Always Marvel

Bon Voyage

2012-02-16T13:31:00.000-08:00

Off to Palm Springs tomorrow to kick off my birthday week in style and to celebrate Modernism Week! Only an Interior Designer would geek out about that. So, just for good measure, we'll throw in a fair bit of pool time, cocktails, brunches and shopping! I've checked the weather reports and it is pure Palm Springs perfection all weekend long. Le sigh!

V-Day

2012-02-14T07:44:00.000-08:00

As I sit here listening to the Love Stinks station that Pandora created for this auspicious occasion, I can't help but to reflect. I've scrolled through Facebook, Twitter, etc and seen everyone's posts about their Valentine's Day plans, flowers, how sweet their "hubby"/"hubs" is, posts on their spouse's page about how much they love and appreciate them, etc. This would normally have elicited a scathing mental dialog from me and a very dramatic eye roll but not so much this year.

I had a glorious night of sleep last night and, consequently, overslept this morning - which I never do. I finally awoke to the sound of repeated text message notifications. As I blindly and groggily slammed my hand down on my phone to find out who would dare text me this many times and this early in the morning, I was met with a touching surprise. I had 5 Valentine's Day texts from some lovely, sweet friends. All before 7 am. Even in my somewhat sleep-induced coma, it warmed my heart. I was so grateful. Mostly that they kept me from drastically oversleeping but also because I am so blessed to have such wonderful people in my life.

The past couple of years have been a difficult process of learning who to hold onto and who to remove from my life - friends, relatives or otherwise. I swear that one of life's hardest lessons is figuring out whose part in your story is over and when to let them go. Its a refinement process and I thank God that he has brought me to this place of satisfaction and fulfillment with the people and things in my life at this time. Its so important to be able to enjoy and appreciate what we have AS we have it and not just afterward. That's not to say that there won't be a season where He won't stir things up for me again in the future. And I have to be willing to accept those necessary changes when they come but, for now, life is good. Damn good. ;0)

So I don't look at Valentines Day as an opportunity just to celebrate romantic relationships (as nice as those are) but rather the opportunity to celebrate love in its many forms. Love for my family: big shout out to Ash and Pax - the little loves of my life, love for friends: you are all so fantastically diverse, interesting, talented, loving, supportive and fun and I am so glad to have you all along for the ride, love for my work & passion in life: I feel blessed to work with such solid people and for an organization I believe so much in, and lastly love for all of those things/people that fall somewhere in between ;0) You make my life rich and full.

Ok, I've gotten that out of the way. The sugar rush from my surprise red velvet cupcake is kicking in. So here it comes. You might have wondered what someone had done with the real Stephanie if I didn't include some bit of cynical parody or biting commentary. So, as I enjoy the man-hating sounds of "Bust Your Windows" by Jazmine on Pandora, I will conclude by posting some of my favorite Valentines ecards. Enjoy and love you all (well, most of you anyway)!
*The below are works of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Ok, this one might be related to actual events....

Aaaaand maybe this one is directed at just a few people

Um, I'm pretty sure I know a few people this applies to as well (definitely not me)

Screw it, this one is totally for someone in particular. Oops, did I say that? Maybe hold off on "sharing the love" this Valentine's Day.

So I think I'll do light tapas tonight.......

Sexperimentation

2012-02-07T12:52:00.000-08:00

Sunday ismy new favorite ritual. Church with thefam – my mom, brother, sister-in-law and my niece and nephew. I love this time with my family but this is also how I know God has a sense ofhumor. We all started attending thischurch together and, within a few weeks, the preacher began his new seriesentitled, “Sexperiment”. It is based ona book that the pastor recently released by the same name. Just to give you the picture, here’s how theydescribe the book/series: “In the pages of this book, Ed and Lisa Young will show you and your spousehow, over the course of just seven days, creative sex in marriage—the way Godcreated it—is a tremendous catalyst that leads to much more than a week ofhappiness.” And not to be forgotten,there is a portion of each chapter and sermon devoted to those of us “singles”out there that are NOT having sex currently but should be mentally, spirituallyand emotionally preparing for the day that we do.

I probably need not elaborate in order foreveryone to see the potential this situation has for more than its fair shareof awkwardness. But this is my blog andI want to. So I will. Someone needs to share my pain and, at times,bewildered amusement. To set the stage(pardon the pun), there is literally a full bedroom setup on stage as thebackdrop. Long gone are the days of thepulpit, I suppose. Anyway, the pastor,Ed, and his wife drape casually across this bed as they pontificate about allmatters related to the sanctity of sex – even touching on anal sex lastweekend. My mom was sitting next to meand I’m pretty sure I stopped breathing or moving for a full minute as thosewords crossed his lips.

