I need to add one more blog so 2011 volume is at least equal to my 2010 blog frequency (never mind its 12 months versus 4 month last year)....!
And why am I still sitting at my work desk at 4pm Friday Dec 23rd? Oh ya, 3+ months of expense reports piling up at year end.... I. WILL. FINISH. THESE. Or never see the money reimbursed.
Happy Christmas!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Winter Solstice bigger than Chinese New Year?
Apparently Winter Solstice holiday (shortest daylight of year, Dec 22, 2011) is more important to Chinese people than Spring Festival (Chinese New Year). Not sure I believed this when my Aunt mentioned it. However they do let us out of work by 4pm that day (of course, I left at 6pm:( )
Anyway, Stephen and I were invited to join the Tsang-Ho clan from my dad's cousin's side in Po Lam for Winter Solstice dinner. The food was fabulous, from a roast pig, to all variants of pork chops, veggies, mushrooms and rice options. All of this only a few short hours after my Office Christmas Lunch at Langham Hotel - The Bostonian (Seafood buffet with amazing salmon, fresh crab, lamb chop, etc). Damn it was a rough eating day yesterday!
On a more sombre note, my other aunt and my grandma's sister need your prayers as both have health challenges at the moment.
As we look back on 2011, we have been really blessed with countless trips around Asia and North America, new jobs and good friends, and a conveniently located and comfortable home. Most recently, we went to Sanya (Yalong Bay) in Hainan Island of South China. It was a good, warm get-away not too far from Hong Kong. Look forward to flying to Toronto tomorrow for a week then to heaven-on-earth - Whistler Blackcomb !
Wish you all a very happy and wonderful holidays!
Anyway, Stephen and I were invited to join the Tsang-Ho clan from my dad's cousin's side in Po Lam for Winter Solstice dinner. The food was fabulous, from a roast pig, to all variants of pork chops, veggies, mushrooms and rice options. All of this only a few short hours after my Office Christmas Lunch at Langham Hotel - The Bostonian (Seafood buffet with amazing salmon, fresh crab, lamb chop, etc). Damn it was a rough eating day yesterday!
On a more sombre note, my other aunt and my grandma's sister need your prayers as both have health challenges at the moment.
As we look back on 2011, we have been really blessed with countless trips around Asia and North America, new jobs and good friends, and a conveniently located and comfortable home. Most recently, we went to Sanya (Yalong Bay) in Hainan Island of South China. It was a good, warm get-away not too far from Hong Kong. Look forward to flying to Toronto tomorrow for a week then to heaven-on-earth - Whistler Blackcomb !
Wish you all a very happy and wonderful holidays!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
SMOG: To Beijing... and straight back!
Beijing pollution is so bad unless there is strong wind. Last Tuesday, Dec 6, as CNN reported, hundreds of planes including my own, flew into Beijing airport airspace, but then turned back (mine all the way back to Hong Kong!). We simply could not land due to severe smog and pollution. Wow - in all my years of flying, I've never gone there and back (total 10 hours) in one go. It scares me when the pilot announces he's "going to go for it" despite being warned to turn back to HK mid way...
I made it there on Wednesday eventually, had several meetings then went to Spice Spirit (a Sichuan food chain) with colleagues. They didn't serve any beer besides Bud Light (I'm serious), so we gave them some cash to go outside to buy Tsingtao :) On Thursday, again more meetings followed by dinner at Banana Leaf Thai in Zhongguancun. At -10C, my hands almost froze off but thankfully I wore boots and heattech top. I wandered around aimlessly in circles after eventually making it to the restaurant (it turned out behind a mall with which I am most familiar). The food was so-so but there was a live filipino band that comes around singing to each table -- in any language too! Impressive.
Back in Hong Kong life, we are thinking about our first year and starting to relax more. We also may move homes if the right unit comes available in Kowloon - where the food is more plentiful, better tasting and faaar cheaper. For example, we had (reverse) sticker shock after a hearty dim sum lunch at a pretty nice restaurant in TST for only $108HKD (about $13 USD)! When you dine with locals once, your standards are higher on taste and much lower on price. I like that! In fact we often travel "across the water" to TST and Mongkok for meals and food because the taste is simply better (at least for Asian fare).
