Passport

I got bored today and decided to count the stamps in my passport. I know, I know...yesterday I liked cleaning and today I'm counting things...I'm a dork...

Anyway, so far in 2009 I have added 44 stamps & 2 full page visas. This does not include two trips to the US (NC in June and Hawaii in September) where they didn't stamp my passport.

You've likely read about most of the trips here but in case you forgot, here is a recap:
Jan 3 – Arrived – Singapore
Jan 26 – Departed – Singapore
Jan 26 – Arrived, Mumbai, India
Jan 30 – Departed, Mumbai, India
Jan 31 – Arrived – Singapore
Feb 8 – Departed – Singapore
Feb 8 – Arrived – USA
Mar 8 – Arrived – Singapore
Mar 17 – Singapore Employment Pass
Mar 22 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Mar 28 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Mar 28 – Arrived – Auckland, New Zealand
Mar 31 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Apr 3 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Apr 27 – Arrived - USA
May 17 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
May 22 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Jun 15 – Arrived – Auckland, New Zealand
Jun 16 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Jun 20 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Jul 7 – Arrived – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Jul 10 – Departed – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Aug 7 – Arrived – Bangkok, Thailand
Aug 9 – Departed – Bangkok, Thailand
Aug 11 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Aug 14 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Aug 17 – Arrived – Mumbai, India
Aug 19 – Departed – Mumbai, India
Sep 2 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Sep 12 – Departed – Adelaide, Australia
Sep 14 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Sep 18 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Oct 11 – Arrived – Sydney, Australia
Oct 13 – Departed – Sydney, Australia
Oct 21 – Arrived – Seoul, South Korea
Oct 25 – Departed – Seoul, South Korea
Oct 29 – Arrived – Jakarta, Indonesia
Oct 30 – Departed – Jakarta, Indonesia
Nov 14 – Arrived – Taipei, Taiwan
Nov 17 – Departed – Taipei, Taiwan
Nov 18 – Arrived – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Nov 20 – Departed – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Nov 24 – Arrived – Bangkok, Thailand
Nov 27 – Departed – Bangkok, Thailand

When I get back from my US trip I will need to head up to the US Embassy to get more pages added to my passport. In addition, I need to get a new visa for entry to India and another for China.

All of the travel has been great but looking at it all listed out makes me realize just how busy I've been. I haven't been in Singapore for longer than three consecutive weeks yet...I may be in Singapore for most of January but already have two trips on the books for the end of January and early February....

What do you think the magic number of passport stamps will be for 2010?

Read more...

Phew...

I had a busy Sunday.  I went to the grocery store first thing this morning...I've basically been gone for two weeks so had nothing to eat in the apartment.  I got home and started my laundry and cleaning.  At noon I went to the gym and had a great workout with my trainer (more on that in another post).  After some lunch I started cleaning again...I was actually having fun cleaning.  Hold on...I'll explain so that you don't think I am too crazy...  Before I go on a trip I have to have the house clean.  I really don't like coming home to a dirty house and the minute you walk in from a trip it's automatically messy...suitcase on the floor...clothes in piles to be laundered...the stack of mail to go through...you get my drift.  So, by cleaning the apartment today it was the first step in my return journey home.  That is why I was having fun and also why I've been smiling a lot today.  I'll be at my mom's house in less than 5 days and back home in Durham in just over 11 days!

After I finished cleaning I started my cooking.  It has been ages since I've cooked here so made some things for the week.  I have some chicken and fresh steamed veggies in tomato sauce and the sloppy joes on still simmering on the stove.  Should be enough to make it through the week with some leftover to give to a friend.

While I was cleaning I started to sort through the things I need to take home with me.  I had to dig out some winter clothes since I don't EVER need them here.  I have some other things that I picked up throughout my journeys so have put them all in a nice pile.  I also made a sweep of the apartment to add things to my list of items to purchase.  There are some things I can't get here that I just prefer (for example, shampoo and other hair products) and some other things that will just be much cheaper to buy at home and bring back here.
Now that I look at what I did today in written form it doesn't seem like much but this is the first I have sat down all day...and now for a nice glass of wine...

Read more...

