-
12th November 2009
Puerto Rico - a Spiritual Journey
After my friend Alejandro inquired about why all of my other trips have their own little (however short) blog entry except for my trip to PR, I have decided to backtrack and write a small entry about Puerto Rico.One of the reasons I did not do a post on Puerto Rico was because I compiled two visual-poetry collections (the other was that I didn't have a regular blog at the time), which is a bunch of photos paired up with a few lines of poetry that I wrote.Harmony of December - LoveHarmony of December - SelfThis is really my first attempt at taking semi "artistic" pictures (i.e. paying more attention to angle, colors, general composition). Puerto Rico was a a spiritual journey for me. It was also the second time ever that I had spent Christmas away from New York after I moved there (the first time was Vermont with my dear Marri and her family for a taste of an "All-American" Christmas). I was facing some tough existentialistic self questioning and something in the back of my head kept on nagging me about getting away from NYC. So when my friend Lan called and lamented that she didn't know how to spend Christmas, I recalled that my friend Alex had extended an invitation for me to go to Puerto Rico and took him up on it. I packed my bags and went down to Puerto Rico with Lan, all within about 10 days.Some thoughts about the parts that we visited:1) El Yunque: This was probably my favorite spot. It's the tropical rain forest on Puerto Rico and I'm a sucker for these types of places. We spent half a day here, which was no nearly enough. There are different hiking trails, some lead you up to top of mountains, which have gorgeous views of the coastline. As it is a tropical rain forest, there was a lot of fog, but those moments when the sky opens up and a ray of sunlight hits the valley below... wow... Just be careful since the paths are wet and slippery.[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="216" caption="Run for it!"][/caption]2) BioBay: This is a MUST see, mainly because Puerto Rico is one of the few sites in the world where you can see these microorganisms light up the dark waters and whisper the secrets of the depths of the lakes and streams to you. You occasionally see schools of fish and unidentified creatures swim by... and I even did some silly WT moves in the water. I'm sure the creatures didn't like that very much! The tour guide told us that 20 years ago you didn't have to stir up the water to see it light up. You only had to sit and wait for the wind, which, when it comes, weaves silver threads in the waters and then the entire surface of the lake becomes a shimmering silver blanket. Just imagining it is amazing. But in another 20 years, we probably won't even have the pleasure of seeing these microorganisms light up even when we stir up the water (mainly due to pollution).
3) BEACHES!!!!! Well I'm really not a big fan of beaches but these are all kinds of beaches and they are mostly relatively clean!
4) Ponce: We really regretted not having gone to this wonderful historical area. Mainly it was because our friend (who is a native) who had the car didn't like this area so we didn't end up going. After talking to some people after we got back from the trip, I'd say it's a definite "must go"!
5) Old San Juan: This was a charming European-flaired place that we had a lot of fun walking around in. By the end of our trip we were regulars at the Plaza de Colón (yea we always end up waiting for people there)! There are tons of little alleyways with (I'm sure) delicious restaurants that we never got to try out![caption id="" align="alignright" width="320" caption="Lots and lots of fried food..."][/caption]Tips or fun bits:
1) If you are getting out of the Old San Juan, leave EARLY. Otherwise you will get stuck in traffic for sure.
2) Be sure to bring an umbrella wherever you go. The weather is the most unpredictable element in Puerto Rico. We got rained on almost as soon as we landed.
3) Forget about your usual diet. When you're in Puerto Rico, try to eat like a local. The most amazing food is home cooked (if you know anyone there), but otherwise, if someone hands you a HUGE piece of deep fried fish... don't clinch your eyebrows. Just eat it. It tastes really good! You must try the famed mofongo. I had one with conch and it was delicious! Oh, and get ready for a LOT of plantains. >_<
4) Alex told me that once I land, there's something that the passengers do that's unique to Puerto Rico. They clap. Yep, usually we only clap if the trip proved extra rough but the pilot handled the situation with grace. But with Puerto Rico, they clap regardless because they know it's time to PARTY.
5) Most US cell phone companies that I know of consider PR as part of the regions that they cover on their regular plan. So unless you're in some remote area you don't have to pay any cell phone fees!
