprise birthday dinner for me upon my return!  It was a welcome relief from the family and travel stress, and really great to see good friends over too much buffet in Hong Kong!

The Olympics is pretty awesome going on in London 2012.  The "Queen" dropped in by helicopter / balloon to the opening ceremonies.  Volleyball and diving are totally awesome to watch.  And I realize its really the 'tier 2 & tier 3' sports like track, weightlifting, volleyball, track & field (heptathlon) and swimming that interest me over the 'tier 1' sports like basketball, tennis, etc. Too bad Canadian women lost 4-3 in unfair refereeing to U.S. in soccer :(  

The typhoons have been rampant here in Asia.  Vicente hammered Hong Kong a few weeks ago and the Hurricane signal 10 was raised for the first time in 13 years. 'emergency' flight was delayed a full day! My Recently Taiwan and Philippines were hit, and now Shanghai and Hangzhou may be hammered along with China's East Coast.  Other than that, pollution has been crazy bad, and its been gray, humid and cloudy here in Hong Kong this month.  

Look forward to clearer air in the coming months as the summer fades, so we can enjoy more beach, junk trips, runs and hiking!

Another Yahoo! CEO, heat wave/tanned!

Yahoo has it's fourth CEO in 4 years - 37 year old Marissa Meyer! Best of luck to this silicon valley search icon from google. Kudos to her for landing this great but tough opportunity!

Massive heat waves here and in NA. Taipei hit 40C last week... And HK consistently 34C and humid as well.. Two weeks ago Stephen and I went to Stanley market and St.Stephen's beach for sun and food...then . Last weekend j joined a group for a 8.5km hike and trail run along Dragon's back to Tai Long Wan near Shek O. It was damn hot and a bit hilly but gorgeous views and nice beach. thereafter I met friends and Stephen for a nice dip in the pool near Olympic. Relaxing. Definitely and finally tanned !

The storm last night was sooo loud and sky flashing bright that it woke me up... At least some rain here and there cools things down.

City life mostly these days... but it's nice to know real gorgeous nature is not far away!

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Location:Sheung Wan

Half marathon, bye family home, babies growing

It's again been a while since my April blog! Stephen and I just returned from time with family, although I had to be at office.

My parents have sold our 20 year family home. Theyre downsizing to a condo. Tons of good and bad memories, but more notably TONNES of stuff to purge. Content sales, craigslist, donations and more were coordinated by my sisters and we tried to help where possible. Fingers crossed it goes smoothly next week!

The babies are getting bigger: Adam and Kristin almost one, Joven can walk now at 13+ months, Denise/Saima/Subarna due any time now! Traffic has worsened in Toronto. I wonder if transit will ever catch up in this metropolis!?

On the personal front, in late May, Stephen and I completed our first Half marathon in Singapore! Damn it was hot. At least the Sundown Event started at 12:30am ... We survived although it was painful. Good route around the city state major landmarks. Then it thunder down poured right when we finished. Poor guys doing the Full! All about good pacing! I finished in too 15% of ladies so I guess I am happy! Would probably race another half before trying a full.... In somewhere less humid!

Also Stephen got to meet more of my extended family in Singapore; some of them joked that my husband was a mystery and probably didn't exist until he met them personally! Thereafter I went with Mom to Kuala Lumpur for her mini high school reunion. After that we saw more cousins and my grandpa's brother as well. Back ti Singapore where dad met us, had a huge family dinner to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Weeks of work travel then ensued to Taipei, Seattle and Austin (Boston Sloan reunion also).

So so so happy to be back in hk. Already made my first bread loaf... My new hobby since loading up on carbs pre-marathon!

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Location:Hong kong

Humidity >30C in April!