Singapore Spangle

Christmas is a big holiday here in Singapore...actually...I'm not sure that the holiday itself is that big but the decorations are all the rage.  I was able to see them last year and they were obnoxious...a bit like Walt Disney threw up on Orchard Road.  This year is pretty toned down but there are still a ton of them.

In addition to the different shopping centers putting up their own decorations the city decorates Orchard Road.  Now, there aren't just a few but all along the entire road...

They also have them along the sidewalks to entertain you while you are walking...

 

BTW - these giant Santa Claus things actually rotate around...very strange.

 

 

So there you have it...the spangle for Christmas here in Singapore...

Read more...

Read more...

Happy Hari Raya Puasa - Thailand style

I'm out of my funk today...and thank you for indulging me...I'm still jealous that all of you got proper Thanksgiving meals but am okay with the fact that I did not.

Today is the Muslim holiday of Hari Raya Puasa.  According to my trainer who is Muslim this is a holiday to renew relationships with family and friends but also to feast and share that feast with the less fortunate.  For me, it means a public holiday in Singapore so I got the day off.  Instead of flying back to Singapore last night I decided to stay over to tour around today.

The first stop on my tour was to Bang Pa-In Palace which is about a one hour drive north of Bangkok.  It is a huge estate that is used by the Thai King and Queen as a summer palace.  It is seldom used by the current royalty so is open to the public. 

There are a number of buildings on the property.  Most are used as residences so you aren't able to go into the buildings.  But they are pretty to look at from the outside.  This is the Aisawan-Dhipaya-Asana Pavilion:

In English that means the Divine Seat of Personal Freedom.  The building is used as the pavilion where the king changes his regalia...yes, I had to look this up...maybe since I am not of royal blood...it means he changes his crown and other king-like articles of jewelry and clothing.  It seems a bit odd because the building doesn't have any walls so hopefully he isn't changing too much.

Most of the residences are very Western looking and in fact are quite colonial in style.  You turn the corner from looking at that very Asian building above to find this:

This is the Uthayan Phumisathian Residential Hall.  In English it is called the Garden of the Secured Land.  This is the first building that is within the walls of the inner palace which was only accessible to the King and his family.

The next building that you come upon is the Ho Withun Thasana:

In English it means the Sages Lookout which is a very fitting name because it was built to be used as a viewing tower for the surrounding countryside.

At this point in walking around the palace I started to feel a bit like I was at Disney or some other theme park.  This may explain why:

The palace was neat to see but I don't know if I would go out of my way to go there again.  It would be better if you were able to go in and see the inside of the buildings.  The Thai people really love the King and Queen so I think it is probably quite impressive for them to be able to visit here.

Our next stop was to the Ayutthaya region of Thailand to visit some Buddhist temples.  The first temple was by far my favorite stop of the day.  It was to Wat Maha That which is a temple that is over 600 years old.  However, temple should be used loosely because it is actually the ruins of the temple. 

Almost all of the buddha statues had been desecrated during a war by having their heads and their right arms removed.  There were still hundreds of buddhas partially standing on the temple grounds.  When I was walking around looking at them I had this odd feeling like they were all still there because they were too stubborn to let somebody ruin their meaning just because they no longer had heads or arms.  This is one of those places...like the Colosseum in Rome...where you can't help but feel the history surrounding you when you are walking through.  I know this sounds hokey but you really feel like you get a sense of all of the people who have stood there before you.

Now, to be fair, while I was thinking how great this place was and could sense the history of it...I also was wandering around looking at these decapitated buddhas and wondered what they did with all of those heads and arms?  They weren't just lying around on the ground so clearly the people who cut them off also took them someplace.  Do you think there is a pile of heads just hanging around?  If so, isn't there a way we could find them and bring them back to their rightful bodies?

I took a ton of pictures here so will be sure to upload them to Flickr and post the link.

Our next stop was to an old temple that has been renovated.  It looks brand new and is obviously still in use.

 

This is the Qat Na Phra Mane temple.  It is actually on the grounds of a monastery.  The buddha inside is actually quite rare because it is adorned in royal attire.  Apparently very few buddhas get to wear the crown since that is reserved for the King. 