6) For those of you who fear that you'd miss out if you go around Christmas time. True, you don't get the freezing cold and heavy snow, but you get plenty of decoration and festivities going on.
7) DO NOT walk around too late at night. If you have to, stay in the streets where there are a lot of people. Yes, this is a warning.Otherwise, we had a great time. Alex took us to his house and treated us to his mom's cooking (which is ALWAYS the best cooking). He also told me that around dinner time you see very few people around because people like to eat at home! Whoa!The most important thing that I got out of this was an opening of the mind and spirits. When you are looking at the beautiful sky and ocean, you just wonder what you're doing spending days cooped up in the concrete forest. My soul was rotting. This was what I needed to get myself out of ME and start to experience the world, so it was truly a spiritual journey.[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Sky Above; Ocean Below."][/caption]
-
30th October 2009
Living the Farm Life
It took me a while to get there, but I got there finally.
My friends Di and Alex got a farm in Prince Edward County with their two horses (Tianxia and baby) and I've been trying forever to visit them. Finally, I figured out that I would visit them before I go back to New York and also drop by the Toronto IWTA branch (with the amazing Sifu Carson Lau) for a visit and a little bit of WingTsun training.What awaited me was a group of super nice WT students (and instructors), my two awesome (though elitist - lol) friends, tons of good food, a farm-full of animals, and a WHOLE LOAD OF HAY!Training in Toronto was great. The school setup and training program seems to be very different than what I am used to in NY or even CA. Everyone runs around and finds something then starts to beat each other up... I mean... train very enthusiastically. Sifu Lau was super nice (as always) and showed me around as well as introduced some of his students to me. Unfortunately I was only able to train for one day, but I hope to return to train again or at least take a seminar with Sifu Lau!Alex and Di's farm was 50 acres... I don't think I've seen that much LAND belonging to one person (that I know of) for a long time. Hay season was basically over but unfortunately they'd had some bad luck with farm equipment so I ended up helping them hay part of the field (very small part). It was quite a marvelous experience. I also got to (sort of) throw the bales of hay to the horses. By the time I left there, I was TOTALLY in love with Tianxia (oh be still my heart~).[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Oh Sunny Days~"][/caption]They also had7 (8?) Chinchillas (yea a week later I didn't remember ANY of the names except Leonidis - THIS IS SPARTA! - ok I'm a dork) and a whole load of other animal/insect guests. Di also stuffed me with her delicious/unbeatable homemade food (which probably is why I gained so much weight >_<) and introduced me to her vegetable, herb, and fruit gardens. Ah the life of a farm. We were picking our own salads (in the backyard) and I drank fresh pressed cherry juice.Di and Alex and I met in my early college days... through a rather interesting event. The first time I heard of Di was when I was told "Di's having a shower with Kenshin." Naturally... I flipped out (so I had a little crush on Kenshin. Who didn't!?). Then it turned out that someone splashed some sauce on Kenshin (short for: the Rurouni Kenshin wall scroll) and she was washing it out. I think that sealed our fates and we've been friends since (Alex is a tack-on and the person who turned me into an alcoholic for a while in my college years :p). They are some of the most resourceful and interesting people I know... despite that they made me SLAVE on their farm![caption id="" align="alignright" width="320" caption="Sunset on the farm (over moo moos)"]
[/caption]I think that experience on a farm is something everyone should have at least once in their life. It's very different (no kidding) from the city and also different from suburban life. It's quiet, serene, and sometimes offers you pleasant (and some not so pleasant) surprises. Like Di said, she could see the entire Milky Way in winter time and sometimes read a book under the full moon. How could you not appreciate life when you have all this beauty around you?Other memorable experiences include:1) Xinjiang restaurant - OMG!!! I've NEVER had Xinjiang cuisine but this is SO good! I'm generally not a huge fan of strong tasting and super meaty dishes, but I think the skewers (with the massive amounts of meat) were some of the BEST I ever had! They were spicy so I was half tearing, but I ordered seconds!
2) YMCA - I don't think I've been to any YMCA as... well... upscale as the one that they took me to. I am not sure if they're all like that in Canada, but I certain had fun the two times I was there, taking full advantage (sort of) of their beautiful Olympic size pool, sauna rooms, and spacy and clean showers.
