New York City - City of Dreams

NYC is truly the world's most cosmopolitan metropolis...from shopping haven of Madison & Fifth Avenue to cultural & art supreme at museums to landmarks such as the Empire State Building...NYC was a lot of fun!

We got a 3-day New York Pass and had the privilege to visit the Empire State Building, Top of The Rock (spectacular night views), Statue of Liberty, Radio City Music Hall, MoMa, Guggenheim Museum, American Museum of Natural History Museum, Madame Tussands, The Met, St Patricks's Cathedral and much more...

Everything was so close and public transportation was really convenient and cheap. I thought coming from Hong Kong would not make NYC special, I was so wrong, I felt like a country girl in a massive city!!! There was so much to do and see!

We also went to the Madison Square Garden, Central Park, Times Square, Little Italy, Soho, Grand Central Station etc...

We strolled around Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue and of course the Theatre District. NYC offers every world class broadway show from Lion King, Memphis, Jersey Boys, Wicked, Mamma Mia and much more...we went to see The Phantom of the Opera which was mind-blowing. It's truly a privilege to see a broadway show in NYC.

We didn't stop there, we also went to the Wall Street and strolled around the rest of the Financial District. The NYSE, Federal Hall and surrounding buildings were beautiful. It actually reminded me of London. You know? Those gorgeous white buildings in Westminster.

Of course, I couldn't resist going to the Upper East Side of Manhattan to visit Blair Waldorf's apartment haha...again, it was a beautiful area with gorgeous buildings right next to Central Park.

We got to see our friend in NYC which was nice and got to have pastrimi sandwich at Katz which was unreal, I swear they have the best pastrimi in the world!!!!

Although it was a short 4 day trip, we managed to do a lot without rushing at all. I don't understand why people say New Yorkers are rude because we had such a great time there including at the Customs, everyone were friendly and helpful.

All in all, we had a fabulous time at NYC and we will definitely go back some day...

Canada - Edmonton, Alberta

Time flies, I can't believe we will be leaving for New York tomorrow.

1

It's been a joyful week to be back in Edmonton. I can't believe I would live the day to say this but I actually really missed the snow and trees...and of course my family.

1

Yesterday, I took Rupert to see my schools - Harry Ainlay High School and the University of Alberta; we also drove by Whyte Ave a few times but it was too cold to walk around. We drove around William Hawrelak Park where Rupert rolled in the snow and nearly lost his fingers because it was so cold.

1

For those of you who don't know, Edmonton is the capital of Alberta. Population is about 782,500 and city area is about 684 sq km.

1

Edmonton is famous for housing the largest mall in North America - the West Edmonton Mall, the Edmonton Oilers (ice hockey) and Edmonton Eskimos (Canadian football) and it's ridiculous amount of snow (weather can get to -40 in the winter, it is now about -21).

1

In general, it's cheaper to live in the province of Alberta than other provinces in Canada. Alberta is the largest producer of conventional crude oil, synthetic crude and gas in Canada. So Alberta is the only province not subject to PST (provincial sales tax), Albertans are only subject to the the GST (the federal sales tax, Goods & Services Tax).

Maybe because I haven't been back to Edmonton for so long, I learnt to appreciate the beautiful blue sky, trees, crispy fresh air, personal space and diamond like snowflakes, Edmonton is truly a winter wonderland.

I am certainly going to miss Edmonton, my family, home and friends.

*Some of the information about Edmonton and Alberta are from Wikipedia

Happy Valentines Day

It's surprising warm in Edmonton, it's about -5 today. I love the color of the sky during sunset and sunrise. It turns into a soft rainbow color which you never see in Hong Kong.

Everywhere you go, you see gorgeous white snow and trees. It's rather unreal, like something you would see on a puzzle.

I was going through some photo albums. Saw a whole load of old photos of my family including my dad and sister who passed away years ago. Everytime I see these photos, I can see them so vividly. Everytime, it reminds me of how much I must treasure my time with my family (and friends) and that I should never take things for granted. 

You just never know when they will be gone and all that's left behind is memories...but good memories. You will regret for not apologizing for the hurtful things you said to them the last time you saw them; you will regret for not telling them how much you truly love them even though you act like an idiot; you will regret picking on the smallest negative thing about them instead of appreciating how lucky you are to have them.

I try not to regret anymore and instead, use that lesson to remind myself to be full of gratitude for what I have and to treasure my family.

It's February 14th today, so Happy Valentines Day!!! We had a family gathering because it's also my cousin's son's birthday today. Real family and friends are those even when you rarely see them, you can pick up right where you left off. No awkwardness, no dead air.

I think it's also because we are all older now and instead of acting cool and all, we open our arms for each other. We take initiative and make more effort.

I am so blessed with everything I have. You can choose your friends but you can't choose your family. I am blessed to have loving and caring families in both Edmonton and Hong Kong.

It was a beautiful day today.

First Day of 2011

OK now that we are in 2011, what should we do first thing this year?

Apart from hugging and kissing and appreciating your family, how about doing some good for the less fortunate?

You must have cleared some unwanted clothes (in good condition), furniture, toys, goods etc...don't let them sit there, DO SOMETHING (www.dosomething.org)!!!

Check out:
www.crossroads.org.hk
www.salvation.org.hk
www.christian-action-eng.org and many more...

Want to help others more or volunteer more? But can't commit, too busy, don't have the time? Try Hands on HK (http://handsonhongkong.org), there are lots of one time events you can help out. Like visiting old folks, teaching minority community English and many other ways to help others.

Start your year by helping others. 2011 is going to be a FABULOUS year!

New Year's Resolutions 2011

Wow, it's been 2 months since I last blogged. That's bad.

Too much to do, too little time...

OK, 15 minutes to go to 2011! Time to jot down some New Year's Resolution:

Same Every Year but Never Get Done (so must continue to try in 2011):

• Do more exercise (I can't even run one block without getting out of breath, and I can't do a single push up, not even one)
• Volunteer / Help others more - I think more than I act
• Spend more time with family and friends (NOT via facebook or twitter)
• Be happy and worry less
  

Something New for 2011:

• Go travel - life is too short, go see the world!!!
• Learn something new or do something I love - drawing/painting, photography, read more books, learn how to juggle with 3 balls
  
• Solve a 4x4 rubik's cube
• Have my portrait painted

It's quite general in a way but hey, life is that simple, or at least it's supposed to right?

What are your New Year's Resolutions?