As all modern churches do, our church has a“band” that passes off popular, secular songs as worship - so long as itrelates to the message of the day. Fairenough. Let’s back up to the first dayof this new series. As the service begins,the lights lower in dramatic fashion with a spotlight on the bed, front and center. Out walks the band and theytear into a soul-stirring version of….. ”Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye. My family and I all shoot sideways glances ateach other as if to say, “Is this really happening?”. I consider myself fairly liberal andpermissive in my faith but THIS was new territory.

My brother and sister-in-law seem to havereally embraced this series, however. Part of the usual subtext is aboutre-igniting your marriage through romance and affection. At which point, my brother will usually reachover and rub my sister-in-law’s leg or hold her hand. My usual response is leaning forward and dramaticallymouthing the words, “GET….A….ROOM”. Itsgreat fun and it helps detract from my discomfort level. Which is always shortly reinstated as I walkout the door and am handed the promotional Sexperiment door hanger that reads “Sexperimentin Progress. Do Not Disturb”. The most disturbing tidbit about this is thatI carelessly tossed it into my passenger car seat and left it there for severalweeks. Not thinking about the fact thatevery co-worker (or any person for that matter) could walk by and see it. And probably did. Although its all prettysilly, it really is a great message and probably one the world desperatelyneeds to hear. I just hope my mom doesn’tget any ideas when they get around to the message about talking to your kidsabout the birds and bees.....

A Productive Weekend

2012-02-06T07:41:00.000-08:00

It was back to the same dress store this weekend for the bridesmaid's dresses. We are all rather....um....well endowed so this was going to be interesting. This was much more fun when the pressure was on Shelby.

I'd like to send a shout out to one bride's father that sat in the dressing area the ENTIRE time as we shuffled in and out of the dressing rooms half-dressed, trying our best to stay "tucked in" to the tiny sample dresses. You may not realize it but we were one faulty dress clip away from a total nipple slip. Or maybe you did realize it and that's why you insisted on staying in the room. I'm not sure if you are just completely clueless, a total tool or a voyeuristic perv. Your first hint to excuse yourself should have been when I shouted, "I got one whole tit in!" from the dressing room. Thanks for making this already humbling experience even more uncomfortable.

Peeping Tom aside, we were relieved to find a dress (see below) that should keep all of the BBBs (big breasted bridesmaids), as we are called, decent while not looking like nuns....or Amish. Thanks, Shelby, for picking us a smoking hot dress!! And for deciding to not do a bouquet toss. Where you would have to come over and awkwardly just hand it to me.

Also fun was my Super Bowl evening with my Spanish friend. A bit of a picnic with a new term he taught me - "pinchos". Pinchos are traditional in northern Spain and are especially poplular in the Basque country, where he is from. Bilbao, specifically. I've loved tapas since my time in Spain and pinchos are very similar. The main difference being that pinchos are usually 'spiked' with a skewer or toothpick, often to a piece of bread. Paired with some nice, light wine it was pretty fabulous. And WAY better than that normal crap you eat at Super Bowl party.

The Unmarried Rite of Passage & the Pursuant Gratitude

2012-01-29T07:09:00.000-08:00

So today was that rite of passage that every unmarried young woman experiences and often dreads - wedding dress shopping for your friend/s. For me, today was that day. It was the joyous occasion for my best friend, Shelby, who is getting married in June. Shelby has been agonizing over wedding dress shopping and dragging her feet for months now. So I went into today very lightly - fully anticipating to play my usual role in our foursome as the jokester to lighten the mood.

The scene at the dress shop (which shall remain nameless) was comical enough. Groups of girls with their friends, mothers, dads, brothers, etc all crammed into a tiny vintage house in the heart of fancy uptown Dallas. The mood of the place was palpable - a mixture of fear, anticipation, excitement and triumph for those rare few that left with dress in hand. As we waited for our appointment we saw three such customers. It was an embarrassing ritual that was hard to miss (and not to mock). Two store clerks would scurry outside ahead of the bride. One picked up a handheld bubble machine and the other would cue the bridal march music on their jambox. Yes, I said jambox. The red-faced bride-to-be would make her grand exit with her expensive gown in tow to the applause and cheers of the women waiting outside. I needed a cocktail. Kill me now.

