missing home

It's weekend again. I'm still trying to adjust after the trip to Hong Kong. I always get depressed for a while after visiting Hong Kong. It is my home afterall. After this visit, I have a strong desire to move back there. The living condition may not be as comfortable as it is here, less space, pollution, hot and humid weather. I think I will be happier there. At least that's how I feel right now. When I was younger, I thought I loved living in Hong Kong because I loved big cities. That's the life style I knew. Now I'm older and have a family of my own, I realized that has little to do with being a city girl. I miss my family and friends. Sometimes I wish I was from here, at least I wouldn't know what I was missing. Peter had been telling me how much he wanted to move to Hong Kong. I didn't think that was possible. That was because I wasn't seriously considering it. So our plan now is to move back to Hong Kong in few years. There are so much to consider, but hopefully now we can start moving toward our goal. 

trip to mainland China

We just got back from a five days trip to mainland China this morning. It could have been shorter in my opinion. We took a 12 hours train to Longyan, Fujian (my parents' hometown). We visited my grandma and some extended families. I was glad to see my grandma. She's 88-year-old, and not in the best health. This may be our last time seeing her. Her vision has deterioated so much that I had to get up close for her to see me. Then we took a 2 hours bus to Xiamen to visit some more friends and families. Xiamen is right by the ocean and much more modern than Longyan. It seems like a nice place to live. Peter really likes it there. Then we took a 16 hours train with another 30 minutes connecting train ride back to Hong Kong. I'm so exhausted. I can't even think about the long flight coming up in a couple days. I wish we could have more time in Hong Kong. Although I'm not looking forward to the flight back, I'm so excited about my brother-in-law's wedding in a week. More family time and eating. Here are some photos I stole from my brother.

Train joy

No surprise

Peking duck is my favorite.

American superman vs. Japanese superman

Those are the typical halmet they use. I think they are plastic.

Five bucks per ride. We gave ours extra becase we were too heavy.

Eli's new toy.



This lucky chicken gets to wake up to this beautiful scene every morning

Typical feasts we had while we were in China. This one is extra special. My parents' friends took us deep into the mountain to have this meal. All of the ingredients are grown and raised locally.




I wonder if there are any hobbits down there.

Tips on traveling to China:

1. Most of the places in China don't have air-conditioning. Even if they have, the air isn't very cool. So if you can't stand the heat and humidity, go during fall or winter.

2. Bring plenty of toliet paper and kleenex. Almost all of the public bathrooms don't have any toliet paper. Of course you will have much better bathroom setting in a hotel.

3. Another thing about public bathroom, be prepare to squat. Most of the public bathroom in mainland China are just a hole in the ground. Oh, and try to hold your breath if you can when you are in a public bathroom.

4.Foot wear: don't wear any sandals or open toes shoes, espeically again, in a public bathroom. You don't want to get your toes or feet wet by yours or other people's body fluid.

5. Don't give any money to beggers unless you can stupid.

6. Don't be afraid to eat local dishes. They are probably better for you than McDonalds. Yes, there are McDonalds and KFC all over China, so you won't starve to death.

pizza, sushi, cakes and friends

grandma's funeral

what we have been up to

Some pictures of what we have been up to in the past week or so. Not much has happened. We didn't do any sight seeing because we are here for my grandma's funeral. There are lot of hanging out with family and friends and good eats. It's been strange not having a baby to take care of since Eli is staying with my parents. To be honest, I don't find that as enjoyable as I expected. Not because I miss him, but I'm so used to being a mom, sometimes I feel meaningless and blah without him. It's obvious this little guy has brought more joy to our lives than we knew.

Hong Kong trip part one

I can't believe I'm Hong Kong, even harder to believe that we survived the fifteen hours plane ride with Eli. I don't want to about it. It was as awful as it could get. By the end of that flight, the idea of leaving Eli with my mom for a year sounded really great. Here's how our trip started...

We had to drive to Chicago couple days earlier. so I could get a permit from the Chinese embassy. They were very helpful and I was able to get it on the same day. To ensure we got there at the earliest, we left our house at 3am. We didn't get there until 9ish. Now we understand why people always try to avoid the rush hour in big cities. It took us thirty minutes to drive four miles there.

After a gruesome fifteen hours flight, we have finally arrived Hong Kong. Hong Kong is in the 60s and 70s and humid. My dad's first reaction when he saw us was to run toward us and scream "My baby!". The biggest reaction we have seen anyone every has for Eli. He forgot he's in public. We had a delicious home cooked meal, and for once, we didn't have to take care of Eli while we eat. Maybe that's why it was so delicious. My mom asked if Eli could stay with them while we are in Hong Kong. I told her to take him and no need to return at anytime. Then we went to best friend Shan's place. Shan and I stayed up until 3 am. We talked and laughed. We were laughing at old letters that she wrote me and playing with makeup. Good times.