This weekend, we're planning to hit Sanya (Hainan Island, China), which is China's Hawaii. The latitude is near tropical and its the southern most point in China. Maybe some golf, swimming, R&R and resort-ing. I really wanted to do Chengdu but time just isn't enough.
On a personal front, my friend is moving back to NYC from Hong Kong soon so we had a good bye Korean BBQ for her :-( Also I've been matched with an MBA student from Russia in the Women's Foundation Mentoring Program, and meeting wonderfully accomplished women along the networking journey. Truly humbled. Finally, we look forward to seeing some friends and family before flying to Toronto for Christmas on Dec 24 then off to Whistler on Jan 1. Can't wait!
Have a wonderful mid Dec week everybody!
I made it there on Wednesday eventually, had several meetings then went to Spice Spirit (a Sichuan food chain) with colleagues. They didn't serve any beer besides Bud Light (I'm serious), so we gave them some cash to go outside to buy Tsingtao :) On Thursday, again more meetings followed by dinner at Banana Leaf Thai in Zhongguancun. At -10C, my hands almost froze off but thankfully I wore boots and heattech top. I wandered around aimlessly in circles after eventually making it to the restaurant (it turned out behind a mall with which I am most familiar). The food was so-so but there was a live filipino band that comes around singing to each table -- in any language too! Impressive.
Back in Hong Kong life, we are thinking about our first year and starting to relax more. We also may move homes if the right unit comes available in Kowloon - where the food is more plentiful, better tasting and faaar cheaper. For example, we had (reverse) sticker shock after a hearty dim sum lunch at a pretty nice restaurant in TST for only $108HKD (about $13 USD)! When you dine with locals once, your standards are higher on taste and much lower on price. I like that! In fact we often travel "across the water" to TST and Mongkok for meals and food because the taste is simply better (at least for Asian fare).
This weekend, we're planning to hit Sanya (Hainan Island, China), which is China's Hawaii. The latitude is near tropical and its the southern most point in China. Maybe some golf, swimming, R&R and resort-ing. I really wanted to do Chengdu but time just isn't enough.
On a personal front, my friend is moving back to NYC from Hong Kong soon so we had a good bye Korean BBQ for her :-( Also I've been matched with an MBA student from Russia in the Women's Foundation Mentoring Program, and meeting wonderfully accomplished women along the networking journey. Truly humbled. Finally, we look forward to seeing some friends and family before flying to Toronto for Christmas on Dec 24 then off to Whistler on Jan 1. Can't wait!
Have a wonderful mid Dec week everybody!
Thursday, December 1, 2011
JETLAG & CHEAP Austin buffets
Hi again everybody... i'm getting old. My ability to fly overseas and back in one week has declined significantly. I'm encountering serious jetlag after a week in Austin and Toronto. Its probably my 7th trip (i lost count) in this year alone.
On a sad note, my company had layoffs a few weeks ago so it was critical that I fly back to HQ to check-in with friends and colleagues.
Getting to Austin is a pain, via LAX, where they simply don't welcome foreigners. And the connections require you to walk outside to another terminal. But I caught up before U.S. Thanksgiving holiday with colleagues in Austin. They took me to a much better Vietnamese restaurant near the old office/airport.... with great pho, broken rice and bun. However we opted out of the all you can eat (stir fried) buffet...which was only $6.99US! (can you believe how cheap that is??). Dallas airport was a zoo on the way to Toronto as well.
In Toronto, I stayed with my parents for a few days which was nice. Had to work the first few days but then caught up with old friends, new babies and attended my nephew Adam's baptism.
Also, there is almost 10ft of snow at Whistler Blackcomb, and the mountains are open! Can't wait to go there after New Year!
On a sad note, my company had layoffs a few weeks ago so it was critical that I fly back to HQ to check-in with friends and colleagues.
Getting to Austin is a pain, via LAX, where they simply don't welcome foreigners. And the connections require you to walk outside to another terminal. But I caught up before U.S. Thanksgiving holiday with colleagues in Austin. They took me to a much better Vietnamese restaurant near the old office/airport.... with great pho, broken rice and bun. However we opted out of the all you can eat (stir fried) buffet...which was only $6.99US! (can you believe how cheap that is??). Dallas airport was a zoo on the way to Toronto as well.
