www.thevulgareye.blogspot.com
i've been mulling it over for awhile now, and finally went through with the creation of a new blog today. While I love this project (over 100 posts in less than a year to prove it), it's been somewhat of an opinion-light travel blog. And let's face it: I'm opinionated (also, my life in nyc isn't as conducive to this format as my travels throughout asia were). So the new blog is all about likes and dislikes (including some travel-related posts, I'm sure): for almost seven years now I've been making collages of things that inspire me, but now that everything seems to be online (blogs, magazines, FB, etc), for better or for worse, I figure its suiting to take the collages online too. The Vulgar Eye isn't really a collage, but it is somewhere my friends and I (collaborators TBA) will be posting snippets of opinion, inspiration, art, etc. Collages can be used to give a general impression of a look, a mood, an atmosphere: because I can't take everything I'm stoked on and paste it to a piece of paper, I'm going to do my best to record it online, so check it out:
www.thevulgareye.blogspot.com
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
hello, sun!
back in new york=back in love with new york
I think ice cream trucks are a sure sign that the weather is a changin' (finally/hope it lasts)
Central Park branch of The Strand bookstore? Books & Central Park & Warm Weather...what's not to love? It was reportedly in the high 20s (celsius) yesterday, which meant that three days after walking around bundled in a massive scarf and jacket, I was wandering through central park in shorts and sandals. Oh, and I did a 2hour inversions workshop at pure yoga yesterday morning. Suffice to say I could not have been in a better mood yesterday afternoon. Unless maybe Tom hadn't ditched out back to the land of snow and cold.
I think ice cream trucks are a sure sign that the weather is a changin' (finally/hope it lasts)
Central Park branch of The Strand bookstore? Books & Central Park & Warm Weather...what's not to love? It was reportedly in the high 20s (celsius) yesterday, which meant that three days after walking around bundled in a massive scarf and jacket, I was wandering through central park in shorts and sandals. Oh, and I did a 2hour inversions workshop at pure yoga yesterday morning. Suffice to say I could not have been in a better mood yesterday afternoon. Unless maybe Tom hadn't ditched out back to the land of snow and cold.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
only in hong kong
I've been back in nyc since yesterday afternoon, but as my upload seshes were hindered by a slow wifi connection in hk, there were plenty of photos and clips that I didn't get to upload during my trip. Thus it is my pleasure to present...
"Only in HK"
(eat meat?)
(underwear, garlic, and eggs, a new culinary combination?) 
(the new portable AND affordable after-work hangout venue?)
p.s. my apologies for the sideways vid...
"Only in HK"
(eat meat?)
(underwear, garlic, and eggs, a new culinary combination?) 
(the new portable AND affordable after-work hangout venue?)p.s. my apologies for the sideways vid...
SIA: bungee jumping in Macau
I need to invent some new adjectives. Incredible, amazing, and spectacular just don’t cut it anymore. Monday, the 20th of April, was a glife day (glorious + life = adjective; glorious, incorporating some or all of life’s best elements). For starters, I ate the best meal of my life at the World Peace Café (21 Tai Wont Street East, Wanchai). I made a brief visit to my agency to set a farewell lunch date for the next day, and then set off to explore.
I happened to be within a few meters of a bus stop and remembered that I had yet to take in the street view from a double-decker bus since returning to HK. The next bus was going to Central. I got off when the only other person on the nearly empty top level of the bus disembarked, and found myself quite close to the Central Ferry Piers. As I’ve mentioned before, I love a good ferry ride (the more old-school the ferry, the better). So, I headed down to the piers.
One of the signs for the piers read ‘to outlying islands,’ and, with the vague idea of scouting out a beach, given the favorable weather conditions, I followed the arrows to my left and down a flight of stairs, only to find myself confronted with the names of a bunch of places I didn’t recognize. I’d taken a few of these ferries, to Lamma and Lantau islands, but the beach on Lantau island is something I’d seen once and had no desire to see again; I wanted to go somewhere new! Unfortunately, having only anticipated stepping out for lunch, I’d left my map book at the apartment. I was pacing the pier, contemplating making a mad dash to Pacific Coffee to google ‘Hong Kong beaches,’ when it occurred to me that if only I could spot some other touristy-looking foreigners, somebody might be able to make a recommendation or lend me a peek at their guidebook.