The final stop on the tour was to the Wat Lokayasutharam temple.  There is very little left of the temple buildings however there is one really great thing that is left:

Am not sure if you'll be able to double-click on the photo to enlarge it or not...if you can there is a guy in a blue shirt that will give you perspective on just how huge this thing is.  If not, it'll be on the Flickr link so you'll be able to see it. 

While the reclining buddha was cool to see, I have to say the best part of being at this temple was actually while I was crossing the road.  I was about to cross when this motorbike came whizzing up the road.  I stopped to let it pass and on the back of it, riding side-saddle, was a monk.  As he came up on the reclining buddha he put his palms together...tips of the fingers at his chin...bowed to the buddha and said what I am assuming was a prayer...and then just went back to riding on the back of the motorbike.  It was one of those...geez I wish I had my camera out moments...but honestly, I think it is one of those experiences I'm happy to have in my head as my own memory.  I don't think anybody else noticed him which makes it even more of my own...

It was a fun day and a great way to spend a holiday.  I almost didn't go on the tour...I hate going on arranged tours but sometimes it is really one of the few ways to see these sorts of things.  This one was good because they gave you a specified amount of time to wander around the palace and temples so even though I was transported with a group of people I made the most of my time at each site.

Read more...

Thanksgiving trickery

This is not my first Thanksgiving away from home.  Last year I was in northern India in a little place called Rishikesh.  If you recall, the Mumbai bombings had just occurred so it was a rather crazy experience.  Although, I had the opportunity to go whitewater rafting down the Ganges River so it wasn't all bad. 

This year I am in Bangkok.  I had to work today which makes sense since it isn't a holiday here.  This evening I headed up to one of the local night markets and wandered around.  It is a really nice market with a lot of great local designers and housewares and clothes and other things to look at.  It was fun wandering around and I picked up some gifts for Christmas. 

On my way back up to my hotel room I saw a sign for the hotel restaurant that they were having a traditional American Thanksgiving...I got really excited!  Turkey and stuffing and pumpkin pie...I figured it wouldn't be great since I am in Thailand but thought it was still worth it.  So, I dropped my bags in my room and headed back down for my Thanksgiving meal.  I got a table for one and with a lot more excitement than I thought I'd have I went to look at the Thanksgiving buffet...I walked around the buffet and started reading the signs...lots of Thai dishes...fish...beef...steamed veggies...but no stuffing...no green bean casserole...no mashed potatoes...I did eventually find the turkey and it was actually the turkey breast they have in the deli to make sliced turkey for sandwiches...my excitement quickly disappeared...and I ended up with a sort of empty feeling...no Thanksgiving dinner for me...I had resigned myself to that when I knew I'd be in Bangkok but then the Thanksgiving trickery at my hotel occurred and I got my hopes up...for nothing...

I'm thankful for many, many things this Thanksgiving.  I have a great husband & family, wonderful friends, I get to travel around the world, I'm living in a foreign country and experiencing all of these new things and these things I am very thankful for...but...I wish I had some turkey and stuffing and some of Alan's wicked mashed potatoes.  I'm just feeling sorry for myself...I know that...but I think it is okay every once in awhile as long as I don't dwell on it for too long.

My Thanksgiving dinner ended up being a ham sandwich on walnut raisin bread...it was as close to a Thanksgiving meal as I could get.  I am now enjoying a beer and watching Superman and chatting with Alan on the computer.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving meals and especially your time with your family or friends this wonderful day!

Read more...

Fun with food...Thai style

This is look choob.  This is a Thai dessert.  This looks pretty and sweet but they are odd...I've thought long and hard about how to accurately describe them and all I can come up with is odd.  I am sorry that I am not a more creative blogger but I honestly don't know if there is a more accurate description than odd.  These are made of steamed green beans, coconut milk, and sugar.  The green bean paste is then molded into a shape of a variety of tropical fruits and then is dip-coated in jelly that gives it a shiny look.

They look pretty and sweet don't they?  I have tasted them and they are not so sweet and the prettiness does not make up for the odd taste.  Now...they do not taste like fish so am okay with that...they just look a lot prettier than they taste.  So...since somebody bought me all of these and I didn't want to eat them all...I've instead decided to dissect them.

This is the specimen:

This is what the specimen looks like when you break apart.  Please notice the green bean paste.