The crazy humidity of Hong Kong supposedly started 'late' this year.  Interspersed with near-typhoon black clouds and heavy rain, it has been consistently well above 30C in late April already. Yikes!  Very good excuse to defer our outdoor running/training :-(

While Stephen luckily dodged the food poisoning after Yunnan trip, he does continue to encounter questionable food when on biz travel in mainland... scary stuff. I think our next trip will be somewhere cleaner and safer, maybe Thailand.
On the 'what's happening in the news' front, we enjoyed The Lady (Michelle Yeoh plays Burmese pro-democratic elect Aung San Suu Kyi superbly. In real life Aung was finally sworn in this week as an official lawmaker/opposition!).  Also the blind lawyer/activist Chen Guangcheng escaped from China and the world is awaiting Obama/US to protect his family from further China government persecution.  Also Facebook is due to IPO very soon; Zuckerberg will probably yield $1B himself although most goes into taxes (piddly amount relative to his wealth). Microsoft bought huge stack in Barnes & Noble Nook tablets.  Samsung released its Galaxy III S today to rival the iPhone. 

And...more Asian migrations... yet another good friend from grad school has landed in HK (Li).  Look forward to spending more quality time with her and her family!  And we work in the same building :-)  And Stephen has a good friend now living in Beijing...

Tiger Leaping Gorge = fun hike, risky food

We had a fun trip hiking up the largest gorge in Asia, staying overnight, eating (oily) local spicy foods, hanging out in Lijiang Old Town, etc. On the downside, Connecting in the Kunming (ghetto) airport was disgusting, and forced us to eat KFC twice (not bad tasting but still pretty unhealthy!), and too much yak or bad chicken or goat caused us serious tummy aches!


I still highly recommend Yunnan province which consists of lots of China minority groups, some similar to Tibetans. In Lijiang there are lots of Naxi people who comprise one of the world's few matriarchal societies (marriage = optional, tons of male partners ok, lineage/ancestry/home passed through youngest daughters from mothers, etc).


In North America for a whirlwind visit to see family friends and of course, to work.  Need to get over my silly food poisoning and stomach aches so I can start training again for our half marathon!! Yikes!

People in HK always talk Money

I had heard this before, but its more true than ever.  Every conversation (well, almost every) I overhear in and around this metropolis is about money. From work colleagues to the sushi chefs preparing lunch behind the bar.  Most recently, my colleagues seems to know the price of everything. If I ask their interest in a particular activity, say BBQ at a park, the response is not a "Yes, interested" or "No, thanks", rather it is a "$53HKD per hour".  I'm typically dumbfounded as that doesn't clarify whether they want to do it or not. 


Similarly today I was picking up dessert bar food overhearing the sushi chefs chat about charging customers "extra $12 for type X of food", or "why would I go to that noodle restaurant since the fishball soup went up by $2".


I hate to stereotype, but if you take time to listen to conversations (mostly in Chinese, unfortunately) on the MTR Subway, its the same....


So Asians are good with money.  I would argue though, a bit obsessed with nickels and dimes.

Lost my voice, HK "elections", 13k Trail Run, Singapore

I have lost my voice.  Probably a combination of the bad cold I caught from Singapore's 35C then Air Conditioning last week + karaoke + gin tonics + volleyball?!  Anyway its the first time I ever remember this happening, so I took today as a sick day!


Hong Kong "elected" their new Chief Executive yesterday, CY Leung.  Apparently its a select group of 1200 pro-establishment and pro-business people who get to 'vote'. Lots of protests around. Both Leung and Tang are backed by Beijing.  And the Democratic Party guy didn't get many votes.  On the one hand, this is not a democracy at all. On the other hand, its not clear to me that HK was ever a democracy even under the British?! And whoever has been in charge thus far seemed to fully back 'free business' (best place in world for corporations, low tax etc), at the extreme expense of quality of life for average citizens.  Apparently only 20% of Hong Kongers pay income tax (and its pretty damn low tax rate to begin) because their incomes are so low. And the air and housing quality leave much to be improved.  I'm going to keep my eye on this.  Hardly patting myself on the back for being politically involved, but I'm becoming more "aware" than other Expats who just "use" this city temporarily and don't care for it.


On the work front, I spent a few days in Beijing where the weather was pleasant. However my hotel experience horrifying (dirty water from 5 star hotel tap).  Also caught up with Hong Kong colleagues some of whom thought I was not even based here!  Other than that, nothing particularly interesting, yawn.