Sickening pageantry aside, I was here for Shelby and more than happy to do it. Afterall, she deserves this moment more than anyone. She's always wanted to be a bride. She's selfless, caring, innocent and one of the kindest people I know. Not to mention she's been pretty burned. So this was her crowning moment. We were swept into our private dressing room and were immediately surrounded by wall to wall dresses. This is where my unexpected emotional reaction to the day began. Given the somewhat recent set of events that have taken place in my own life, I found myself getting a bit choked up being in the presence of such beautiful and important gowns. Gowns that these women would wear on one of the most significant days of their lives. So, selfishly, there was a small bit of grief and envy that hit me upon initially entering that room. Then I reminded myself that the wedding would have been the only thing beautiful about that relationship and its better to have a broken engagement than an inevitably broken marriage. Best of luck in Denver......deuces.

These feelings quicky passed, however, as Shelby emerged from the dressing room in her first gown. She was stunning. The girls and I immediately commenced picking apart every detail of every gown - good and bad - and even started doing the same for other brides that came through the room in their gowns. It was actually a pretty fun and interactive process. Enter my second emotional rush of the day. One particular bride whose dress we had taken great interest in and began to dialog with asked her consultant to close her dressing room curtain at one point, as she needed "a moment". This previously happy go lucky bride was suddenly having some sort of meltdown. Our ears immediately perked up. What we overheard broke my heart and brought us all to tears. She said, "I guess I can call my dad. I just really wish my mom could have been here for this moment. I just really miss her". The consultant asked if she needed to leave the bride alone for a moment. To which she replied, "No. I just need a hug". This girl had obviously lost her mom recently and, in this significant life moment, just wanted a hug from a total stranger. I wanted to run in there and give her a hug myself. Gratitude swept over me. I have a mother. And I pray to God that when/if that day does come for me, that she will be there. This was powerful.

Little time had passed before the next bride swept through. She was beautiful and we all just sort of gawked at her in all of her Latina glory. She had that tongue-wagging figure that they all have. You know, the J-Lo booty and tiny waist I could probably wrap my hands around. We wanted to kick her in the shins but couldn't help but like her. As she modeled her gown, her tiny, sweet, non-English speaking mother fawned over her. The story emerged that the bride had already purchased this dress on a previous visit but her mother had flown in from Peru just to see it before the actual wedding day. Her mother was so proud and you could see it on her face. She was beaming. I appreciated that emotion in her mom as I've felt and seen the same selfless joy in my own mother's face before. Here came that gratitude thing again.

As these events transpired, Shelby came out in dress after dress. All of which looked beautiful but we couldn't 100% say "yes" to. Until the last one. The dressing room curtain opened and we all got quiet. The consultant placed the veil on Shelby's head and the floodgate of tears opened. All of a sudden, my best friend since I was a young girl stood before us as a total woman. Just wow! Such love and joy for this sweet friend overwhelmed me. I was speechless. I looked around the room and our two other best friends were in the same state. Utter gratitude again. Thank you, God, for blessing me with such precious lifelong friends. So this was the dress. We all squealed, clapped (which I swore I wasn't going to do) and hugged. There was an even greater emotion that came over us at this point - hunger. We were all happy for Shelby but told her that if we didn't eat soon, things were going to get violent. So we hurried her through the checkout process and out the front door for her big moment. Which made this rollercoaster of a day all worth it........

Quite Possibly the Best Birthday Present Ever

2012-01-26T12:12:00.000-08:00

Mmmmmmk, so I just received an early birthday present that has me needing to go home and change my underpants. (I hate the word panties so we won't go there. But I guess I just did). ANYWAY, here's a hint: it involves the little beauty below, me behind the wheel and some extremely high speeds. 0-60mph in 3.7 seconds and 512 Horse Power. Bucket list....check! There will definitely be pics to follow.

Lake Tahoe Part II & Palm Springs

2012-01-25T19:24:00.001-08:00

Ticket back to Lake Tahoe....officially booked! Aw skeet,skeet! Someone should disable my American Airlines app when I'm at happy hour. Then on to Palm Springs for spa, sunbathing, shopping, Interior Design tours, hiking in Joshua Tree National Park and dune buggying in the Mojave desert!

Reno & Tahoe

2012-01-12T17:31:00.000-08:00

Reno and Lake Tahoe have been great. Already looking forward to coming back and exploring more of CA when I come back to Palm Springs for my birthday!

Reno, the "Biggest Little City in the World" has this really cool romantic, vintage vibe. Set against the backdrop of the Sierra Nevada mountains, it brings together a fascinating mix of fluorescent eye candy and beautiful natural topography. The casinos have been fun - hey, I'm only down $40 and am becoming quite the card shark at Black Jack. Even better have been the spas - massage beds that vibrate to the music? Yes, please. Clothing optional, though - not so much.

My walkin' around shoes. So love them but I am a bit surprised I didn't get picked up by the police.