This is a close-up so that you can really see what the green bean paste looks like.

This is what happens when you take all of the jelly coatings off and put them on your fingers:

This is what happens when you take the green bean paste and have a little fun with it:

And this is the end of the fun with food - Thai look choob version.  The end...

Read more...

Thanks...was that...?

I've had a good day of training here in the Bangkok office.  The team here is wonderful and have been such great hosts to me.  They keep coming into the office asking me if I want coffee or tea or a snack.  I keep saying "no thank you, I am fine" and they keep coming back with little snacks and treats. 

They just brought me in a little plate with three round cakes on it.  It has been a couple of hours since lunch...real pad thai by the way - amazing...so thought why not try it as a snack.  (I should probably note here that I really wasn't hungry but always feel bad turning down local food when in a new country.)  So, I went ahead and tried it...the cake part was flaky like a croissant and didn't have a lot of flavor...just dough-like.  I took a look at the inside and saw some chunky pink stuff mixed in with the flaky stuff...I figured it was something sweet...they did insist it was sweet...so took another bite.  It was at this point in time of my little Thai cake eating experience that I had to ask myself...was that fish I just tasted?  Not just fish but some sort of fish paste mixed with sugar...they did insist it was sweet...not at all what I was expecting.  Instead, it has the taste of pink salmon mixed with molasses and maybe a sweet cream cheese all blended together and mushed into a paste type consistency???  I'm not sure I'm describing this correctly but have just eaten it and wanted to blog immediately to capture it as best I could.

I am now in a bit of a dilemma...I am in a conference room with a half eaten little Thai cake and two more on the plate.  There is no trash can in here and I really hate to be rude...somebody left the office especially to go and get these for me.  What am I supposed to do?  Do I politely leave the half eaten little Thai cake on the plate with the others and say I wasn't too fond of it?  Of course I really want to say...thanks...was that fish???in the cake???that was mixed with sugar???

Read more...

Hot, hot, hot

Nope, not the heat outside but the heat in my mouth right now.  I just arrived in Bangkok and ordered some Tom Yum Gung soup from room service.  The description reads "thai hot prawn soup with lime, lemon grass and chili".  It is super tasty but dang it is hot...my mouth is on fire right now.  Most of the other Asian countries that I have visited have food that is flavorful spicy but not spicy hot...that is not the case in Thailand.  They like their food super hot which should be noticable based on the amount of red chili flakes you can see in your dish.  That, of course, did not stop me from enjoying as much of the bowl of soup as I could.  Thankfully they sent some rice along with it so it served as my cooling agent.

I'm here in Bangkok for two days of training at the office and then I have Friday to wander around before flying home on Friday night.  I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do on Friday but have a couple of days to decide.

Read more...

Monsoon season

First of all...nicely done on the comments yesterday.  Thanks!

We are moving into the second monsoon season here in Singapore and I am loving it!  The second monsoon season of the year brings nice winds from the Northeast so the temperatures are noticeably cooler.  Instead of being in the upper 80s each day it has instead only been in the mid-70s.  That coupled with a pretty constant breeze is such a nice change.  I'm guessing that most visitors to Singapore still think that it is horribly hot and humid.  I say this only because I see them fanning themselves and sweating a lot while wandering around the city.  I am just thrilled with the change.  Of course, monsoon season means lots of rain too but that is okay...I'll take rain if it means that we get these wonderful temperatures.  It was so nice today I had all of the windows in my apartment open!

Read more...

Is it okay to love your sofa?

This is a question I am posing to all of you...I expect comments...it has been ages since I have received any comments on my page so wonder if you are all reading this or not.  Don't be shy, just write something...anything...I do it most days and am amazed at how easy it is.

Anywho...back to the question at hand...is it okay to love your sofa?  I am not 'in love' with my sofa but I am loving my sofa today.  In fact, it is after 3:00 pm here in Singapore and I've been on the sofa since I woke up this morning.  It's Saturday so I am not feeling guilty about it...I've caught up on most of my favorite websites and Facebook and some DVR and some other strange television shows.  I'm starting to think about taking a shower so I can be presentable and go and get some food...I have none in my fridge...another joy of traveling too much...