In Toronto, I stayed with my parents for a few days which was nice. Had to work the first few days but then caught up with old friends, new babies and attended my nephew Adam's baptism.
Also, there is almost 10ft of snow at Whistler Blackcomb, and the mountains are open! Can't wait to go there after New Year!
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
HK is not stroller friendly... that 25/F furniture mall would be impossible
At least they try.
In Hong Kong, there are inconsistent pockets of wheel chair and stroller friendliness. There are ramps here and there, and suddenly 10 steps. Or twenty MTR subway turnstiles and one wide entrance one. At Sheung Wan station, there is an elevator that at least transports passengers up (but not down to platform). And on Hollywood Road, its (mostly) flat until you hit super steep stairs. Same at our apartment; some ramps but suddenly a step or two. Wierd. Its basically an escalator and stairs city!! And taxi drivers are extremely defensive about their seatbelts working (even though its highly inconsistent!). However within malls like Harbour City and Elements and IFC, apparently the changing and nursing rooms are quite nice. But somehow, people manage, usually with many hands and families traveling in groups or with domestic helpers.
Nonetheless its been a joy having my sister Christine and her four month old baby Adam visit us this week in Hong Kong. He's such a joyous smily baby (even when constipated), sleeps through our dinners out or at the peak, and he can be held by anyone willing to help Christine out for a few minutes :)
Last week, Stephen and I went to Ap Lei Chau where Horizon Plaza is a 2F/F furniture mall, scattered with a Lane Crawford, Prada and Diesel outlets. We started at the top (Tree Cafe) looking for a bedframe, did EVERY floor and exited with a few pairs of pants about 3 hours later in the dark :(
I am in Taipei for two days and back in HK on Thursday night. Can you believe its only Wed!?
In Hong Kong, there are inconsistent pockets of wheel chair and stroller friendliness. There are ramps here and there, and suddenly 10 steps. Or twenty MTR subway turnstiles and one wide entrance one. At Sheung Wan station, there is an elevator that at least transports passengers up (but not down to platform). And on Hollywood Road, its (mostly) flat until you hit super steep stairs. Same at our apartment; some ramps but suddenly a step or two. Wierd. Its basically an escalator and stairs city!! And taxi drivers are extremely defensive about their seatbelts working (even though its highly inconsistent!). However within malls like Harbour City and Elements and IFC, apparently the changing and nursing rooms are quite nice. But somehow, people manage, usually with many hands and families traveling in groups or with domestic helpers.
Nonetheless its been a joy having my sister Christine and her four month old baby Adam visit us this week in Hong Kong. He's such a joyous smily baby (even when constipated), sleeps through our dinners out or at the peak, and he can be held by anyone willing to help Christine out for a few minutes :)
Last week, Stephen and I went to Ap Lei Chau where Horizon Plaza is a 2F/F furniture mall, scattered with a Lane Crawford, Prada and Diesel outlets. We started at the top (Tree Cafe) looking for a bedframe, did EVERY floor and exited with a few pairs of pants about 3 hours later in the dark :(
I am in Taipei for two days and back in HK on Thursday night. Can you believe its only Wed!?
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
More to life than work?! And weird Beijing environmental policies...
14 months into my HK life, I realize there could maybe be more to HK life than work (call me slow... or just busy). Stephen on the other hand has been incredibly busy with work dinners. And for once I am NOT traveling last and this week!
Starting with the APEC conference back in Sept, I played volleyball (once), increased the frequency of my Mandarin tutor sessions, began advising VC backed start-ups (Astia), joined The Women's Foundation TWF as a mentor for young professional women, attended several MIT and Sloan alumni events in Hong Kong and joined the Beijing Energy Network (grassroots group of weekly speakers; I attended the electric car talk in Raffles City Beijing). Ivy and I attended the charity fundraiser event at Renaissance for TWF where there are certainly provocative speakers like the Vice Chair of HK's Democratic Party who is banned from Mainland China for 20 years.... thought provoking whether or not you agree! I tried to bit on some awesome auction prizes but got outbid. Ironically, it being a women's fundraiser, the men in attendance tended to win the silent auction... hmm... more competitive?
