China (part 2)

I came back from vacation almost 2 weeks ago and this is a continuation of pictures from my post last week, which was more about the streets of Beijing. This time I'm focusing on food because that's what we're all interested in, right? I mean, who doesn't love food? Once again, excuse the unprofessional quality of the pictures, including tilted angles :) You know, I just can't seem to stand still and take a picture at the same time.

[Warning: image heavy!]


Sugar-coated hawthorne berries on a stick! Sooooo good and probably healthy since I'm eating fruit, right?

China - Beijing (part 1)

So I've been on vacation in China for a couple of weeks and now I'm back! :) Yay. It's good to be back. I've taken a ton of pictures and can't decide which ones to upload. Here are a few from Beijing-- to get a sense of the place and people. Not sure how many parts I'm going to post (there're still pictures of food and a couple of other cities!) I'll just post these for now :) Excuse the blurriness, un-straightness, and anything else weird. Trying to take pictures and walk among huge crowds while avoiding getting hit by vehicles or looking like a complete idiot results in shakiness. Oh, and I don't have a nice camera.


Yes, let us start off with this Bruce Lee themed fast food restaurant called "Kung Fu." This was in one of the 2008 Olympic buildings and I saw it in a couple of other cities too. Regrettably, I did not try the food here because I wanted to eat at non-fast-food restaurants.

On Vacation!

Hi all, I am on vacation from 9/22 to 10/10 so there will be no posts or Sunday Linky Parties from now until then. Where am I going? To China! :O Yep, pretty exciting. I have no idea if I'll be able to access my blog or e-mail (since I hear certain sites are blocked there) and I should really take a break from technology anyway (except for the camera :). For those who are wondering, the next effective Sunday Linky Party will be on 10/16.

Great Wall of China, Mutinoyu Section by timschultzphoto

I will actually be visiting the Great Wall of China so I hope my pictures will be as awesome as the one above! Well, may as well post some pictures of China I've found on Etsy :) I wonder what most of the country looks like now that they've had so much development.

Beach Comber

This weekend, a friend and I made a trip down to Santa Cruz for some leisurely beach hiking. Although Santa Cruz is famous for its beach boardwalk, there are lots of small, hidden beaches along the coastline, frequented by locals. I always find one that I haven't been to, and this is one of them :) There was even a set of abandoned railroad tracks that we walked down for awhile. I'm kicking myself for not taking a picture!

Yosemite in the Spring

I took a few days off about a month ago to hike and hang out with hubby/a bunch of friends in Yosemite and meant to make a post about it, but procrastination had gotten the best of me, until now.


The money shot!

So here are the views! Hiking in the gorgeous Spring weather with the best company one can find :) I was extremely tired and ready to hit the floor by the time we were done (I'm very out of shape thanks to the office), but I'm kind of tempted to go back again... Isn't it funny how easily we forget the grueling process and only remember the rewards?

A Glimpse of Monterey Bay

Today's weather is simply lovely! It's 84 degrees outside, I'm finally wearing a dress (which is one of my favorite types of clothing), and everything is so peaceful right now (for some odd reason).

Tulip Spring Wonderment (2) by happeemonkee
Isn't this photo gorgeous? There are so many amazing Spring photographs on Etsy, it was a hard choice picking one! Have a look!

I moved to California last week (Bay Area) and still haven't fully unpacked. Actually, the week that I moved, I must have brought the rainy NY weather with me because it literally rained everyday that week :(
Warning: lots and lots of sea life and scenic photos!

I'm moving to California!

Hi all. After complaining about the winters (I've survived through) here in NY, I'm finally moving back to California! Yay! Warm moderate temperatures, beautiful beaches, San Francisco, crabbing/fishing, year-round mountain hiking, and delicious foods from every culture -- here I come!


Beach in Half Moon Bay

Lunch and Movie Adventure in Union Square

A couple of friends drove up from Washington D.C. for a visit yesterday, so the hubby and I had lunch and a movie with them for a double date. They really wanted to try Ippudo, a super popular ramen restaurant that doesn't take reservations and charges twice as much for a bowl of ramen compared to most other ramen restaurants in the area. The place opens at 11a.m. and by the time we got there, which was about 10:58, there was already a long line at the door. Good thing our friends got there at 10:45 so they were at the front of the line.



The first thing I noticed is how cool the chairs were. Now I can eat and publicly cuddle with my husband at the same time! YES! Or, to let everyone know that I'm mad at him, I can pull my chair apart or (even better) switch the chairs so we have two arm rests between us (that'll show everyone in the restaurant what's up).


Cute.


Hubby got the special.


I ordered the classic. Mine was much better.

Christmas on 34th Street

This was only about 4:30 in the afternoon but it looks like it's 8PM already.

My husband and I donated some clothes to the Goodwill near Midtown yesterday. On the way there, we passed by a window with a pair of the most adorable and beautiful cats ever. I really wanted to pet them, but the store was closed, so we harassed them paparazzi-style.


Me - "Hellooooo you kitties! Look over here!"
Cat 1 - "Say John, don't you just hate it when commoners solicit photos of our beautiful selves for their own selfish reasons?"
Cat 2 - "Zen VHY ahr yu pozingk, le Bob?" 

Greetings from Yosemite, California

I've spent the past ten days vacationing and visiting family. It's been a wonderful break. My husband and I spent a few days in a little cabin in Yosemite, and OMG, it's beautiful! It was also extremely cold, as we did not expect so much snow there yet. I mean, it's California! Sunny, warm California?

Nope, not warm

Yosemite is a national park located in east central California. At over 760,000 square acres and reaching the western side of the Sierra Nevada mountains, it's a gorgeous place to hike, camp, ski, and watch the local wildlife. We're not big campers but we like to hike. Unfortunately the trails were so icy and slippery that danger lurked beyond even the easiest of the "easy" hikes.

Yosemite Falls from far away

Snowy scenery

Half Dome - you can climb to the top of that during the summer, but it's closed in the winter

My husband and I decided to take one of the easy trails that loop around the valley of Yosemite, where all the great picture spots are. About 10 minutes into the trail, we came upon Yosemite Falls (THE waterfall of Yosemite, consisting of upper, middle, and lower waterfalls) and Hubby wanted to stray off the trail to take a better picture. As we walked closer off-trail to the falls, we noticed a small icy stream that prevented us from continuing on.