I think that we as people may take our furniture for granted.  It is always there, patiently waiting for us when we return home.  It never argues with us and can even serve double duty as a storage space or dinner table or whatever else...  I personally do not take my furniture for granted.  If you recall, I lived in my apartment here for about 6 weeks without any furniture so have a deep appreciation for it.  I also spend many, many nights in hotel rooms.  Of course they always have beds but rarely have comfortable chairs or sofas...hence my loving of my sofa today.  Sitting on a bed all of the time is just not the same as sitting on a sofa. 

So, I ask all of you...is it okay to love your sofa?

Read more...

Travel time

I have officially reached the point in my months and months of travel where I am tired of traveling.  I'm enjoying seeing all of the new places and touring and having the experiences...I'm just tired of all that is involved with travel that is not so much fun.  The long taxi rides to the airport (most Asian airports seem to be about an hour from the city)...waiting in line at immigration...going through security...eating airport and airplane food...staying in hotels...more taxi rides...living out of a suitcase...and the list goes on and on... 

Most of the time these things don't really bother me much.  Right now I'm tired of all of the travel this year and am honestly just ready to get back to the US to some familiar territory.  I'm really just whining right now because I just got home from two trips this week and have to leave again on Tuesday.

Okay, am done whining...will be happier about Bangkok on Tuesday and much happier about flying to Detroit in two weeks and really super duper happy about flying to Durham the following week!!!

Read more...

Mail makes me happy

I returned home tonight from Taipei to find a great big package and two letters in my mailbox.  Yipee!  Even though there isn't anybody waiting to greet me in my apartment finding mail reminds me that people care about me...so is kind of like having somebody greet me.  The package was from Alan (husband) and it included one of my all time favorite types of candy...actually two kinds...tootsie rolls and tootsie pops...yummy!  Of course, you cannot find either of them here in Singapore so it was a welcome sight.  One of the letters was from Alan (brother) and made me laugh out loud. 

For those of you who rely predominantly on email or text messaging or some other form of electronic communication, please...please...please pick up a pen and piece of paper and write somebody a letter.  I promise that this is not a pathetic ploy for me to get mail...send the letter to somebody else...  There is something about finding a letter in your mailbox...knowing that somebody took the time to write it to you...then all sorts of people take all that care to make sure it gets delivered directly to you...and then you get to open it and find your favorite candy or laugh out loud...how cool is that?

Read more...

Completely different

This weekend when I was riding around on the Taipei MRT there were often times that I was the only Westerner on the train or even in my general vicinity within the train station.  I have found myself in the same situation a lot over the past few months. 

When I used to travel a lot to Europe and South America I would always try and blend in and not appear too American.  I'm not ashamed to be an American but we have a pretty horrible reputation as travelers in quite a few countries around the world.  I actually had one of these annoying Americans on my tour on Sunday morning.  Very loud, quite rude, and always the last one so he kept all of the rest of us waiting. 

It's funny how I think I probably stood out more in Europe than I do here...actually, I know that I stand out here since I look completely different but I am less uncomfortable about it here.  Maybe it is because there is absolutely no way for me to blend in when I am in Asia since I look completely different.  Maybe it is because I have now traveled so much on my own that I am just more comfortable being in situations that would have previously made me uncomfortable.  It is most likely a combination of the two...as well as getting older.  Regardless of what has made me less uncomfortable I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to have this experience and travel to these places that are so completely different to me and where I am so completely different to them.

Am currently sitting in the airport heading back to Singapore this evening.  I had two days of great meetings in our Taipei office.  Am home for a few hours tomorrow and then will be flying out to Kuala Lumpur.

Read more...

Taipei

I started my day today at the Martyrs' Shrine.  This is where they honor the soldiers that have died during wars fought on behalf of the Republic of China or Taiwan (China as we know it is actually the Peoples Republic of China so there is a difference).  There is an hourly changing of the guard that I was able to see. 

These guys march with some amazing precision.  They also twirl their guns and salute in unison.  It was very neat to see them march up and then perform right in front of me.  The guys in the blue are Air Force and the guy in the white is Navy.  They stand at attention (no movement at all) for an hour before the next changing of the guard.