Did you know Beijing has a policy that one can only drive their cars 4 days per week? But the traffic has gotten so much worse! and on environmental pollution measurement, they don't measure the small particles which is basically sand flying around BJ. Yikes! Finally electric vehicles like Nissan Leaf are selling like hotcakes in US where its more trendy to be green, but really not taking off in China. I reckon its because its still a relatively new luxury to own a car, and people do want the comfort of a larger one. Not to mention so few charging stations! Japanese, German and US are still far ahead with respect to electric car technology... Anyway food for thought... met some very interesting US Embassy folks, lawyers and Dow Jones journalists however at this event....
BUT most immediately rewarding is the great, comfortable fall weather for hiking around HK and running on Bowen Road again!
Starting with the APEC conference back in Sept, I played volleyball (once), increased the frequency of my Mandarin tutor sessions, began advising VC backed start-ups (Astia), joined The Women's Foundation TWF as a mentor for young professional women, attended several MIT and Sloan alumni events in Hong Kong and joined the Beijing Energy Network (grassroots group of weekly speakers; I attended the electric car talk in Raffles City Beijing). Ivy and I attended the charity fundraiser event at Renaissance for TWF where there are certainly provocative speakers like the Vice Chair of HK's Democratic Party who is banned from Mainland China for 20 years.... thought provoking whether or not you agree! I tried to bit on some awesome auction prizes but got outbid. Ironically, it being a women's fundraiser, the men in attendance tended to win the silent auction... hmm... more competitive?
Did you know Beijing has a policy that one can only drive their cars 4 days per week? But the traffic has gotten so much worse! and on environmental pollution measurement, they don't measure the small particles which is basically sand flying around BJ. Yikes! Finally electric vehicles like Nissan Leaf are selling like hotcakes in US where its more trendy to be green, but really not taking off in China. I reckon its because its still a relatively new luxury to own a car, and people do want the comfort of a larger one. Not to mention so few charging stations! Japanese, German and US are still far ahead with respect to electric car technology... Anyway food for thought... met some very interesting US Embassy folks, lawyers and Dow Jones journalists however at this event....
BUT most immediately rewarding is the great, comfortable fall weather for hiking around HK and running on Bowen Road again!
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
"When in Rome..." (eat PORK)
"When in Rome..."
Chicken meat is scary in Hong Kong and China. There are chickens everywhere and typically people opt for chicken curry (over pork or beef) for example. However I'm convinced the preparation of chicken by most chefs here is questionable. Both at a renowned Crystal Jade Shanghainese restaurant in IFC and recently at Sala Thai in Elements Mall - the chicken thigh meat is questionable! Don't eat it!! At least thankfully I didn't get sick (but claire and stephen got sick at crystal jade). On the other hand, chicken breast is hit or miss (too easily too dry).
Other than beef noodle soup in Taipei, I also suggest you stay away from the beef in Asia. If its imported from Australia, it could be good but keep in mind, it was frozen (I prefer fresh food)!
So when in Asia, eat pork. Simply put. Thank goodness I love pork!
On an unrelated note, IKEA has a foothold on the entire bed ecosystem of parts (in business talk). Their king size frames and sheets are 2cm too narrow for non-IKEA mattresses! Damn you! Ah. Sleeping on the floor for a while now as we hunt around for a bed frame.
Also Hallowe'en is huge in Hong Kong, not by the number of trick or treaters (there are zero), but because everyone dresses up on the weekend. Too bad we didn't participate! I'm going to next year!!!
bye!
Chicken meat is scary in Hong Kong and China. There are chickens everywhere and typically people opt for chicken curry (over pork or beef) for example. However I'm convinced the preparation of chicken by most chefs here is questionable. Both at a renowned Crystal Jade Shanghainese restaurant in IFC and recently at Sala Thai in Elements Mall - the chicken thigh meat is questionable! Don't eat it!! At least thankfully I didn't get sick (but claire and stephen got sick at crystal jade). On the other hand, chicken breast is hit or miss (too easily too dry).
Other than beef noodle soup in Taipei, I also suggest you stay away from the beef in Asia. If its imported from Australia, it could be good but keep in mind, it was frozen (I prefer fresh food)!
So when in Asia, eat pork. Simply put. Thank goodness I love pork!
On an unrelated note, IKEA has a foothold on the entire bed ecosystem of parts (in business talk). Their king size frames and sheets are 2cm too narrow for non-IKEA mattresses! Damn you! Ah. Sleeping on the floor for a while now as we hunt around for a bed frame.
