Your Neighbourhood Gems

Ideally within strolling distance from your front door, it's a bolt hole where the staff know your name, your drink and your favourite seat.   When it closes for a fortnight's holiday, its regulars will soon lament its absence.  

I am referring to a neighbourhood cafe.  One that's open when you need it and one that's worth getting out of bed on a freezing day and draws you in with its warm glow of familiarity.  

You might spot local art on the wall, stacks of magazines to browse and an inviting aroma for you to suck it all in.   The wait staff would have to be pretty laid back but attentive - just the style you like it.   Neighbours might meet here for the first time and become friends over coffee.  It's where a few parents might take her baby on its first outing and where that child will grow up (it is possible).  It's truly a place where a community can come together and fed connected.   

Each visit may seem much the same as another but their accumulation can account for a significant part of our lives. Whether your purpose of going is for conversation, food and drink, to work or just to switch off, the end result is the same - you will feel much better having gone. 

Go explore and visit that cafe at your neighbourhood - the one that you have always wanted to go but never find the time.   For some it may require a short bus ride but going out of your way to get there can make the visit all the more memorable and open your eyes to a whole new neighbourhood.  

And as a coffee lover visiting London, I have been irreparably spoiled rotten with a plethora of choices.  So many cafes scattered around even signage can get interesting.  

At Passport Controls

I have been travelling so much that I can literally wake up in the morning, not remembering where I am at that moment in time.

OK.  That doesn't mean I haven't got the time to blog.  No excuse really because precisely, as I have been travelling to different countries, I should be incredibly inspired. 

And I am.  By the immigration process. 


So often a scary or tedious thing for travellers is it not?  I mean just imagine, an unidentified officer can fire at you with a variety of questions such as the duration of the visit and for the sake of what (can't they read what I wrote in the form?)  And quite often people can feel uncomfortable when these creatures watch faces intently as he/she matches the photo on the passport stamp.

I have been reasonably inspired.   I am fascinated by the fact that certain sounds in nature are beyond the range of human hearing - like the “ thank you” spoken by the immigration officer at passport controls.

 

Shouldn't they be glad someone is visiting their country?  The influx of foreigners are actually the ones keeping them in their jobs.  And I am thinking, perhaps a thank you would be nice, or a return of a smile if the former is too much to ask.  

The Amazing Colours Of The Fall

The red maple leaf, whether on a tree or on the Canadian flag, seems to to have grown to become synonymous with the Canadian nation.

 

The changing fall foliage never fails to delight me.  As my friend and I were marvelling the nature's beauty in the land of Maples, I can't help but wonder how maple leaves turn red and where and when the vibrant yellow and orange will help herald a change of season from summer to fall.

So this is how - bringing you back to a bit of grade 8 horticulture biology. 


When winter days are short and dry, many plants stop making nutrients and the chlorophyll in them which gives the leaves the green colour goes away.  That is how orange and yellow emerge.  These colours have always been in the leaves all summer just that the green has them covered up.  Some leaves turn red and this colour is only made in the fall from the nutrition trapped whereas brown colours basically come from wastes left in the leaves.


After a wonderful week of nice warm temperatures, fall is slowly making its way here.  One of my favourite things about this season is feeling the cool but warm breeze on my face in the afternoon or right before the sun is setting.  

The chill is definitely in the air now, with it comes shorter days and the promise of Thanksgiving and Halloween right around the corner, which means Christmas won't be too far fetched too.

There really is nothing quite matches the anticipation of autumn after a hot summer.  Consider yourself fortunate if you are living in one of the temperate zones on earth where you get Autumn.  Let's enjoy a season filled with change.

Traffic, Traffic, Traffic

Beijing - a developing city with pace and power, has over 5 million cars.  Although limits have been put on new car purchases, it is not difficult to spot brand new luxurious cars zooming in and out of the capital city. 

Correction, I shouldn't use the word "zooming", "stuck in second gear" is more like it. 

I was stuck in traffic jam on a bus for a good 30 minutes today and that wasn't even at rush hours.  I overheard a passenger behind me say "I will meet you some time between 4-5pm". 