Lake Tahoe far exceeded my expectations. I guess I didn't really know what to expect. For some reason I had this vision in my head of cheesy lounge singers and antiquated lounges, which is actually more Reno than Tahoe. Tahoe is beautiful. Literally the most beautiful mountains and snow I have ever seen. Although its a bit short on snow at the moment, it has been breathtaking.

Starting the New Year off right!

2012-01-03T21:14:00.000-08:00

The New Year is off to an awesome start. I finally got the courage to do something I've been wanting to do for years and I couldn't be happier! Thank you for the emails and support. Now, onto the first of this year's travels! Visiting California three times in the next month and a half is certainly gonna help rack up the frequent flyer miles. First trip....Lake Tahoe and Reno for some spa, gambling and snowmobiling! This is such a better way to enjoy the snow than skiing! I'm kind of liking this 2012 thing ;0). Happy New Year, everyone!

Reno - let's get it!

Always Marvel

2011-12-16T17:22:00.000-08:00

Cambodian Khmer script

Palm Springs, Baby!

2011-11-30T09:01:00.000-08:00

The birthday trip is now officially planned! I can't think of a better place to be a lady of leisure than Palm Springs. We've changed venue to the Riviera for the fabulous pool and swanky bars and decor. Best atmosphere to ring in my big 29th birthday ;0)

Vietnam

2010-05-07T00:01:00.000-07:00

Vietnam was fantastic! I've never had a bad time in Southeast Asia and each country I visit continues to surprise me. This trip I visited Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) and Hanoi in Vietnam. Saigon is the bigger, bustling city and Hanoi is the slower-paced more relaxed of the two.

The heavy French influence and tree-lined streets reminded me of one of my favorite cities, Savannah. The food was delicious and the tropical heat was a welcome break from the chilly Shanghai weather. It was like Paris without all the pretense!

Hanoi

Ho Chi Minh (Saigon)

Temple of Literature, Hanoi

Beautiful old architecture in Hanoi

Morning scene outside my hostel in Hanoi

Hoan Kiem Lake, Hanoi

Saigon River, Saigon

Saigon River - right across from my hotel!

Opera House

Notre Dame

A great lunch spot, Quan An Ngon. They took the best of the local street fare and brought them all under one roof so you just pick from the different vendors. A perfect place to get a little slice of all the local food.

My favorite little cafe in Saigon, La Fenetre Soleil.

Tokyo

2010-04-01T20:34:00.000-07:00

Tokyo was a complete 180 from Kyoto so I was able to get the best of both worlds while in Japan.

First, where I stayed - a modern ryokan.

The room
Breakfast Spot

Great artwork around the ryokan
Tokyo

Fabulous nightlife, shopping and architecture

Literally the busiest intersection in the world. Its an 8-way crossing. The progression captured below:

The Harajuku Girls (well, some of them anyway) as made famous by Gwen Stefani.

So cute!

Meiji Shrine. It was beautiful and smack in the middle of all the Tokyo chaos. I made it just before closing and was lucky enough to catch 3 separate traditional wedding processions.

Domo arigato, Kyoto!

2010-03-31T20:20:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a long weekend in Japan for the height of Cherry Blossom season. I did Tokyo and Kyoto in just 3 days! Kyoto pics are below. I'll post Tokyo tomorrow!

This is the capsule hotel I stayed in. It was ultra modern in contrast to the rest of the city. I was a little apprehensive about sleeping in a capsule and getting claustrophobic but it was the best night's sleep I've had in awhile!

Spring in Shanghai....

2010-03-15T21:05:00.000-07:00

....is finally here! These are right outside my apartment.

Chinese New Year

2010-03-09T17:25:00.000-08:00

I've finally gotten my photos downloaded from Chinese New Year in mid-Feb. It was an amazing experience and I am so lucky and blessed to have been here for it. It was definitely a once in a lifetime kind of night. 2010 is the year of the tiger so you'll notice that theme throughout.

The day started out innocently and tamely enough with a leisurely stroll through Yuyuan Gardens. Families and children were all out to see the lanterns (an integral part of CNY celebrations) and decorations. The consistent racket of blackcats begins.......

Dusk. The lanterns come on, sparklers are lit and the racket of blackcats builds as we begin to see occasional, colorful bursts in the sky. We ask around where we can go to "see the fireworks". We were met with blank stares and couldn't figure out why....

Thinking the night was pretty much over and we'd seen all that Chinese New Year had to offer, we headed back to Jimmy and Gale's apartment to settle in with a few cocktails. We couldn't resist buying "a few" blackcats on the way home, though, and decided to just set them off in front of their apartment.

Their security guards had a different idea and rigged them up to the arms of the front gate........