Also Hallowe'en is huge in Hong Kong, not by the number of trick or treaters (there are zero), but because everyone dresses up on the weekend. Too bad we didn't participate! I'm going to next year!!!
bye!
Monday, October 31, 2011
Last beach day of season...
Two taxis, a boat, an hour's steep hike. Lovely breezy 25C sunny weather. It is indeed quite a trek (four hours to be exact) to the most lovely beach in Hong Kong: Tai Long Wan (big wave bay) located in Sai Kung. We took a taxi to Sai Kung ($200HKD) then a New Territories Green Taxi to Wong Shek Pier ($90HKD). Then paid an old po-po/grandma $20hkd each to drive 6 of us on a small boat for 15 mins to Chek Keng, the hike start. From there we walked a very steep 2km towards Ham Tin beach including a stop for instant noodles, fried eggs, vermicelli and fresh organic peppers. Oily but tasty. Their toilet was a dungeon literally though. From Ham Tin, this time around it was PACKED of tourists. Then another 15-20 mins hike up rocks with climbing ropes, then down to Tai Long Wan, where we played in the big waves, slept on the clean beach and just relaxed before the trek backwards home... long day! Usually there are old ladies driving their boats directly to Sai Kung to Ham Tin but the waves were just too big.
Upon returning to Sai Kung (mad traffic) Stephen and I ate at Paisano's which was rammed with foreigners. Their crust is nice but toppings sparse except oddly for too much cheese (typically costly in Asia), and far too little tomato sauce. I'm sore! Our new mattress was a welcome retreat once home.
Now today - another week at work. But i'm glad to be in town and not traveling for once. Have a great week everybody!
Upon returning to Sai Kung (mad traffic) Stephen and I ate at Paisano's which was rammed with foreigners. Their crust is nice but toppings sparse except oddly for too much cheese (typically costly in Asia), and far too little tomato sauce. I'm sore! Our new mattress was a welcome retreat once home.
Now today - another week at work. But i'm glad to be in town and not traveling for once. Have a great week everybody!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Din Tai Fung in Taipei 101 = so so
There are tons of Din Tai Fung xiao long bao (steamed bun with soup) restaurants around Asia, Australia and in Toronto also. But I went to one location in its native city of Taipei, and supposedly the newest location tonight with a few colleagues - in the B1 basement of Taipei 101. To be honest - it was average. I think thus far the best tasting location is in Hong Kong Causeway Bay. On the topic of soup dumplings that originate in Shanghai, they were the worst there actually (stomach aches yuck). At least on the 'plus' side the tung choi (water spinach) is back in season! In general Taipei restaurants are cleaner with better service than in Hong Kong or China (but maybe only in the Xinyi modern area).
This week is the last week of business travel for some time (I hope!). Can't wait to breathe easy this weekend and next week :)
it was my grandma's birthday this week and soon my grandpa's birthday too. I wish I was home to celebrate with them :(
Have a nice Wednesday everyone!
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Homemade wonton and gyozas... took the plunge with the mattress!!
We did it. Spent a fortune on king sized brand name mattress. Stephen is convinced the top 3 mattress vendors mix up all the brand names and model numbers so you can't read reviews; but there are globally only a handful of different models. Oh well. We're knowing suckers. Now onto the expensive sheet sets, mattress covers, bedframe and re-organizing our home to accommodate this new king(dom).
Anyway also found wonderful non frozen locally made wonton and gyoza wrappers at Wellcome Superstore (24 hours, Causeway Bay near Ikea). They taste better than they look the photos - steamed was way better this time; last time the wrappers were thinner so fried gyozas rocked. Unfortunately the won ton wrappers were gigantic so some were envelope-like! All in all, I really enjoy making wontons and gyozas from scratch!
To add to our shopping misery, we caved and bought an air cleaner which is totally needed given the bad air and non stop air con in HK.
Now... off to Taipei and Beijing this week again. But our guests shall be more comfortable enjoying our current double bed! Have a great week everyone!