Wow, he was granted with an hour's buffer!   The person on the other side of the phone was certainly generous. 

I wonder if all Beijingers are that forgiving.   I mean seriously, can they afford to be 30 minutes late for an exam?   Do they get to tee off 45 minutes later when they are supposed to arrive by 9am?   Can they just blame the heavy traffic whenever they run late for a job interview or a client's meeting? 

Who needs an accurate time piece when planning of time around the clock is freakingly out of control anyway?


Never underestimate how bad Beijing traffic and how crowded public transport can be.  It really takes TIME (and plenty of irritants) to get from one place to another. 

A perfect place to train my patience nonetheless.

Breakfast in Beijing: Jianbing

I must have been born under a lucky star, at least as far as friendship is concerned. I have friends everywhere, and where I don’t, I have friends who are happy to share their friends with me. This is what happened when I went to Beijing where I had introductions to the most delightful people who have shown me their local delicacies. 

I became Jianbing addict when I first discovered them in Shanghai but in this trip to Beijing, my friend told me these are actually icons of old Beijing - a typical local dish in fact.

Craved for that comfort of brilliance during my last visit in the coldest days, I basically have been having it every single day now because I know I can't find it anywhere back home.  The French Crepe equivalent is made from pancake batter spread ultra-thinly like a membrane, wraps up with fried eggs, green onions, a crispy dough and a savory spicy chilli sauce.  Simply delicious. 


However much I want to see its replicate in Hong Kong, can we also duplicate the smile of the chef because his intense concentration and the joy in seeing how much we foreigner liked his product melts me.  We just don't see that sort of smile often enough in the customer service scene these days, too bad I can't take photos of him he says. 

Oh well, a shot of my breakfast then. 

My Best Travel Secret

I can't tell you how trips can be spoiled by taking everything, including yourself, too seriously.


"I'm on vacation. I'm on vacation!"


I wish I could say that now, but no, I WAS on vacation.

I learned to slow down, took a deep breath, found a café and sat down. Purchased something to drink.  And I looked around.  Viewing the world as it walked by and that I tell you - is my best travel secret.   


What did I see?  I am more excited to see what you would see.

Really... Honestly...

You choose your reality.  You see a bad world, it becomes a bad world.
You see a good world, it becomes a wonderful world.   Life is that simple.

Make this your best travel secret in your next trip. 

And start planning for it now!  I mean, why not?

Not So Solo Friendly

Dying to go somewhere exciting this summer, but everyone I wanted to travel with either wasn’t available or didn’t have the budget.

Toyed with the idea to London as it is relatively simple to arrange but schedule of my local friends didn't work out.  That's fine.  Next comes Russia...seems very appealing..darn...have to pay single supplement and I tell ya, that is when things can become less interesting. 

While the whole retail world has made strides to cater for singles like us - such as individual meals, dinner for one, the holiday makers are still penalising us for going solo. The number of solo travellers is definitely on the rise but hey, why aren't we getting any breaks on price? 

I can see how a business could feel that it’s losing half of its revenue if only one person is taking up the space, but it puts solo travelers in a bind too isn't it?

I am sure single supplements have been quite enough to prevent many from booking their travel and I am not alone in that sense.  I really think solo travel is an untapped market being under-estimated entirely.  Let's hope the industry get it right soon! 

But before they do, anyone fancy going to Russia and pay twin-share price with me?

An Official Pidgin: Singlish

When you had 10 days in a city that you've been for more than 10 times, the repeated visit should in some degree, let you explore more than what an average tourist can.

I was really grateful I was able to do just that in my recent visit to Singapore.  Apart from the newly created touristy attractions, I have paid special attention to one of their national delights this time - Singlish.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with this creole, it is indeed a glorious linguistic stew that is spoken in varying degrees over the island.  


A fascinated mash-up of English, Malay, various Chinese dialects such as Hokkien and Cantonese.  And they have particular grammar and sentence structures, forming their very own official language with its unique accent, vocabulary and idioms.