This was just a tease so we went off in search of bigger and better fireworks to buy.

The guards showed us how to get on the roof of the building and said to go up there just before midnight. We followed their instructions and were not disappointed. The entire city simultaneously exploded in fireworks. We quickly realized the irony of our quest to find a place to "see the fireworks". Video of this moment below.

Again thinking the night must be over, we met some shop owners in the street that had bigger plans for us...........

The shop owner's fireworks -in the middle of the street as cars and people on bikes ride right by.

This is me, setting off their professional grade fireworks with a handheld lighter. When I asked what I was supposed to do, they shouted only, "Run!"
THE RESULT................(play video)

My sweet new friend, Wang, who wouldn't leave my side all night - even holding an umbrella for me as I watch the fireworks.

Red paper remnanants from the blackcats at the end of the night. Every street covered in them - what a mess!

Cambodia - Part 3

2010-03-02T21:09:00.000-08:00

While Cambodia was beautiful and charming and alot of fun, I don't want to misrepresent the reality of this place. There is a great deal of poverty like nothing we ever see or experience in the US. Most villages here are without electricity, they live in open-air huts and the children often have to work the farm to help support the family instead of going to school.

The most touching part of the entire trip for me was an unexpected visit to an orphanage. The orphans live together and attend art classes on the same site. The art studio is open to visitors an you can purchase the pieces that the children make. They were so excited to see us and walked us around the facility to show us where they sleep, their art studio and even their new puppies. Before we left, they wanted to take a group picture with us. It was hard to hold back tears as one little boy ran to his room to get a shirt in order to make himself presentable for the photo and dashed back just in time to get in the picture.

This was the shirtless "ring tailed tooter" (as we called him).

Cambodia - Part 2 - The Temples!

2010-02-28T22:37:00.000-08:00

The pictures are in no particular order and are a "cross-section" of the numerous temple sites we visited over a period of several days. I like that it will show the different character and stone color of each temple. You can also see the progression of how light affects and enhances the experience of the sites throughout the day.

Sunrise @ Banteay Srei

Sunset as seen from Bakheng Hill - majestic!

The view of Angkor Wat from the back of the elephant on the way up Bakheng Hill

Mid-day at Ta Prohm, of Tomb Raider fame.

Temple of the Leper King

Angkor Wat

Cambodia - Part 1 of at least 3

2010-02-25T18:37:00.000-08:00

I have over 1,000 photos from Cambodia. I'll post a small fraction here over the next few days. I wish I could physically come through the photos to express to each of you how beautiful each of these moments, places and people actually were but the photos will have to suffice until I can see you to tell you in person. My co-workers, Jimmy and Gale, compiled their pictures with mine when we got back so some of these might be credited to them. These are general impression photos of Cambodia. The temples of Angkor Wat warrant their own separate posting.

The heart and soul of our time in Phnom Penh - our tuk tuk driver, Chea.

I absolutely loved the water buffalo. They are so cool looking!

A common sight - at least 2-3 small children dangling off motorbikes. My favorite part of this photo is that the bike is in motion but the mother couldn't be happier to drive the bike, carry the two children and manage to smile for the photo all at the same time.

The view from the back of our elephant. That's our "mahout" - riding bareback - ouch!

One of my favorite parts of the trip, the Apsara performance.

Chinese New Year is fast approaching

2010-02-04T00:03:00.000-08:00

Chinese New Year is the equivalent of Christmas here and is also called Spring Festival. This year it just so happens to fall on February 14th. From what I hear, I should anticipate getting no sleep for the few days I'm here during the holiday before departing for Cambodia. Fireworks will go off all day every day for pretty much a week. So, for alot of Westerners, its a fairly unpleasant time of year and good chance to get out of the city. We do plan to catch some of the action before we leave, though, and hit a parade or two.

There's alot of random stuff hanging from trees now

...and clementine bushes are somehow symbolic. They've started showing up all over town. With red envelopes in them. Typically, locals give gifts of money in the red envelopes for New Year but these are always empty - we've checked.

Little Bit of the latest...

2010-01-26T23:47:00.000-08:00

This is mainly for my mom but here's a couple of photos of the hotel guestroom I've been working on for Duncan Miller Ullmann in Xi'an. I'm proud of my first completed guestroom in Asia. Its a bizarre and difficult process to source material and get furniture produced here but I think it turned out really well! What's also great is how close to our original computer generated renderings the acutal room turned out.

Original Computer Rendering of Guest Bath

Actual Photo of Completed Guest Bath

The client decided on a warmer stone after the rendering was completed so that is the reson for the difference in color.

Original computer rendering of Guestroom

Actual photo of completed guestroom

Cambodia or Bust!