Here are few pictures from around the Martyrs' Shrine:

The colors were just amazing.  I'm not sure that these pictures actually capture how vibrant they are.  The red looked like it had been polished it was so bright.

 

My next stop was to a traditional Taoist temple. 

Again, the colors were really amazing.  I also learned some interesting bits of information.  For example, in the Taoist religion they only burn white candles for funerals which is why you almost always see red ones at the temples.  They also provide offerings which they burn in a furnace:

I also learned that dragons in Asia have significance based on the number of claws they have.  Only the highest emperors would have dragons with five claws.  Other important people such as presidents will have dragons with four claws and normal people would have dragons with only three claws.

My next stop was to the National Palace Museum.  This museum is apparently the fourth largest in the world and houses the biggest collection of Chinese art.  It also houses the largest collection of people second only to the MRT.  Holy cow was it busy in there!  Again, there was lots of herding instead of moving and it made it really hard to actually enjoy the museum.  I think you could spend an entire day in the museum and if you come I'd definitely not recommend going on a Sunday morning - yikes...too many people!

I did take this picture while relaxing on the front steps of the museum:

I really like this picture.  Partly because it was my quiet escape from the craziness of the museum but also because I like that the writing on the ground is all in Mandarin.

My last stop was to the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall:

This is a huge monument that was erected to honor the memory of the former President of Taiwan, Chiang Kai-shek.  He was apparently a very controversial leader.  Back in 2007 they changed the name to the National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall and last year it was changed back to the CKS Memorial Hall.  The signage was just updated this past summer.  Anyway, here is what is inside of it:

To put the size of the statue into perspective you can see the honor guards on both sides.  These guys are probably about 6' tall.  The size of the statue itself reminds me of Abraham Lincoln inside the Lincoln Memorial in DC.  The building itself is just huge...a little too huge but I don't know anything about this guy so it may be worth the size.  Who knows...

The grounds were pretty amazing too. 

 

I had fun wandering the city this morning.  It is a huge city so I only saw a little bit of it but I could certainly spend more time exploring more of it.

Read more...

First night in Taipei

Tonight I went to the Shilin Night Market here in Taipei.  To get there I had to take the MRT.  It was just a short walk from my hotel.  Everything is in both Mandarin as well as English so it was easy to get around.  I only almost got on the wrong train just once.  Something to note, you should not take the Taipei MRT if you don't like being in crowds of people.  You literally just move en mass through the station and then onto the train.  Once on the train there is no need to even hang on since you are packed in like sardines.  It would normally creep me out to be this close to people but it was actually a very orderly process. 

Shilin Night Market is a huge market where you can buy all sorts of clothing, shoes, jewelry, as well as ton of food.  Some of the food looked really good and some looked and smelled horrible.  And by horrible, I mean the nauseatingly bad.  As with most Asian markets, there was quite a bit of raw meat and fish sitting around.  There were also a bunch of stalls selling cooked chicken necks and feet and who knows what else.  The Asians are pretty good at not wasting much when it comes to food.  I wasn't hungry so didn't eat anything but I had a great time walking up and down looking at all of the different stalls.

One of the things that always amazes me about the food stalls in Asia are how much output there is from such a tiny space.  Here is a sign from a stall that was probably no larger than a bathroom that would fit under a staircase:

The other side of the market is where all of the clothing shops are located.  The entire market was super busy but the clothing side was by far the busiest.  I'm hoping this picture gives you an idea of the amount of people I was walking through the market with:

What made matters worse is that there were tables in the middle of the walking path.  There were people standing on stools keeping an eye out for what I thought were customers.  What I realized a little bit later was that they were the lookouts for the police.  At one point, the guys and gals standing up on the stools starting yelling at each other and within a matter of about a minute the tables were all packed up and gone.  It was really interesting to watch and clearly they were selling illegally.  The police were patrolling pretty well after that point so it made it much easier to walk around. 

I wandered around the market for a couple of hours.  I did pick up a couple of things since it is hard to pass them up at such good prices.  My day started out pretty early today so am heading to bed early.  More to come from touring tomorrow...

Read more...

SIN to TPE

Am headed to Taipei, Taiwan this morning.  I'll have this afternoon and tomorrow to tour around and then am in the office Monday and Tuesday before heading back to Singapore.  Hopefully some interesting blogs to follow...