Anyway also found wonderful non frozen locally made wonton and gyoza wrappers at Wellcome Superstore (24 hours, Causeway Bay near Ikea). They taste better than they look the photos - steamed was way better this time; last time the wrappers were thinner so fried gyozas rocked. Unfortunately the won ton wrappers were gigantic so some were envelope-like! All in all, I really enjoy making wontons and gyozas from scratch!
To add to our shopping misery, we caved and bought an air cleaner which is totally needed given the bad air and non stop air con in HK.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Mattresses in Hong Kong are so expensive!
Ikea cannot be the ONLY place in town for beds. So we were convinced that normal branded mattresses were available in Hong Kong. Yes they are (Simmons, Sealy, and King Koil, plus some more Asian local brands like Slumberland). But man - these mattresses cost a fortune! Plus there is usually the Japanese and U.S. models. The Japanese styles are shorter (like 190cm length) and bed is too firm for me. And they're into space saving, non-pillow top thickness. Like 8" height. Does it really save that much more space? Are ceilings lower in Japan too? The U.S. models can be much longer but the prices are easily 3x the North American prices. Now the big jump from our Full/Double sized bed to Queen seems not worth it; we should have upgraded before shipping our furniture over to Asia. That said, no chance in hell a King sized bed will fit into our elevator or flat (actually we didn't measure). But the more elbowing in bed, the more we'll have to pinch pennies and jump take the plunge. A ten year investment in a good mattress seems worth it, no? We got so disillusioned that the hydraulic storage leather bed/headboard seemed very interesting...
Happy 3 year anniversary and 25th birthday to Stephen
Forgot to mention in my last mad 'diary'- like blog that we celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary and Stephen's 25th birthday in late Sept. Good times although suburbia isn't really my thing :)
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Good bye Steve Jobs, Hello Yangshuo, Cebu, Hillary and joint Toronto visit
Dear Friends - I have been terrible at keeping up with my blog. First and foremost, Steve Jobs, the legendary innovator behind Apple's amazing story, Pixar and disruption of the music industry, passed away from pancreatic cancer a day after the IPhone 4S was announced. He told Stanford Grads in 2005 to Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish, and with our careers, Don't Settle. The world shed so many tears and so did I. What a loss and in time to stick it to Bill Gates for copying Apple's OS decades ago.
Two months have passed since we headed off to Cebu Philippines for a one-night two day trip to Mactan Resort in Lapu Lapu for my birthday. Awful beaches and mediocre food, but a great nearby getaway with spa, pool, jetskiing and snorkeling! Great weather too; not too hot. Wifi and lazy lounge chairs as well. Only 2 hours by flight away, we managed to have a great b-day dinner with friends then scoot off on Sat morning until Sunday night!
https://picasaweb.google.com/118026906425264328225/CebuPhilippinesAug2011
Somewhere in between the stock markets crashed again. Sad for our new investments in HSBC.
Anyway the rest of August my two close friends Claire and Domina moved to Hong Kong. And we got did fabulous hikes to Sai Kung beach which was surprisingly far better than in Cebu! And the stream of visitors continued with my MBA classmate Alice and her sister, Stephen's cousins from France, my cousin Lily from Toronto, his uncle from Toronto, etc. Fun times!
In September, we took a weekend trip to Yangshuo, a gorgeous karst mountain range in Guangxi province near Guilin (this is the home province of my father's family). Local tour guide (Mulan) was hired and we rode bikes about 50km (flat) through rural areas. The weather was humid but we enjoyed wonderful locally chilis and food, rice picking hats, outstanding views cormorant fishing and random local shops for snacks.
https://picasaweb.google.com/118026906425264328225/YangshuoGuilinAreaGuangxiChinaSept2011
For the rest of the month, I was in North America, first in LA for work then San Francisco as an APEC delegate with Hong Kong for the Women & the Economy Summit. At this amazing conference, we got to hear Hillary Clinton and Sheryl Sanberg (Facebook) and Christine Lagarde and Yang Lan speak how Women's full participation is good for economic recovery. Met a lot of great people from public and private sector from all around the world! Then it was all work after that before meeting Stephen in Toronto.
It was our first trip back to Toronto together since moving to Hong Kong. A lot of babies and family events which is nice but totally different from Hong Kong life. Seems too short. I am so glad to finally be back at home in HK after an immediate trip to Taipei to speak at a work conference. Then getting really sick after throwing up from a fancy Hakka lunch meal. Thankfully I recovered quickly!