2010-01-20T19:51:00.000-08:00

Tickets are booked for Chinese New Year (mid Feb)! Sadly, we'll return to Shanghai just a few days short of my 30th birthday but we'll definitely be celebrating early in Siem Reap!

Reflections on Shanghai

2010-01-12T17:52:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm settled back in, there have been a several nice surprises I've noticed around Shanghai:

1. The temperature is so low here now that all urine and spit are frozen to the sidewalks. Which is a nice change from having it splash up on your shoes on the way to and from work every morning.

2. They have actually ADDED Christmas displays since the New Year.

3. Since the Oscars are coming up, studios release dvds for the academy's consideration leading up to award season. China inevitably gets its hands on these and releases them in the fake dvd stores so I've been able to catch up on all the current movie releases I didn't have time to go see while at home - even a few that aren't out in theaters yet.

4. Chinese New Year fever has alread set in - everyone's getting ready for the weeklong holiday in February. Booking my ticket to Cambodia this week!!

Back Already

2010-01-11T22:14:00.000-08:00

My trip home seems like just a blur at this point. It was a crazy two weeks but so great to step foot on American soil (as cliche as that sounds) and, above all, see friends and family. A highlight of the trip was the wedding of one of my best friend's, Susan. We've been friends since the 8th greade. It was really great to have the 4 girlfriends back together again and a good reminder of how special and important those long-standing friendships are.

Looking Ahead

2009-12-08T17:52:00.000-08:00

My company has confirmed I'll be coming back to Shanghai after Christmas - length of time TBD. So, God willing, I'm going to make the most of it by taking advantage of the fantastic side travel opportunities Asia has to offer. Below are my top 4.

Harbin

On the border between China and Russia so it is C-O-L-D! Every January is the Ice and Snow Festival with entire cities built to scale out of ice and lit with LEDs. Kind of like a Siberian Disneyworld.

Hanoi, Vietnam
China celebrates the Lunar New Year in February so there is a nice week long holiday. I'm hoping to hit Hanoi, Vietnam first and then on to Siem Reap in Cambodia to visit the ancient Angkor Wat site.

Angkor Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia

Lhasa, Tibet
Most flights to Lhasa connect through Xi'an (where my current project is) so I'm hoping to tag a few extra days onto my next site visit.

Christmas around Shanghai.....

2009-12-06T17:32:00.000-08:00

Despite the predominance of Buddhism, Christmas is big business in Shanghai. Its commercial and, let's be honest, really cheesy but, hey, its better than nothing!

The Christmas Market - out of control!

Random Christmas displays around the city

Christmas at the Barbie Flagship store. The tree is, appropriately, pink.

Cats on Leashes

2009-12-02T20:13:00.000-08:00

Happy Turkey Day from China!

2009-11-26T00:53:00.000-08:00

Xi'an - Part 3

2009-11-01T19:31:00.000-08:00

I was in Xi'an again last week for the project I'm working on there. I had a little bit of free time the first afternoon so managed to squeeze in a bike ride ontop of the ancient Ming city wall. It is easily the coolest thing I've done in China so far. I know that sounds strange considering everything I've been able to see and do here. There was just something so liberating and fun about taking off across this 60o year old wall on a bike. I haven't ridden a bike in probably 10 years and it makes you feel like a kid again. There was almost nobody on the wall and it was high enough above the city that you could see it but not hear it. Now that it is approaching winter, the North winds have started blowing sand down from the Gobi Desert so the city is a little hazy but, otherwise, it was a perfect fall day. The trip around the city is about 8 miles so it took me a good hour and a half but I could have spent all day up there.

So peaceful and serene

Carvings in the pavers

"Cultural Street" or the calligraphy street.

I loved watching these precious old men "perform" calligraphy. And it was a total performance. A crowd of locals would gather to watch and, after completing each character, the artist would do a little wrist flourish and step back to admire his work with the crowd nodding in approval.

You know you're just a little homesick when you walk into a Home Depot and get choked up.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

2009-10-20T20:46:00.000-07:00

Kuala Lumpur was a short trip for a co-worker's wedding. I got to squeeze in a couple of cool things before departing for Bangkok, though.

The famous Petronas Towers as seen from Skybar

All lit up

The view from the sky bridge of the Petronas Towers. That's the little stretch connecting the two buildings in the photo above.

Fun and fabulous Malaysia

The art of "batik".

Traditional Malaysian architecture

Lunch on the last day

Yes, I actually ate here. Getting more and more adventurous every day.

Bangkok, Baby!