3) Rental cars are mostly in RED... WHY!? Oh... right... national color...
4) There's nothing like seeing the sunrise/moonrise/sunset on a farm... and I CAN SEE THE MOON AND STARS CLEARLY!!! (ahem...)
5) Farmers are legally allowed to shot anything on their perimeters! (yes, I played with the gun xD)
6) Hanging out with the neighbor's cows (a.k.a. moo-moos). -
17th October 2009
My adorable MBTs
Everyone, please meet my MBTs. They’re produced with Masai Barefoot Technology. They are orange, a bit quirky, and endlessly amazingly wonderfully comfortable… except when you need to jump/hike/walk on mountain paths (but that can easily be overlooked). I find that because they are more rigid than your typical shoes, flat surfaces work best for them. But once I got used to them... I just wore them everywhere.[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="They go with me everywhere!"][/caption]
The reason I got these was because my Sifu said: if you are really serious about learning WingTsun then you should get a pair of these. So… after much mental struggle (these shoes usually go for over 200!), I finally kicked myself into getting a pair.
I got my pair back in May and started wearing them almost every day since my move to SF (June). My legs were extremely tired when I first started wearing them but now they are the most comfortable shoes in the world. I get called out randomly in the middle of the street/store/greyhound station (?!) by people who are interested in getting a pair or just thought I looked really funny (kidding). I seriously think they should hire me as their spokesperson and pay me commission.
Amusingly enough, after I started showing them to the people at Studio WingTsun (SJ), two of them each got a pair and another one has a pair on the way. I basically said that if this trend continues, we’re going to become the MBTWT school! Which… I don’t mind at all. I’m definitely getting another pair once this pair wears out (which I hope will not be any time soon). But if you are planning to get a pair, I suggest you get them at a online shoe retailer (like Zappos or Footwear etc.) on sale. Generally they run a bit small so get your size or half a size bigger. I do recommend trying them on at a store first (if you can) because the fit is slightly different than your normal shoes.
But if you’re interested in some nice cool shoes that "rock", these would be IT!
-
20th August 2009
Always on the Run II
Many people are wondering... WHAT!?!?! If you think your head is spinning, have a little pity for my parents. They're probably wondering what they did to deserve such a strange daughter. :)Yes, I'm headed back to New York City for at least 3 months, September-December. I have yet to decide whether I want to spend Christmas and New Years in New York or in SF area (probably down to SoCal with friends if I come back to CA). But that's for another day.When I left my old company on a LoA (it'd have been more problematic if I told them straight out that I was leaving), I brought in a friend to take over my position. The plan was that when I inform my ex-bosses that I was not going return to the company, he would permanently take over. It's a win-win situation on all fronts.But recently, my friend found a good internship opportunity that will span 3 months (Sept-Dec). Problem is, the company cannot wait for him for 3 months so he would end up jobless when he comes out of the internship, which is rather undesirable in this abysmal economy.Being the one who always tries to find a solution where everyone benefits or at least suffers the least damage (yep, Libra), I came up with a strange plan... strange, but awesome if it worked: I would return to NYC and replace him at my old job for 3 months.[caption id="" align="alignright" width="240" caption="Look around you."][/caption]This way:
1) I can make some money before school (which could start in Oct or Jan, and this gives me more time to prepare for it) AND take WingTsun lessons from Sifu (YAY).
2) Sifu will get some front end help (if he needs it) because he's expecting to be shorthanded come Sept.
3) My friend would have a job to return to.