Miss everyone and sorry that my blogs are becoming more factual and less insightful.
Typed from my new mac book air!!! thanks Stephen!
Monday, August 1, 2011
11th month in HK...Service Economy!
Hi Everyone! Oh my gosh, its been a busy 1.5 months and no time to blog. I've been living in HK for 11 months now... time sure flies... i've renewed my work visa for 2 years
Key findings
- people still walk inconsistently here. Some very fast and others.... sooo slow! Geez.
- i hate the Tung Chung MTR orange subway line - it sits at Hong Kong Station for 5+ mins and only comes every 7 mins :(. compared with the 2-3 mins wait on Island Line, its brutal (and I only go ONE stop to work)
- there are many cockroaches on the streets of Hong Kong. Yuck! Cleanliness is not nearly as high as Taipei for instance. Ironically there are washroom and street cleaning people everywhere, yet it is still dirty
- seafood and dim sum remains the best food in HK. However the Kowloon side has better tasting restaurants compared with HK Island (especially we don't fancy Central or Soho as much!). Its worth the trip across the harbour!
- its DAMN hot and humid in summer. We need to use lots of dehumidifying boxes and machines. Our energy bill for air conditioning is very costly, as is running washer / dryer at home.
- Therefore its really a 'Service Economy' here... better to be served in restaurants and have clothes washed by someone else! Don't put away your trays in the food courts or you'll be threatening people's jobs
- Hong Kong is a convenient location to travel within Asia. The airport is kind of far but flying in the region is very convenient and affordable
- still loving our home's location. easy walk to Central, IFC or MTR station. Come visit!
- they don't sell certain Cereals here, for example, Shreddies must be brought in by suitcase for Stephen from Canada, as does Quaker Oats with Apple/Cinnamon oatmeal
- still haven't been to all the fabulous roof top lounges / bars. Recently tried The Upper House at Pacific Place, and Ozone at 118th floor Ritz Carlton ICC... many more to try apparently
- HK is definitely not mainland China (not yet anyway). In Mainland, there was a train wreck whereby two high speed trains crashed. The government censored all negative commentary on the accident! And buried the rail cars on site before a full investigation could start. Shady... and very scary! Most people reckon the rail development in China was too rushed with poor training and oversight. Corrupt! Read: http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnbc.com%2Fid%2F43965730%2FChina_Imposes_Blackout_on_Train_Wreck_Coverage&h=RAQBv70RR
On a personal front,
So besides a few overseas trips to see our 3 new nephews/nieces (Welcome Joven Lau, Adam Herrera and Kristin Yang)... and luckily being able to catch up with some MBA friends in San Fran, honestly, June/July has been all about work for both Stephen and me.
Shanghai was a pleasant yet rainy trip. Stephen also went for work. We look forward to going back again soon. Beijing is the same polluted, political and dreary biweekly trek for me. We even flew together on a business trip to Beijing...but traveling for work really is not fun! The only 'new' place I went was Yantai Shandong Province, which is a few hours from Qingdao (Tsingtao beer home). The beaches are nice, seafood is great but 'best' hotels are kind of dirty. Nonetheless new places are good to try.
On the plus side, two of my best friends Domina and Claire have separately moved here to Hong Kong, from New York and London UK respectively! They are both still househunting but it will be great to have some time together finally in the same city.
I'll write more after our Cebu Philippines trip next weekend!
Key findings
- people still walk inconsistently here. Some very fast and others.... sooo slow! Geez.
- i hate the Tung Chung MTR orange subway line - it sits at Hong Kong Station for 5+ mins and only comes every 7 mins :(. compared with the 2-3 mins wait on Island Line, its brutal (and I only go ONE stop to work)
- there are many cockroaches on the streets of Hong Kong. Yuck! Cleanliness is not nearly as high as Taipei for instance. Ironically there are washroom and street cleaning people everywhere, yet it is still dirty
- seafood and dim sum remains the best food in HK. However the Kowloon side has better tasting restaurants compared with HK Island (especially we don't fancy Central or Soho as much!). Its worth the trip across the harbour!
- its DAMN hot and humid in summer. We need to use lots of dehumidifying boxes and machines. Our energy bill for air conditioning is very costly, as is running washer / dryer at home.