2009-10-13T19:21:00.000-07:00

Thailand was the best of everything - sights, food, shopping, spas....everything! I could also have been just slightly biased because I was SO excited to be there but its probably my favorite place I've ever been. I say that about every city I visit but, this time, its true! Its a total feast for the senses - saturated in color, sounds and smells. Tuk-tuks, impromptu tranny parades, temples, ping pong shows (not for me), hot pink taxis, curry and heavy sweating. And did I mention the shopping? I got my first Thai massage and it was something else. A tiny woman that probably weighed 100 lbs soaking wet twisted and stretched me into positions I didn't know were possible. I had no idea what I was in for but she worked me out!!! Slightly painful during but I felt great afterward. It was fantastic. 4 days here was just a tease but this is definitely a place worth going back to a second time!

Grand Palace

Reclining Buddha. It was GI-GAN-TIC.

Bangkok is truly inspiring. It was so vibrant and colorful!

As if I didn't love this stuff enough, now I am smitten. I never paid more than 4 bucks for a meal. Except for at the Jim Thompson house and that was well worth it.

Mecca for any designer - the famous Jim Thompson silk house. I went to his factory afterwards and died.

Lunch on his patio. So peaceful.

The factory - rows and rows of pure heaven.

Yuyuan Gardens

2009-09-24T22:45:00.000-07:00

Tourist area but great locale for dumplings. Mmmmm........

Lupu Bridge

2009-09-06T20:08:00.000-07:00

The Lupu Bridge - the world's longest arch bridge. You can climb all the way to the top, which we did. Then reminded ourselves that this was China, the land of shortcuts, and quickly climbed back down.

Marriage Market - People's Square, Shanghai

2009-08-16T18:33:00.001-07:00

The Chinese version of Match.com, this is the spot for concerned parents and grandparents to come play matchmaker. They post bios of their children and grandchildren and peruse other's postings to try to find them a spouse.

Beijing

2009-08-04T18:29:00.000-07:00

Beijing was a couple of weeks ago but I'm just now getting the photos up. I went with Jimmy, Gale and Gale's sister, Susan. We crammed alot into less than 48 hrs - the Great Wall, the Olympic Village, Summer Palace and the market. It was so good to get out of Shanghai, even if it was just for a couple of days. Loved Beijing and can't wait to go back in September!

At the Market

Mao-m0rabilia

Summer Palace

Sunset over the Forbidden City

The Olympic Village

The Great Wall

(How we got up)

(How we got down)

The So-So Solar Eclipse

2009-07-21T21:07:00.001-07:00

Today was the long awaited, much hyped solar eclipse in Asia. There were all kinds of promotions going at hotels, restaurants and parks for "viewing parties". It was set to happen around 9:30 am, however, so most of us just planned to watch it from work. Well, of course, Shanghai was totally overcast this morning so the sun was nowhere to be found but it did get eerily dark for about two minutes and then returned back to normal.

9:30am

9:31am

9:32am

About 2 minutes later

Just another day in Shanghai

2009-07-18T23:33:00.001-07:00

From this past weekend.........

As the weather gets hotter here, the olds come out in their finest breeze wear - usually just a pair of threadbare, buttonless boxers. Exhibit A.

A Ritz Bitz hair tie. Naturally.

Ugh, as seen in Carrefour - a local grocery store. Never again.

But then the city redeemed itself - a blue sky day. No smog, no rain...just perfect.

Xi'an - The Terracotta Army

2009-07-14T21:57:00.000-07:00

So my first weekend "in Shanghai" was actually spent in a city called Xi'an. A group of us went on a site visit for a new hotel project we are working on and stayed over to see the Terracotta Army. The site is so vast and so awesome that it is indescribable. So I won't bother. I'll just post a fraction of the 200 pics I took!

The farmer that discovered them in '74. Got my book signed!

Hawai'i

2009-06-27T14:03:00.001-07:00

Ok, so this post isn't about Shanghai but I had one last great trip to record before shipping off. Scroll further down for my first post on Shanghai. Anyway, Hawaii is so beautiful it makes your heart hurt. I've never seen stars like I saw here - stretching all the way from one side of the horizon to the other. I got to do so much: snorkel, swim with wild sea turtles, hike to waterfalls, go deep sea fishing (caught a Blue Marlin!), see my first black sand beach and just generally be a beach bum. I had no idea how beautiful and unspoiled this place really was going to be.

The House

The view from the top - the leeward side of the island. Lots of dried lava.

Sunrise from the top deck

The road to the house -pretty diverse from one side to the other

Deep Sea Fishing

At the top of the mountain

Pretty much the most beautiful place on earth......