4) There's no disruption to work and my ex-bosses don't need to spend money, time, and effort finding someone who may or may not be trustworthy.There was the issue of my roomshare - I would have to leave it empty and pay rent for 3 months for a room I'm not using.Incidentally, I have been in contact with another girl who is trying to move from NYC to SF (like myself) and I thought, why not ask if she's interested in subletting my roomshare for the time that I'd be in NYC? It'd be good for her to have a friendly place to stay and really try out the city.5) Apparently it was a good turn of events for her too.So in the end, if everything works according to plan, 5 parties would benefit from this arrangement (not counting my parents and friends in NYC whom, I assume (lol), would be happy to see me before I implant myself semi-permanently in SF for school).It just happened that this time everything fell into place. Sometimes I feel like there are always options and the solution is there, but we just fail to grasp/grab it. But when you're ready, things will fall into place.[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="240" caption="WT RULES!"][/caption]There were a lot of lucky coincidences in this matter, but there were a lot of conditions, were they not mature, things would not have happened the same way. What if she wasn't ready to move or I didn't ask her? What if my boss wanted to hire someone entirely new? What if my school only opened admissions once a year? What if I had already committed myself to a job? What if...I think in the end you should always prepare yourself and be ready to accept/work with all the opportunities that come your way. They may not come for days, months, or even years. But if you're not ready for them, you will miss out on them when they do come along. The best thing is that the planning and personal development that you put into preparing are rewarding in themselves.On top of that, I'm visiting Alex&Di in Canada for a few days and decided I would drop by and train with Sifu Carson Lau's WT school in Richmond Hill for a day. Turned out that there will be a web channel interview on that day so I get to see a lot of cameras and WT demonstrations! WHOO HOO! (<-total geek when it comes to certain things...)Of course... before all of this, I am still going on my trip to Yosemite, Lake Mono and Bodie.So there... my latest... Run.
-
13th June 2009
Looking for Familiar Signs
There are certain things that are the same between San Francisco and New York... I guess some things just stay the same on matter where you are.
1) Annoying kids on the bus causing a scene with their yelling and screaming and kicking and nagging (until they see me doing WT stretches then they stop and O_O).
2) Bus routes somehow are rather inaccurate. I followed the route on a map and somehow ended up in a bad neighborhood of some sort... er...
3) Mean bus drivers seem to be everywhere... but of course there are some who are quite nice, but ALL of them seem to be maniacs when it comes to driving!
4) Grandparent(s) trying to appease 3+ of their grand kids at the same time.
5) Nice mix of ethnic people.These days I've been going through emotional ups and downs. It's not easy being a stranger in a city, no matter how friendly (or happy lol) the city. My lows seem to usually be in the mornings and my highs are usually (somehow) when I am walking down Eucalyptus from the muni station to my uncle's house at night. For some reason, in the past few days, when I was walking down that path and just having some random thoughts, I would get really excited and happy about life in general. This does NOT happen when I walk up the path to the station. Lol. Who knows. Some sort of Fung Shui thing?Walking around with Lan gave me a good reminder of what's important to me (she really has to find a new shopping partner if she moves here. >_< Some things just don't change). At the moment, there are just two things in the world that I cannot let go of - one I do not EVER want to let go of, however hard it makes my life: my love for my parents, and the other is something I've been trying very hard to let go of for the past while.それは、あの人への思いだ。それを、如何しても捨ててられない、捨ててたくない。今日、友達のランは、”心の中に、誰かがいることも、幸せの一つじゃない？”と言いました。それでも、本当だね。私は、あの人の生活や他の何もの一部になれないだ。いいえ、なれないじゃない、あの人の生活の一部がなれるよ。でも、なったら、彼の心の一部になれないことをもっと深く分かるから、心の痛みは、だんだん重くなる。捨てても難しい、捨ててなくても難しい。心に関する秘密は、やはり理性でも何でも分かれない。
日本語は便利だね？（笑う）自分だけが分かるように、心の言葉を伝えられる。Yesterday, when I was at Cheesy's @ Union Square, I looked down and saw the lamps lighting up Union SQ at night. I really liked it. I guess it's certain moments when you feel like you can belong to a certain place. However, I'm such a slow person when it comes to my own feelings that I am not going to assign anything (such as sense of belonging) to my momentary thought yet. I have been talking to and meeting a lot of random people since I've gotten here (I've given out more business cards here than I have in the year that I've had the business cards, except to my friends) and I can see this becoming a trend.I can only... stand firm on my dreams... and hope it'll bring me somewhere. -
10th June 2009
Day 1 with Lan in SF
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="239" caption="Union Sq, SF"][/caption]This morning I went to SFO (M to Balboa Park -> SFO Bart) to pick up Lan. I actually got there right on time to wait for her at the baggage claim and surprised her there. Even had time to pick up lots of maps and guides for her. I think... I just have issues being late, no matter how hard I try.Then I texted Sisok Dan to find out the location of the restaurant that he's been raving about so I can take Lan there. Let's just say, dragging her two pieces of luggage up those Chinatown hills were NOT easy but we got there! We went, we ate, and we LIKED!We ended up roaming around Chinatown chatting with random people and giving out our phone numbers (yea wth is the right reaction) and had a great time.A little icing on the cake, after dinner when we were dragging Lan's luggage uphill I took a small break, then looked to my right, and there was a flyer for Sipakgung Elmond's school right there! Apparently I had COMPLETELY missed the sign but... spotted Sipakgung Elmond's tiny picture printed on the flyer. Erm... yea.[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="576" caption="... as long as I found it..."]