On the home front, Stephen and I have been more active and social. We completed a very hilly trail run on Mar 18th (Hysan) at Tai Lam Country Park (near Yuan Long). The final 800m was a vertical climb - highly demoralizing and unheroic finish! It was a sudden 27C and hot that day so water was much needed. Thereafter we enjoyed a nice buffet in Mongkok's Langham Hotel with two other friends. We also had nice meals with out of town guests from UK (Sam Cho) and JP Kong from France at Lei Yue Mun seafood (rip-off) market and Korean in Causeway Bay.  Stephen's MBA friend also moved here from Toronto. Also volleyball was enjoyed again finally (its SOO hard to book courts here) followed by a good Thai restaurant in Pok Fu Lam (Kennedy Town).  


I spent a few days in Singapore primarily with Family.  Drama.  Was glad to be back in Hong Kong!


Looking forward to travels to Yunnan province over Easter after my friend Nancy's wedding here in Hong Kong.  And we signed up for our first half  marathon (night run in Singapore)! Yikes!

3-8 International Women's Day

Today is 3/8 (Mar 8) - International Women's Day.  I look back at the last year and reflect on how much more aware I've become of women's issues and progress in the workplace and in society as a whole.  To be honest, out of the 60+ directors and VPs in my department, only 4 are women (including the head SVP, thank gosh) - so 6.7%.  Not great at all. You can excuse it on us being in the 'high tech' industry, but honestly its pretty bad at senior levels in finance or any major industry.  I was even voted to represent the Hong Kong office in our internal women's network.  But most of my colleagues are interested in social activities and not real women's issues (I can't force them, but it is disappointing to see).  Additionally per the APEC Women's Summit back in Sept in San Francisco, women's representation on boards, at senior levels in industry and beyond mid-level is declining in mature countries.  But it starts in the home and from local culture (in my view).  And Hong Kong is far more progressive than other countries - even in North America!

Long story short - we have tons of work to do to progress women to be equal participants in our society and economy.  The question is, do we all care enough to even set this as our goal?

Post CNY good moods; $1.4m rent; rampant corruption!

Its been 25 days since my last blog. Its becoming more a diary than any insightful commentary, so my apologies in advance. Unlike January - full of vacations - the month of February has been mostly "back to work", plus kicking off some good 2012 habits of exercise.

The first week of Feb was spent in Beijing.  First time into "Sanlitun" area for over a year; this is where the Apple store got 'egg'd' when iPhone 4S sales were halted due to crowd unrest. Tried some decent Hunan food.  Weather was pretty cold as Beijing latitude I think is close to Toronto - so down jacket a 'must'.  People in China are generally in a better mood after Lunar New Year break, so my work meetings and dining experiences were far more pleasant ... :)  

Thereafter, I flew to Dallas for work, then drove to/from Austin in the pouring rain (i do NOT miss driving at all) for more meetings, happily crashed with old friends for southern breakfast in Dallas, then to Toronto for two days for family time, then LA dinner with Montreal childhood friends ... then back to HKG. Great.

On a more leisurely note, I've been training for a half marathon (week four so far), which is roughly 5-7 miles running every 2nd or 3rd day.  I feel great.  Treadmills tend to be boring but better on knees. Ran about 60-70 miles so far but no further than 12km at a time.  Even discovered our apartment gym... it has two treadmills  - who knew?! Now... the only problem is the target date is moving since we have yet to register for a half-marathon race itself! Hopefully by April I'll be ready.

Also we bought new tennis racquets and a nice bag, so I've practicing a bit more these days.  Still enjoying the weekends of friends, food, exercise and lazing around Hong Kong with Stephen.  His new job at SHKF means he's more familiar with Causeway Bay which is great :) 

Did you know Forever 21 pays $1.4 million US per month in retail rent (highest in the world for this chain) -- just to capture Chinese shoppers in Causeway Bay???

The most disturbing thing I read recently above governments, corruption and the rise of China is: The richest 70 members of China’s legislature added more to their wealth last year than the combined net worth of all 535 members of the U.S. Congress, the president and his Cabinet, and the nine Supreme Court justices.  

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-26/china-s-billionaire-lawmakers-make-u-s-peers-look-like-paupers.html

WHAT THE F*@$!  

(YES I even think this 'result' of government work is worse than Hong Kong's $6000 HKD refund to citizens because they can't find good ways to use their surplus! People do need some level of responsible government in my opinion!)