While the majority of the local population merely peppers their English with Singlish words and phrases (a practice I can find slightly confusing at times), I came across some Singaporeans speak the full-blown version that is completely incomprehensible to foreigners like me.  Then when you switch on the national TV news or tune into any radio stations though, you hardly hear any Singlish spoken - as if its a forbidden tongue!   Spending a few minutes in any kopitiam (kopi = coffee, tiam = shop) however, immediately brings one back to the city and her compatriots!

Love this city more each time I visit.  This time has got to be the love of its multi-lingual dexterity that I am exposed to.  Special thanks to a local friend who took me around, allowing me to experience a certain humour and nuance reflecting the Singaporean psyche - that no Standard English can quite describe. 

A Slight Deviation of The Standard Script

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen, this is the captain's speaking.  On behalf of everyone in the crew, I'd like to once again welcome you on board this flight bound for Hong Kong. The local time in Hong Kong is 7 hours ahead and we should be able to touch down at 15:23 local time, depending on the headwind - and assuming I decide to go there. 

We've just hit our cruising altitude of 11,000 feet. I've switched off the fasten seat-belt sign, which means you are now free to move about the cabin. However, for your own safety, please have it fastened while seated, in case we encounter any unexpected turbulence or I decided to jerk the joystick back and forth.  It can get terribly bored up in the cockpit, if you don't know.  

Please do note the "no smoking" sign will forever remain on throughout the flight, in compliance with FAA regulations. You may not smoke in the lavatories and federal law prohibits tampering with the smoke detector too.  Feel free to eat loudly, though. That isn't a federal crime. Not yet!  

But please also note FAA regulations require passengers to follow the instructions of the flight crew at all times. So if I make up something, but don't have a light with an icon of that action, you still have to do it. There's no way I can think of a light for everything I might want you to do, you know!  

Flight attendants, 2 dirty martinis right away to the cockpit please."

It is an exaggerated babble you won't hear in real life (I hope), but the point is, I don’t care how well-groomed the flight attendants are, how expansive the food menu, how chilled the champagne or how big the flat bed, the reason I’ve paid to fly on this particular carrier is safety and a polished service record. 


I don't know about you, if I can't find the confidence in what the captain is saying, then all that money invested in advertising, slick paint jobs and a bulging order book for new aircraft means precious little.

“Good evening ladies and gentleman. This is your captain speaking, and welcome to this Cathay Pacific flight bound for Hong Kong.”

While there was nothing particularly reassuring in this standard script, it was the plummy confidence of a British captain who sounded as if he has flown a G6, allowed me to just sit back and let him take me to wherever that destination I needed be.  

This Is When A Diamond Status Comes Handy

To cut my unfortunate airport story short, I was being accidentally kicked out from a confirmed seat when I changed my booking 6 hours prior to my departure and at the end, I got put on 3 standby lists from Beijing to Hong Kong - in vain. 

This was when I knew I haven't flown often enough and when a Diamond Card comes handy!

The common wisdom is that the airline standby list is prioritised by status, fare class, and then time added to the standby list, in that order. That list is constantly re-prioritised as more people book, and that order holds true hours before departure, when departure management control kicks in.

All stranded passengers in standby tonight were being reaffirmed by ground staff that they will do their best to get us on to the next flight.  An hour passed, we waited for another. 630pm came and then 730pm flight came and gone and finally at 2030 hour, we were being told the last flight has been cancelled. 

First person to call:  My boss.


Told him all about the technical issues they had with the flights, numerous delays accumulated during the day and my flight was cancelled and I could only get on the first flight out the following day etc etc...hence the need to be excused for work. 

What I didn't tell him was the fact that I was put in a really pleasantly new hotel close to the airport, and got upgraded on my flight back!


I had no status on standby, but then who am I to complain when I could have breakfast like a king?

Beijing Traffic Is Terrific

Stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic like this, is such a natural scene in the city of Beijing, as if I have to feel terrific about the time wasted in the daily gridlocks.  And trust me I do not. 

The government can't seem to figure it out too despite policies to alleviate traffic congestion.   I confirm its difficulty to implement after I did a little survey with my dear colleagues in Beijing and found out nearly each and one of them owns at least 1 to 2 cars in their household!  

