We love watching the sun set in Cabo San Lucas and this was one of the best last week! We also enjoy all the delicious food. Since good Mexican food is nearly impossible to come by in Asia, I was savoring every bite on this trip! On our last night in town we had dinner at El Farallon, a brand new restaurant nestled in the rocky coast overlooking the Pacific. The experience was nothing short of magical. We also returned to one of our perennial favorites, Felix. Surprisingly, my mom and I had a fantastic Italian lunch in Todos Santos at Cafe Santa Fe. These great meals, heaping bowls of guacamole, bucket after bucket of Mexican beer, and continuous sunshine made for a wonderful vacation! Some more images from our trip are here. Enjoy!
Before heading to Mexico, we celebrated the holidays with Cory’s family in Houston, TX. It was great to spend time with everyone and see how much Emma and Lucas have grown. They have such active imaginations and we had lots of fun playing together. We’ve added more pictures of our visit here!
Technically I turned 30 about three weeks ago, but I’m finally getting around to writing a post about it. Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes and Janine for making this awesome balloon sign! For me, this milestone felt like my very own Jan 1 - a time for reflection and resolutions. Looking forward to another 30+ years of living juicy :].
Spent a couple hours messing around with Prezi and this is what I came up with. It’s definitely an interesting product, but it doesn’t quite give me the control that I’m looking for. If anyone knows how to get rid of the pixelated look, I’m all ears! Enjoy the holidays and best wishes for 2010!
It all started with an innocent request. My mother wanted to see how Guangzhou changed since 1976, when she attended the Canton Fair. Since tourism is not big in Guangzhou, I searched for a nearby tourist attraction to make it worth the trip. HK Magazine published a great article about destinations in China, which included a section on diaolous of Kaiping. Intrigued by the photos and the UNESCO World Heritage listing, I planned a day trip from Guangzhou to check it out.
We boarded a bus early Saturday and made the bumpy 2 hour trip. Our plan was simple - hire a car or taxi, visit the diaolou (碉樓) sites, and return to the station to catch a bus back to Guangzhou before dark. When we arrived at the station, there were no cars or taxis for hire. There was no information in English. There was not much of anything. Finally, we found a ticket agent who knew some English and explained our situation. She put us on a public bus and told the driver where to stop. Thirty minutes later and far from the city, the driver motioned for us to get off. This is what the stop looked like:
To say that my Mom was nervous is an understatement. There was an old sign pointing to Zili Village, but nothing else for miles in either direction. We started down the dusty, winding road towards the village as tour buses and hired cars zoomed past us. We followed signs to the tourist information center, but it was empty. Luckily, we ran into an English speaking tour guide, who helped us buy the appropriate entrance tickets and arrange the rest of our day. It’s amazing what you can accomplish with a warm smile, positive attitude and printed sheet of landmarks in both Chinese and English! Visiting Kaiping is well worth the effort and you can see some highlights from our trip here.
Planning a trip to Kaiping (开平)? You can go on an organized tour, but that’s not an adventure :]. It might be tough to cram everything into one day from Hong Kong, but it’s certainly possible from Guangzhou. Here’s some useful information:
We took the bus from Guangzhou Fengcun bus station (芳村汽车站) to Kaiping Yicizhan (义祠站), which runs frequently, take 2 hours and cost us 55 RMB.
The convenience store in the Kaiping Yicizhan bus station sells tourist maps of Kaiping with English for 6 RMB.
You can probably hire a car near the station, but they are not allowed to drive up to it. We ended up on one of the 8 public buses that service the area. The ride out to Zili Village (自力村) was 5 RMB.
Zili Village (自力村), Fang Clan Watchtower, Liyuan Garden (立园), Chikan (赤坎), and Majianglong (馬降龍) are all pretty close together. We were able to hire a driver on site to take us between locations for 30-50 RMB.
You can buy tickets to see Zili Village and Liyuan Garden together for 90 RMB.
Today I had the opportunity to take my Mom to Tim Ho Wun in Mong Kok. This little dim sum place is run by a former chef at Lung King Heen in the Four Seasons hotel, the only Chinese restaurant in Hong Kong to get 3 Michelin stars. This hole in the wall has been written up over and over since it opened, and each time the line gets longer. We arrived early afternoon and were surprised to see a crew outside filming the restaurant and interviewing patrons. Today the 2010 Michelin Guide was released in Hong Kong and Tim Ho Wun was awarded a star! Mom and I ate like queens for about US$10 :]. This evening Cory treated us to another fantastic meal to celebrate Thanksgiving. I hope all of you are enjoying great food today wherever you are!