Read more...

Long week

Three full days of meetings Monday through Wednesday wore me out.  I opted out of the all-day meeting yesterday but had a company dinner to go to that kept me out until about 10 pm.  I woke up this morning feeling a little under the weather and with a migraine.  Ugh...not a fun way to end the week.  I think I have just done too much this week.  Too many early mornings and too many long days.  It has been raining all day today so the weather has contributed to a good day of resting, napping, and recovering. 

Read more...

Up or down

I have taken to riding on the top of the bus.  I used to ride on the lower level on the way to the office and on the top on the way back home.  I have no idea why...it was almost like I gave myself a little reward for a day of hard work.  I then realized the other day that the upper deck of the bus is much emptier in the mornings so I have started riding on the upper deck both ways. 

Today I started wondering what makes people decide to go up or down.  For kids I think it is an easy question, most of them want to go up and most want to sit in the front.  It is fun to be above everything else and to see where the bus is headed.  Adults seem to be different though - some like heading up and others are content staying down...even if the lower level is completely full. 

To me I think it is like choosing the best seat in the car when you are a kid...especially if you had siblings.  Of course the front seat is the absolute best seat to have.  However, if you were lucky like my brothers and I were we had a station wagon so the absolute prime seat was the 'way back' of the car.  That would leave two to share the backseat and one to have the entire 'way back' all to themselves.  It was like our own little kingdom that moved.  Although I don't seem to recall winning the 'way back' too many times.  Maybe that is why I have now decided to ride upstairs all of the time...and yes, I am like the little kids and try and get the very front seat.

Read more...

City walking

A new thing for me is being able to walk most places since I live in a city.  I think it is great to have things within walking distance and to not have to rely on a car to get around.  I especially like the fact that during peak traffic hours (which seems to be most times in Singapore) I am actually able to get places faster by walking instead of driving.  I will hop off of the bus a couple of stops before my normal stop if traffic is heavy.  And I now have made a game of it and am able to alter my pace in order to hit the little green walking man right when I come up on an intersection. 

This doesn't mean that there aren't some traffic slowdowns even when walking.  The traffic isn't automobile traffic but instead pedestrian.  In almost all cities in Asia that I have visited people tend to walk slowly.  Now, I know that I tend to walk on the fast side but this isn't just slow...it is more like the 100 meter mosey...or the pokey little puppy slow...it is painful.  The other thing that I have noticed is that many people here weave when walking.  I know that I don't since I pick a block of bricks and stay within that row the entire length of the sidewalk...not the case for most people.  And probably the most frustrating thing about walking in Asia is that people walk four or five across and don't want to give way to you.  I of course, stand my ground and don't move (since I am only one person across) and force one of the four or five to move...at least a little.

Even with all of the frustrations and even when it is raining I enjoy the walk home each night.  (My walk to the bus stop in the morning is pretty short.)  I know when I go home in December I'll have fun zipping around in my car but I think I'll miss the ability to be able to walk most places.  Durham, NC just isn't a very pedestrian friendly city.

Read more...

Eleven hours

That is how long my meeting was today.  It started at 8 am and ended at 7pm...ugh!  There were some good discussions but that was a long day.  The cool part about it was that we were on the top floor of the Four Seasons Hotel.  The meeting room we were in had a ton of windows so we had a great view.  This afternoon we were able to watch a storm come across to Singapore and greet us at the hotel.  It was an interesting perspective to see it from above instead of on ground level.  Tomorrow will be another long day but hopefully not eleven hours long...

Read more...

Magazines

I've had a very relaxed weekend.  I didn't have any appointments and really just hung out around my apartment.  I had the urge to read some magazines so headed down to the local Borders bookstore to pick up a few and spend the afternoon reading them on the sofa.  Holy cow are magazines expensive here!  They are three times the US cover price...three times!!!  What the heck is that all about?  I expect things to be a bit more expensive since they are imported but my word...not that expensive.  Of course, I could not justify spending that much money on something I'd be done with in about an hour so, I headed back home without any magazines...

Read more...

A few things...