[/caption]
-
4th June 2009
The Fool's Journey
The eve before I'm hop on a plane and attempt to build a new life in the other coast... there's a lot of stuff going through my mind.Duh.Leaving my family, friends and beloved New York City behind and heading to a new city with the plan to settle in/down is not the easiest thing to do... especially when I don't have a cushion like school or job. I've been running around like a mad-woman trying to see everyone (and still didn't get to see all of my friends >_<) and getting everything together (somehow I managed - or will have to manage - to fit everything that I'm bringing into 1 suitcase, 1 carry-on, and 1 bookbag).My life, in one suitcase, 1 carry-on, and 1 bookbag. Until I figure out what else I need.But the most important things, the things that I value the most, I cannot take with me. Rather, they are always with me. I really liked what was said in the previous post about Libra: Libras may not contact you for a year, but when he/she sees you after that year, you're still his/her best friend. That's how Libras operate. So no, we never forget. You may think that we have forgotten because we're not always around, but we do not forget.I love New York. Most of my most beloved people are in NY. NY life suits me. I know I'll be back. But for now... for my fleeting (yes precious) dreams and search, I'll put down caution for adventure adventure - I shall walking the Fool's Journey, for whatever it may hold. -
4th June 2009
It's never too late...
We've all heard it - "you're too old to..."Yup. Especially growing up in a Chinese family, I've had so many incidences when parents (although they are the sweetest) told me that I was too old to do something.Well, I sure hope that hasn't gotten you down, because I personally have decided to start with the basics - learn to walk and breathe.This is a good article on how to do some exercises while you're sitting around in the office. I do plan to get back into yoga when I can because it really helps with the pains and aches. Also, I splurged and bought myself a pair of MBTs (about 4-5 times more expensive than the shoes that I usually buy... sigh) that will hopefully help me to fix my posture and avoid back pain and foot pain. There is somewhat of a history in my family and really, if you don't take care of yourself, who will? My dear Eli (luv ya hon) also gave me some tips on what position the feet should be in and how they should look when you walk... I'm training myself to get used to it (HARD!).I've also started to do abdominal breathing a while back. It came about because I was feeling like I couldn't breathe sometimes, that no matter how hard I tried, I could not get in enough oxygen for my mind to clear or my body to function. I would get stressed and also anxiety because of lack of oxygen. After I started these exercises and eventually actually started breathing with my abdomen normally, without even paying any mind to it. I was lucky that it didn't take me that long to condition my body... but it's definitely worth the time you put into it. I can now breathe as deeply as I want whenever I want, feel less stress/anxiety, and also be less tired when I'm exercising or especially doing WT (which is a huge deal).Yes, walking and breathing... some of the things that we take for granted are actually not the easiest things in our lives. You may think you have no time to fix breathing and walking (you're alive, you're moving around = no need) but sometimes it's just about setting your mind to do something... and then getting rewards that you never even knew existed.So no, it's never too late. As long as you put your mind to it... even if you don't get the exact results you want, you always make a new discovery. If you're lucky, you may even get to know yourself a little better. -
23rd May 2009
Hong Kong 05/15/09 (recap)
It was another day of meetings, but fortunately I was only expected to attend the morning one and not the afternoon one. So after the morning meeting, I ran off to meet up with Alvin and Alicia. Since by now I knew I wasn't going to Beijing but to Hainan Island instead, I decided I probably need to prepare some light clothing... and made the mistake of thinking I could stand shopping.[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="215" caption="Working hard to master the self-pic"][/caption]A+A were kind enough to drive me around to a shopping center that was split into a “local” mall (cheap clothing and accessories) and middle class mall (think Banana Republic level). Anyone who knows me can predict the outcome – miserable failure. I was in there for less than 5 minutes before I started collapsing on Alicia (who was actually shopping for herself). The only thing I ended up buying (rather, they treated me) was a juice. I had my usual cases of disorientation and dizziness, which the masses of Chinese people didn’t help at all. After about an hour and a half of walking around and whining about how I should never have listened to myself about going shopping, A+A kicked me onto the metro headed to my dinner place. I got there slightly early and ended up sitting around and doing people watching. Really, this was what it meant to be in the moment. Regardless of how much I disliked HK, it was a great city. And what's the point of hating a city that you have to be in anyway?