At the top of Akaka Falls

Drove for 30 minutes through a lava field just to get to this place

Black sand beach

No, its not dying - just sunning, as I found out after a lengthy but unnecessary rescue effort

Frequent visitors inside the house

Sunset on the last day

Shanghai

2009-05-04T05:24:00.000-07:00

I've loved travelling to Shanghai and am looking forward to my relocation there. Its been called the "Paris of the East" and the parallels are obvious. Its a fascinating city full of paradoxes - beautiful and filthy, friendly and rude, historical and progressive, decadent and poverty-stricken, traditional and rebellious, blindly tolerant and communist. Its also a really funny city. Between Chinglish and their fascination with replicating all things Western, there is an endless supply of unintentional material. There is so much to see and do here. I hope to stay busy to avoid homesickness. My first week in China, I'll actually be in Xi'an for work but will get a chance to go see the Terracotta Army while I'm there. On the to-do list for the rest of July is Beijing to see the Great Wall and Forbidden City and then Malaysia & Thailand in October for a friend's wedding. I hope to share the good, bad and ugly of it all here in the coming months. I'm really going to miss my friends and family but hope that this blog will serve as a way to stay in touch with everybody!

Swine Flu Prevention in China.

This is how the plane was greeted upon landing in Shanghai during my last visit. We all had to stay seated while the Haz Mat team boarded the plane and individually took each of our temperatures with a "laser" pointed at our heads.

Jade Buddha Temple

View from the world's tallest hotel - Park Hyatt
Glass floor - Yes, those are cars WAAAAAY down there.

Yu Yuan Gardens

M50 area - an artist's collective. Local grafitti artists

Shanghai Grand Theater

Yong Foo Elite - a private club in the old British Consulate building

The Barbie Flagship Store

Shanghai at Dusk

Shanhgai at Night - View of Pudong

Traditional Chinese Dinner w/ Mask Performance

Children's birthday celebration while we were eating dinner at a local restaurant. They light tea lights inside the lanterns and they work like hot air balloons, lifting off and disappearing into the sky. Really cool when you get a whole bunch of them going at once.

To scale model of the entire city. This is displayed in the exhibit hall to promote the upcoming World Fair in Shanghai in 2010.

View looking down on the model from the 2nd floor

Hangzhou. Two hour train ride from Shanghai.

Dubai+Turkey+London...Whew!

2009-02-06T15:08:00.000-08:00

I just returned from my latest trip to Dubai and this one was a long one. I was only supposed to be gone for a week but one week turned into three! My first week was spent in Dubai, as planned, but the second week I was unexpectedly asked to go to Turkey. I came back through Dubai for a few days and then spent a few days in London on my way back to the states. It was a crazy trip and I had to do laundry several times as I only had a week's worth of clothes with me but I'm so glad I got to see it all. I got to do a few new things in Dubai this time when I wasn't working. I went out for a night of sheesha with an associate, went to see the (in)famous Atlantis hotel and spent a day touring the gold souks and older parts of Dubai. Turkey was beautiful. I was in Antalya, which is a coastal town - lots of hotels and houses on the cliffs. I've always wanted to go to Istanbul so I'll have to make a trip back soon! London was covered in 2 feet of snow!! A huge winter storm hit the night before I arrived so the whole town was covered in white. London was ok but terribly expensive and, although beautiful and historic, everything started to look the same after about an hour on the double decker bus.

Turkey

The Turkish language cracked me up. Alot of their words look like the phonetic spelling of English words.

Dubai

The Burj Dubai - tallest building in the world

At dinner with my Turkish friends in Dubai

This was valet parked in the same spot as the Range Rover with the Swarovski crystal trim package last time I was in Dubai. This is a personal vehicle, not a display.

Because you know there had to be one........

Hard to get photos of Sheikh Zayed Road. Dubai is not a pedestrian friendly city and there are no sidewalks so its almost impossible to get good photos of the buildings. These were taken from a speeding taxi.

Up and Running Again!

2008-12-03T20:22:00.000-08:00

Ok. so I'm finally reposting my Dubai photos that got deleted. Oops! Looking at these photos again made me miss it.

Bad picture but that's the Burj Dubai in the background - the world's tallest building at 200 stories and counting!

Sheesha- aka "hooka"

Abras on the water. The Arabic version of the gondola. These are one of the only cheap attractions in Dubai - less than a dollar for a ride down the creek!

The iconic building of Dubai - Burj Al Arab

Daytime temps were well over 100 but weather in the evenings is perfect!

The camel farm outside my hotel window. No joke.

Indoor ski village at Mall of the Emirates

What do you buy when you have more money than sense? A Swarovski crystal trim package

Beautiful Dubai sunset. Such a peaceful place.