At one point, the government really wish to boost their own GDP by encouraging domestic consumption and we have over 1,000 new cars join the road in Beijing everyday.  It seems like a lot of people are saying “Yes, traffic sucks, I wish the government did something about it.   But then, I need to drive to work every day, so screw everyone else.”

One thing I don't seem to have to do here is scream ”Hey, this is a pavement you %$&" and I do not see crazy taxi drivers zooming in and out of lanes, like those in Shanghai - who know best how to knock down a few bowling pins!

To generalise, a word for Beijing's traffic - terrific - is probably right.

 

The People of Formosa

When the Portuguese explorers first discovered Taiwan some 500 years ago, they decided to call it "Formosa" which means "Beautiful Island".
In my recent trip to the southern part of the Formosa, even though I was only able to see a fraction of it, I can tell their people are just as beautiful in nature.

My sister and I were particularly impressed when we had to stop the locals for directions.  The people we met were exceptionally pleasant and friendly each and every time.  They might not have the answer for us but as if it was in their nature to go out of their way to help us foreigners. 

In one occasion, we must have been looking a bit lost wedging our way through a map.  A bright and sunny face appeared out of nowhere, waving a stack of pamphlets.  And what did that occur to us?  No doubt he must be after something.  No he wasn't.  Absolutely not. He stopped right there, just trying to offer help even we didn't ask for any. 

If that helpful, sunny little boy knew what went through our minds then, he must be broken-hearted and what would that make us - two killers with no mercy wouldn't it? 

The fact that the place was ruled by the Japanese for half a century might have distilled some of the Japanese style of hospitality in them.  But the Taiwanese was able to do an inch better by augmenting that extra bit of sincerity in whatever they do. 


I am not in anyway saying the Japanese aren't sincere, they truly are, but their courtesy somehow appears like an unvarying habitual procedure to me, if you know what I mean.  



 

Photos Just Don't Do Justice

I realised how much I have gotten accustomed to seeing the world around me via the viewfinder of my camera.  Have you ever taken like a hundred photos of the same beach, bridge, or brick even?  I have.

I've always believed a picture is worth a thousand words but I gained a differing perspective in a recent trip.

I discovered if only I had pried my face away from the viewfinder and used all my senses to reflect on the beauty around me, I can actually remember better the sounds, smells and mood of the setting.

Nothing terribly new, but this is what technology can do to you sometimes and I am telling myself next time I have the urge to start snapping away, I should be reminded to take a minute to focus on the captivating subject matter instead.  


Not to denounce my interest in photography but I think it would be really nice to pause and transcend the desire to capture life in a frame once in a while, don't you think?

Tokyo Without Lights

Many buildings in Tokyo have turned off lights as part of electricity saving efforts to avoid widespread power outages.

Japan is still the third-largest economy in the world and one just can't quite take the pain and imagine Tokyo's bright lights go dark.  It will certainly take a while before we can see this sort of bloom and bright in a city that we all adore.  

May our thoughts be with those in need. 

Lonely Planet

Perhaps there is something to do with the book publisher picking "LONELY PLANET" as the name of the series of their travel books, I always have this perception that travelling alone is a sad thing to do.  I don't have the gut to but I totally admire those who can. 

A friend of mine is a fine example.  She has set foot in the world's most exotic as well as the most admirable corners of the globe.  A seasoned traveller whose travel companion has mostly been no one but herself.

On the contrary, I am more of a modern slave, a supporter to civilisation than a fond backpacker in the most secluded spot in the wilderness. 

When I saw the excitement in her eyes as she told me how she couldn't wait to be in Peru for 2 weeks - alone, I was thinking for a second, may be one day I might decide to be brave and take the plunge and try travelling solo.  Who knows, I may become a convert! 

Not sure if you agree though, sometimes it is better to be alone than to wish you WERE alone.

Strangest Hotel Jobs

While we were on the subject of hotel experience, even if you knew about the mini bar sensors, I bet you would have never imagined this.

There is someone paid to clean and make shiny coins that circulate in a hotel!  And...some involved in warming our bed just before we lie down there.  