- Therefore its really a 'Service Economy' here... better to be served in restaurants and have clothes washed by someone else! Don't put away your trays in the food courts or you'll be threatening people's jobs
- Hong Kong is a convenient location to travel within Asia. The airport is kind of far but flying in the region is very convenient and affordable
- still loving our home's location. easy walk to Central, IFC or MTR station. Come visit!
- they don't sell certain Cereals here, for example, Shreddies must be brought in by suitcase for Stephen from Canada, as does Quaker Oats with Apple/Cinnamon oatmeal
- still haven't been to all the fabulous roof top lounges / bars. Recently tried The Upper House at Pacific Place, and Ozone at 118th floor Ritz Carlton ICC... many more to try apparently
- HK is definitely not mainland China (not yet anyway). In Mainland, there was a train wreck whereby two high speed trains crashed. The government censored all negative commentary on the accident! And buried the rail cars on site before a full investigation could start. Shady... and very scary! Most people reckon the rail development in China was too rushed with poor training and oversight. Corrupt! Read: http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnbc.com%2Fid%2F43965730%2FChina_Imposes_Blackout_on_Train_Wreck_Coverage&h=RAQBv70RR
On a personal front,
So besides a few overseas trips to see our 3 new nephews/nieces (Welcome Joven Lau, Adam Herrera and Kristin Yang)... and luckily being able to catch up with some MBA friends in San Fran, honestly, June/July has been all about work for both Stephen and me.
Shanghai was a pleasant yet rainy trip. Stephen also went for work. We look forward to going back again soon. Beijing is the same polluted, political and dreary biweekly trek for me. We even flew together on a business trip to Beijing...but traveling for work really is not fun! The only 'new' place I went was Yantai Shandong Province, which is a few hours from Qingdao (Tsingtao beer home). The beaches are nice, seafood is great but 'best' hotels are kind of dirty. Nonetheless new places are good to try.
On the plus side, two of my best friends Domina and Claire have separately moved here to Hong Kong, from New York and London UK respectively! They are both still househunting but it will be great to have some time together finally in the same city.
I'll write more after our Cebu Philippines trip next weekend!
Sunday, June 12, 2011
9 months & counting... finally bought a dehumidifier
Its June already... wow time flies! Its almost time to renew my annual work permit in HK!
Sorry for the delayed blog. This past few weeks has been busy for both Stephen and me. He's been up at 6am daily for the workweek, and between relatives and parents visits and various biz trips, I've also been busy.
Let's see hmm.. I've been in Taipei the past two weeks for Computex Conference (2011 is the year of the 'copycat' tablet/slate machines... chasing iPads... there are 100+ variants whoa) and also visiting AMD's Manufacturing partners. On a more interesting note, the weather has been lovely -- if not a bit TOO humid.
My parents spent a few weeks touring China including Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou and then finally HK. We took them to Macau (brand new Galaxy hotel has a wavepool - wow!), ate meals with my HK relatives, enjoyed some shopping and dim sum. I also took them to the Peak which was a nice view and breeze compared with in-town.
Daily life continues... and we finally caved and bought a dehumidifier. This is a right of passage if you live in very tropical or humid places to avoid your clothes smelling or molding. Its amazing how much moisture is in the home!
bye!
Sorry for the delayed blog. This past few weeks has been busy for both Stephen and me. He's been up at 6am daily for the workweek, and between relatives and parents visits and various biz trips, I've also been busy.
Let's see hmm.. I've been in Taipei the past two weeks for Computex Conference (2011 is the year of the 'copycat' tablet/slate machines... chasing iPads... there are 100+ variants whoa) and also visiting AMD's Manufacturing partners. On a more interesting note, the weather has been lovely -- if not a bit TOO humid.
My parents spent a few weeks touring China including Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou and then finally HK. We took them to Macau (brand new Galaxy hotel has a wavepool - wow!), ate meals with my HK relatives, enjoyed some shopping and dim sum. I also took them to the Peak which was a nice view and breeze compared with in-town.
Daily life continues... and we finally caved and bought a dehumidifier. This is a right of passage if you live in very tropical or humid places to avoid your clothes smelling or molding. Its amazing how much moisture is in the home!
bye!
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