One middle aged foreigner sat slouched on a nearby bench, morosely scanning the scene in front of him. Needless to say, his glum expression wasn’t encouraging. I kept looking and immediately spotted a group of four young backpack-toting guys standing around talking amongst themselves near a pier and looking (only to my trained eye, of course) very much like tourists. I was sure they must have a guidebook in one of those (3 of which were matching) backpacks.
“Excuse me, are you sightseeing?”
Indeed they were. When I explained my predicament they were kind enough to suggest Discovery Bay. “Or you could come bungee jumping with us,” one of them added.
Turns out the guys didn’t have a guidebook to lend, but they were meeting their friend from Hong Kong at the piers, and he was going to take them to Macau to jump off of the Macau Tower, which at 233m provides for the highest bungee jump off a building in the world.
This is where I do a blurb on goal-setting: I am a huge believer in setting goals. I find that once you’ve identified what it is you want to do, whenever opportunities arise that may lead towards that goal, you are perfectly equipped to take full advantage of them in a split second, without having to ask yourself , “what do I want?.” I knew I wanted to go bungee jumping, so off to Macau tower I went.
I doubt that Robert expected me to jump (no pun intended) at his offer, but once they realized that I was serious about joining them, the guys were all extremely friendly and easygoing about my joining them on their Macau adventure.
I’m not quite sure how to describe bungee jumping without making it sound extremely anticlimactic. I was shaking, terrified, desperate for something to hold on to up until the moment I jumped. I think the scariest part is standing on the edge of that platform getting ready to jump. I almost wish I’d stood there longer; I was more stoked and eager to jump than scared, but fear is part of the fun and those terrifying moments passed too quickly for my liking. “Five, four, three, two one!!!”
On April 20th, by a curious chain of events, I found myself bungee jumping from a height of 233m. It was a thrillastic (thrilling + fantastic = adjective; thrilling and fantastic) experience (and yes, I screamed). It was over so fast that I’d yet to touch the crash mat before I wanted to go up and jump again. Like getting tattooed, I can see how bungee jumping could be addictive, but I think I’ll make myself wait; first, I want to try something new. Any suggestions?
I happened to be within a few meters of a bus stop and remembered that I had yet to take in the street view from a double-decker bus since returning to HK. The next bus was going to Central. I got off when the only other person on the nearly empty top level of the bus disembarked, and found myself quite close to the Central Ferry Piers. As I’ve mentioned before, I love a good ferry ride (the more old-school the ferry, the better). So, I headed down to the piers.
One of the signs for the piers read ‘to outlying islands,’ and, with the vague idea of scouting out a beach, given the favorable weather conditions, I followed the arrows to my left and down a flight of stairs, only to find myself confronted with the names of a bunch of places I didn’t recognize. I’d taken a few of these ferries, to Lamma and Lantau islands, but the beach on Lantau island is something I’d seen once and had no desire to see again; I wanted to go somewhere new! Unfortunately, having only anticipated stepping out for lunch, I’d left my map book at the apartment. I was pacing the pier, contemplating making a mad dash to Pacific Coffee to google ‘Hong Kong beaches,’ when it occurred to me that if only I could spot some other touristy-looking foreigners, somebody might be able to make a recommendation or lend me a peek at their guidebook.
One middle aged foreigner sat slouched on a nearby bench, morosely scanning the scene in front of him. Needless to say, his glum expression wasn’t encouraging. I kept looking and immediately spotted a group of four young backpack-toting guys standing around talking amongst themselves near a pier and looking (only to my trained eye, of course) very much like tourists. I was sure they must have a guidebook in one of those (3 of which were matching) backpacks.