You know its January when gym is packed and barely any work days!

January 2012 has officially closed. But you always know its a new year when the gym is packed and every machine is taken! 


I hardly worked in January hence it was a good month. Got back from vacation on Jan 9th, went to Taipei for meetings the week of Jan 16th then to Bali Indonesia from Jan 20-25th.  These kinds of months are good ones.


In Bali, we chose to stay in the 'traditional cultural hills/rice paddy fields' area called Ubud. Its a few hours from the Denpasar airport but definitely beautiful.  The wood work, craft and Balinese architecture is stunning.  They build sharp peak roofs to capture heat, but the design is simple yet tasteful (not as simple as Zen).  I know what our house will look like one day!


Besides the fact that our hotel driver's mobile ringtone was Justin Bieber, Ubud is truly a serene place. We stayed in Villa Sarna, a family run hotel of only 7 villas.  Home cooked breakfast of Nasi Goreng, and prompt service yet reasonable prices.  On the way, we stopped for famous Balinese style crispy pork. YUM but fatty.  We then took a cycling day tour from Mount Bakur down through Ubud's local temples and homes and rice fields.  Also paid 50 rupiah to try Kopi Lowak (coffee beans outputted via cat's poo, then heated and smushed).  Its extremely smooth; apparently costs $30 USD per cup elsewhere!  Ginseng coffee is truly special so we bought some of that after our coffee tasting.  Realised how many different people travel to Bali to 'find themselves' or to go somewhere relatively Westernized... we traveled with some GE European executive stationed in Shanghai.  I'm in awe how global some folks truly are!


So, Ubud has stunning scenery, and we got lucky that it was quite warm but not too hot (25-30C).  Barely any rain despite the forecast.  Then we enjoyed a Balinese dance performance in Ubud town after some fabulous Indonesian curry and satay.


The next day we were planning to go scuba diving but we hummed and hawed about the 3+ hour drive (one way) to Padang Bai or Amed or USS Liberty shipwreck. Ugh we're lazy. If you add two dives, that would be the most exhausting 'vacation' day ever!  We've dived over a dozen times but its becoming more trouble than enjoyment. 


So instead we hired a driver for the day to take us first to Sanur ('snore' is the nickname per Lonely Planet).  Beaches were decent not great, lots of retired Europeans seem to live there (especially Dutch since Indonesia is a former Dutch colony). Had a nice lunch in Sanur town, then drove off to Kuta beach. Intentionally I avoided hotels in Kuta since this is the Aussie party town where previous terrorist bombings occurred.  The beach was downright AWFUL and disgusting.  The town was sooo commercialised, traffic and pollution were terrible.  


We walked and stopped for snacks along the beach from Kuta to Legian to Seminyak (increasingly upmarket and cleaner beach as well).  Its about a 7-8km walk.  The breeze and view in Seminyak was amazing!  We enjoyed a small bite/drink at Ku De Ta (hip lounge for foreigners on the beach), then went nearby to Sate Bali for satay and delicious seafood.  Didn't get a chance to walk around Seminyak town but may be next time we'd stay near there.  Long day after 1.5 hours drive back to Ubud!


The next day we spent in Nusa Dua at the Conrad Hotel.  I was impressed but it looked like any other luxury seaside resort.  Nothing very 'Balinese' about it except maybe some food or the spa decor.  That evening we enjoyed fresh seafood at Jimbarah Beach overlooking the sunset before boarding our flight back to Jakarta.


All in all, a relaxing, relatively longer few day break.  Stephen had just started his new job before Chinese New Year, so had to get back for 2 more days after CNY!


Other recent happenings include family visits for red pocket hand-outs and lunches, taking up tennis again, outstanding Australian Open 2012 Final between Djokovic (winner) taking almost 6 hours to beat Nadal (after almost 5 hours to beat Andy Murray in semi's) and trying to settle back into routine.  I made a resolution to try to minimize business travel. hmm - tough so far.


Now we're trying to train for a half marathon. We'll see how that goes!  Nonetheless, I bought Nike Free runners "barefoot ride".  Concerned its not quite enough support. Have to run 4x per week...so far so good!  Wish us luck!