My teammates gave me a sweet surprise: because I was out with friends and they went to the Peak without me, they apparently missed me enough to create my name (“C”) in sushi. Although it was with my most hated sashimi (tuna), I forgave them because it was so adorable. Imagine a group of men ages between 37-66 collectively missing a (relatively) little girl and creating her name with sushi. It's one of the cutest things anyone's done for me (although there have been an incredible amount of sweet things that my friends have done for me... because I have so many wonderful friends :D). The other funny thing is the 5 of us all squeezing into a HK taxi. If you've seen pictures of everyone (below)... you really wonder how that's actually possible (of course, I'm always the one with the role of the “wedge” sitting with most of my body hanging off the seat… lol).[caption id="" align="alignright" width="150" caption="Starlight Starbright"]
[/caption]Being in Asia with a bunch of 100% Westerners, the difference between W and E culture really hits home. The W guys all gave me incredible amount of respect whereas I kept on getting called “little girl” by the E men and getting slighted. Now, I don't consider myself all that important. But it seemed that the W people would actual value intelligence over brand. All of the guys I am with have done great things of their own (one of them developed the building that is currently the most expensive building in Manhattan and my boss had played bridge with Mr. Deng Xiaoping), but none of them were even close to arrogant and I could actually have a decent conversation with all of them. I couldn't imagine myself doing that with any of the E people I have met on this trip. Maybe that just means I’ve been too Westernized.We were being treated to dinner by a lovely lady for a major Thai corporation who is based in SH. She took us to Savaan, which was on the top of the Prince's Tower in Central. It was a beautiful, slightly SE Asian flavored restaurant with a gorgeous balcony (which I was too shy to step onto b/c it seemed like it was so bustling with activity). The food was good (but not AMAZING) but the ambiance was without comparison.Random thoughts:[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="288" caption="Past and Future"]
[/caption]I had a strange feeling of everything merging together – time and space (TW in 2008, HK in 2006, HK in 2009, and so on…). Mr. James Wang (one of the amazing people I met on this trip) said that there are parallel universes, each of which is occurring at the same exact time but all of them are distinct and may be of a different space and time that we have personally experienced/are experiencing. He traveled through a wormhole while crossing the bay on the Star Ferry and saw it for himself. Now, this is a man whose work is based on science and rational thought, but he is also spiritual and allows room for such thoughts that some may deem completely nuts. He is currently on a trip to India. He told us that there is a leaf there that has had his name written on it for 2000 years, which he has set off to find, accompanied by his wife. I don't know if he would find this leaf, but what I find extremely touching is his wife, Ester, who, regardless of whether or not she has the same beliefs, gives her husband and his beliefs unconditional support and love. Sometimes cases like these lead me to feel that perhaps there is still possibility out there to find someone who is exactly matched to you (give or take a few customizable parts ^^).I guess another huge difference between then and now is that now, whenever someone stretches, my brain is automatically programmed to think that they are doing a form in WT. It's one of the most dorky things, but I think it's absolutely fun. I also sometimes can’t help but “stretch” on the train… I think it serves to avoid trouble.Oh... and I love my new toys (Netbook: L, Camera: Hikaru). <3
-
Sze K. Aka Chan's Posterous
歸去，也無風雨也無晴。
Walking the Fool's Journey.79316 ViewsTwitterFacebook -
Pages
-
Archive
-
Get Updates