I try not to complain or whine too much on my blog.  That wouldn't be any fun for anybody to read and there really is no reason for me to dwell on such things.  I am really lucky to have this opportunity and see all of the things that I am seeing.  But, indulge me for a few lines...

Yesterday morning I had a great conversation with a really good friend.  We laughed and caught up and planned for some time together during my visit home in December.  I have made some nice friends here but none that are at the stage of friendship where we have history together.  I miss being around people who know me and who I know well...

On my walk home from dinner last night I saw Lucy (the neighborhood stray kitty) sitting on the steps.  I decided to sit down with her for a bit and pet her.  She just lapped it up in true kitty style winding around me rubbing kitty fur all over me.  If you have pets you now how comforting they can be just being around you or welcoming you home after a long day.  Thankfully I have Lucy here but it just isn't the same...I miss my kitties...

Alan hasn't been feeling well the past couple of days.  It is nothing serious but still annoying for him.  I wish I were home to run and get him juice and just generally take care of him.  I miss him...

And now this morning I am having a tasty cup of coffee while listening to the Carolina Hurricanes game.  Some of my good friends are at the game as well as Alan.  I'm thankful I can listen in and email and text them during the game.  But, it just isn't the same...

I'll be home in just over a month so will get to see everybody, hang out with Alan, play with my kitties, and go to a handful of Canes games.  And I'm sure I'll start my day and get preoccupied with something else going on...but for now...I miss these things...

P.S.  The Canes just scored their second goal.  Woohoo!

Read more...

Routine

Tomorrow marks a week since my last flight.  That may not seem significant but this has been my first full week in Singapore since the end of August.  It has been nice not having to pack a suitcase or trying to sleep sitting up on a plane or having to eat out all of the time.  The best part has been establishing a bit of a routine.  Starting the day with coffee and a video chat with Alan, packing my lunch, heading to the office, hitting the gym after work, and eating dinner on the couch while watching television.  This has been the excitement of my week...not exciting to most people but very exciting to me since I haven't been able to do this with any consistency for quite some time.  I actually put all of my suitcases away this past weekend - which is huge for me since they have all been sitting open in some state of being packed or unpacked for months.  I am not scheduled to be on another flight until the 14th so I have another week of this.  I am so excited!

Read more...

Bagels

I slept well last night.  I did have some crazy dreams about searching for bagels.  I literally was going shop to shop looking for really fresh bagels.  This is funny because I am not a huge fan of bagels...I like them...but usually only have a couple of them a year.  The thing is, you cannot get fresh bagels here in Singapore.  I'm sure there is someplace that sells them but I have not found it.  Granted, I haven't really looked for it but the only bagels I have seen are either frozen from the grocery store or some recently thawed bagels at someplace like Starbucks.  I wasn't even looking for bagels lately so really have no idea why I had this dream.  Of course, now I have a craving for a nice freshly toasted bagel with some cream cheese... 

Read more...

Office workers

So, yesterday I walked into my office (keep in mind it was Monday morning) and got halfway in and heard and felt a squish.  I then realized that half the carpet in my office was a darker shade than the other.  Apparently they decided to carpet over the top of a floor drain.  My first thought when finding the drain was...ick...where did this come from?  Upon further investigation I confirmed it was not a sewage drain but is instead a water runoff drain from the roof.  Why it is in my office I have no earthly idea...but...when we got all of the rain on Saturday (see prior post) it couldn't handle it and overflowed onto my office floor.

The building guys were great about it and agreed to replace the carpet right away.  So, this morning I was in the middle of a meeting with a staff member and they just walked in and started pulling up the old carpet and putting down the new stuff.  By in the middle of a meeting I mean she was sitting there in the office with me.

We also have cleaning crews in the office to empty the trash and wipe down windows and doors and do normal cleaning things.  For some reason in Singapore this does not happen after hours but happens throughout the day.  You'll be sitting there on a teleconference and suddenly hear the vacuum.  Or like today, I was on a teleconference and in walked the cleaning lady to empty the trash.  She then proceeded (all while I was still on the phone) to clean my window and my door.

Don't get me wrong, I totally appreciate all that they do to keep the office clean but it is a bit strange to have these things going on in the middle of the day.  Or is it...does everybody outside of the US have their cleaning crews clean throughout the day?

Read more...