10 years together, Happy 2012 and Enter the Dragon!

A new year calls for a fresh new font for my blogs.  There ain't much good font choice on blogger.com!


Let's see... Stephen and I had a restful and full non working week in Toronto for Christmas. As usual, all about babies and kids adds more joy than adult only dinners.  No big news except it was unseasonally warm at first then snowed and very cold!  Watched "The Artist" with mom for her birthday. It was black and white. And a SILENT movie. Makes you pay attention.  Apparently it won Directors Guild awards and may even win Grammy's!  It was good but not that good in my view.


Happy 10 years and Happy 2012


On Jan 1st, we headed out to Vancouver, had brunch in my old 'hood Yaletown with old friends, then drove up to Whistler. I must say the sea-to-sky highway is far broader and faster now due to the 2010 Olympics (our last trip being in 2009).  Less than 1.5 hours in a shitty low end rental car!  The conditions were shitty on average; very rainy in the village and lots of avalanche blasts at the summit.  Day 1 was clear and we trekked all the way up 5+ lifts and t-bars to Blackcomb Summit.  Usually this back country area has the absolute best powder but it was hard packed. And PAINFUL. Good thing I didn't fall off the T-bar 4x like our last trip (you may laugh, but this is a very very long and steep set of T-bars. not for amateurs :( )  At the end of the day, unfortunately with so many runs closed due to bad conditions, we mistakenly ended up on a double black diamond (very difficult) run.  Stephen tumbled and luckily his board released.  I was slowly going down - then a crazy skiier kid rammed into my leg. I got a serious charley horse and couldn't walk well for the rest of the week!  luckily days 2 and 4 were much better; day 3 was rainy as shit.  Base is ~200cm / 80" by now...that said Tahoe and Salt Lake City got no snow at all (they're golfing in Tahoe) so lots of the other visitors changed last minute to Whistler!  All in all a fun vacation as Denise and Rob also joined us.  


We also celebrated our ten year (dating) anniversary. Since one of our first 'dates' was at Whistler, I suppose we went back for nostalgic reasons. The Village is fun but not that fun. Time for somewhere new next time on the slopes!  Korea? Europe?  All the working folk in Whistler are AUSSIE as well ... they don't recommend OZ for boarding though! 


2012 brings about other news besides charley horses and wet snowboarding conditions.  Stephen started his new job! He's head of institutional research at a very famous company in Hong Kong. So now he has to take MTR subway all the way to Causeway Bay (not walk 12 mins to Central anymore... god forbid, 25 mins door to door!) :)  Wish him luck in his new role!  We also played in a tennis tourney at a friends' club recently to celebrate the Australian Open. And caught up with friends after their travels or holidays. Also made it to Shenzhen for a visit with their government and vice mayor to discuss education, R&D and industry opportunities in South China. Very formal - so glad i wore a suit that day!  There were also monumental elections in Taiwan whereby President Ma (Beijing favorite) won by a narrow margin, something like 51% vs. 46%. I heard its more the business/economic focused campaign win rather than idealists....


Enter the Dragon


The most important holiday season in Greater China is upon us - Spring Holiday (Chinese New Year, Chun Jie). Besides China and Taiwan have massive travel to hometowns and a full week off, there is red decorations abound, jammed airport lounges and more-than-usual number of pregnant ladies hoping for a Dragon baby (my colleague she had her baby two weeks early, doh ! )... also I have to give out red pockets to my team at work, and also received some as well. This is serious money and so are "lucky draw" at company annual dinners.  For instance, I heard a client's dinner had A-mei performing (she is super famous Taiwanese singer).  And another one had grand prize of a BMW car.  Ours included mobile phones, ipads, and again - some serious cash prizes! 


We're off to Bali Indonesia tonight for the holidays since HK only gets 3 days (not a full week. We get Xmas but Taiwan/China do not!). Its 25-30C daily but rain in the forecast. Yikes!  Also we plan some scuba diving. I've dived more than a dozen times and in reading my dive history, saw decent views but always seemed disappointed. Fingers crossed!


Gong Xi Fa Cai!  Xin Nian Kuai Le!