These are just some of the strangest professions Hotels.com has "discovered".  

Intrigued?  I am, very.

Imagine the wordings in the job description...you are required to sleep on guests' beds and launder their money.  It would be fun wouldn't it?


Check out the full list in here to find out more.  You could land yourself a dream job that you never knew existed!

Mini Bar

Wynn Macau, a lovely hotel and my family and I were all quite pleased with the accommodation but believe it or not, the only thing we found most bizarre - was the mini bar system in our suite.

We have all travelled a bit to know that mini bar service typically comes in daily and does a tally of the objects in the bar and if today’s tally does not match yesterday’s tally, we have obviously consumed something.


You see, this mini bar was rather different.


We needed a place to store the food we purchased so we opened the mini bar and cleared out the first shelf for our stuff.   No big deal, right?

That was where I was wrong. 

I didn't notice this mini bar was sensor activated! And you have exactly 60 seconds to deactivate. 

According to the rules, when a bottle was moved (consumed or not) and not been replaced to its original position within 60 seconds, it would be counted as having been consumed.

Since we moved EVERYTHING in the fridge (mostly alcohol) we were charged for the entire contents of the fridge at a ridiculous rate within the first 5 minutes of our stay!

I managed to restore order to the mini bar, learned a lesson the fun way.  Realised I definitely haven't travelled enough to make "Don't Touch That" a default!  I shall hopefully try to remember to read all the signs and instructions in the room next time, but...honestly speaking, I really can't see the very smart side of that mini bar system.  Can you?

Bravo To Japanese Designs

I invite you to watch this short video featuring nothing but the terrifically brilliant innovation from who else but the Japanese!!

And if you observe closely wherever you trot, you find sense of humour everywhere.  Yes.  In their elevator doors too.

Absolutely brilliant.

Made In China / Made By China

Years ago, it was important to see where an item was made when you were trying to find that perfect souvenir to bring home from the foreign land.  It is no longer relevant now because almost any souvenir you pick up has the words "Made in China" written at the back.  So what do you do?

Good to know the reputation of Chinese products in Japan has improved substantially.  The flip side of the coin though, it is not helping with China's balance of trade at all. 

Say for example a computer labelled "Made in China", is likely to contain a large portion of imported contents including an Intel chip, a Microsoft Windows operating system and a liquid crystal display made in South Korea.  Which means, only a very small percentage of the value-added product labelled "Made in China" is actually "Made by China".


My limited Economics degree taught me the latter corresponds to the concept of China's GNP, and excludes import charges on intermediate goods and investment income paid to overseas countries.  

The former, when increasing exports, requires importing more intermediate components at the same time, which do not form part of China's GDP. 


My take is, you will be far better off looking at the images made by a camera or lens and not wasting time checking what the "made in" sticker says. 




 

Buckle Up Ladies And Gents

I boarded a flight at Beijing International Airport looking forward to a smooth flight home. Half an hour later the pilot's voice came over the PA system, apologising for an "unknown error" which would take at most 30 minutes to repair. Cathay Pacific thanked you for your patience.

An hour later, the pilot finally announced we were ready to take off!  So all strapped into our seats and the plane taxied on the runway.

And we waited.

Ten minutes later, the pilot's voice came on again and told us the same error has mysteriously recurred, and takeoff will be delayed whilst engineers fix the problem. Shouldn't take more than an hour or so, he said.

And we waited.

And we waited some more.

Sounds all too familiar right?  Nothing much you can do when your life has been chucked to those engineers. 

Take the claims about flying being the safest form of transport.  This is what the airline isn't telling you...

• Deaths per 100 million passenger journeys are, on average, 55 for airliners compared with 4.5 for cars, and 2.7 for trains!

• Only motorbikes, at 100 deaths per 100 million passenger journeys, are more risky than aircraft on this basis!

Scary huh? 

I have hence stopped complaining about delays due to technical problems, after reading the above from an excerpt of New Scientist magazine.

Remember to buckle up during take-offs and landings - where 70% of air-traffic accidents took place.