“Excuse me, are you sightseeing?”
Indeed they were. When I explained my predicament they were kind enough to suggest Discovery Bay. “Or you could come bungee jumping with us,” one of them added.
Turns out the guys didn’t have a guidebook to lend, but they were meeting their friend from Hong Kong at the piers, and he was going to take them to Macau to jump off of the Macau Tower, which at 233m provides for the highest bungee jump off a building in the world.
This is where I do a blurb on goal-setting: I am a huge believer in setting goals. I find that once you’ve identified what it is you want to do, whenever opportunities arise that may lead towards that goal, you are perfectly equipped to take full advantage of them in a split second, without having to ask yourself , “what do I want?.” I knew I wanted to go bungee jumping, so off to Macau tower I went.
I doubt that Robert expected me to jump (no pun intended) at his offer, but once they realized that I was serious about joining them, the guys were all extremely friendly and easygoing about my joining them on their Macau adventure.
I’m not quite sure how to describe bungee jumping without making it sound extremely anticlimactic. I was shaking, terrified, desperate for something to hold on to up until the moment I jumped. I think the scariest part is standing on the edge of that platform getting ready to jump. I almost wish I’d stood there longer; I was more stoked and eager to jump than scared, but fear is part of the fun and those terrifying moments passed too quickly for my liking. “Five, four, three, two one!!!”
On April 20th, by a curious chain of events, I found myself bungee jumping from a height of 233m. It was a thrillastic (thrilling + fantastic = adjective; thrilling and fantastic) experience (and yes, I screamed). It was over so fast that I’d yet to touch the crash mat before I wanted to go up and jump again. Like getting tattooed, I can see how bungee jumping could be addictive, but I think I’ll make myself wait; first, I want to try something new. Any suggestions?
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
SIA
I had an incredibly sweet SIA (secret international adventure) yesterday, which I promise I will blog about as soon as I return to nyc. Other than that, I've been cramming in as many meals with friends as possible before my departure for nyc tomorrow. I had dinner last night (nepalese) with two of my old friends from my last trip to HK:
then today I took my agency to the World Peace Cafe where I had the best lunch of my life for the second day in a row. and made lots of funny faces
now I'm going to check out a meditation class at the buddhist centre located above the World Peace Cafe, before I hit the hay and get some rest before my 16hour return flight to nyc tomorrow!
then today I took my agency to the World Peace Cafe where I had the best lunch of my life for the second day in a row. and made lots of funny faces
now I'm going to check out a meditation class at the buddhist centre located above the World Peace Cafe, before I hit the hay and get some rest before my 16hour return flight to nyc tomorrow!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
hk midday
I discovered today that the streets of wanchai, streetmarket alleys included, are pretty dead on sundays. That didn't stop me from picking up a delicious coconut drink and some fresh fruit for lunch, though!
yummmm
Am heading off for my much-needed dose of hot yoga this evening at Pure, then to Life Cafe (!!!) in central for some vegan fuel...something a little bit fancier than my lunch! Though dining out is the thing to do in hk (or anywhere, I suppose) when meeting up with old friends, it can be somewhat of a struggle to find anything vegan aside from oily vegetables :S
yummmm
Am heading off for my much-needed dose of hot yoga this evening at Pure, then to Life Cafe (!!!) in central for some vegan fuel...something a little bit fancier than my lunch! Though dining out is the thing to do in hk (or anywhere, I suppose) when meeting up with old friends, it can be somewhat of a struggle to find anything vegan aside from oily vegetables :S
Here are a few photos from yesterday's trip to the Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery:
of course, BB remained calm as usual whilst Cherin and I were pushed around by the wind and rain
In spite of the rain ponchos, I was sopping wet by the end of it. So much for staying up the mountain at a hostel-not in this weather!
of course, BB remained calm as usual whilst Cherin and I were pushed around by the wind and rain
In spite of the rain ponchos, I was sopping wet by the end of it. So much for staying up the mountain at a hostel-not in this weather!
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