Remember when I said that Da Dong Roast Duck is probably the fanciest meal I will ever eat and feature on this blog? Well scratch that. This is the fanciest meal I will ever eat and feature on this blog. I’m sure of it. I swear I’m getting more and more spoiled with every trip to Beijing. I’m being taken out to eat at more and more pricey places. The last time, my aunties took us to the famous Da Dong….
Lessons from time spent in China
In the last year, I’ve spent more time in China than probably the past 2 decades combined. Some of this time was spent as a tourist and some as a Beijinger returning to my childhood home. Either way, I feel like I’ve gained a much deeper understanding and appreciation for my birth country. I feel like China (and Chinese people in general) gets a bad rep in the travelsphere. A lot of people are either scared to go or have…
A day in the life: Beijing, China
In my last post, I announced that I’m headed back to Malaysia soon. As my days in Beijing are quickly drawing to an end, I would like to share what they have been like here. It may not sound too exciting, but every single day has been special to me. The alarm on my phone goes off at 9 am sharp. Usually I like to naturally wake, which means I end up sleeping in til late, but in Beijing at my grandma’s,…
February 2016 travel re-cap: change of plans
Where we left off at the end of the last month’s re-cap, I was just starting my solo stint in Malaysia. I had 6 weeks planned by myself: 2 in Kuala Lumpur and 4 in Penang. If you’ve been following along, you’ll already have known that things didn’t exactly pan out this way. I was a little bit nervous to be alone, but it made it better that D was with me in KL for the first two weeks, so…
Grandma’s Kitchen: making tang yuan (glutinous rice dumplings)
Chinese New Year is officially over! Monday (February 22) was the 15th day of Chinese New Year, which is also the last day of the holiday. After this, everyone returns to work and there will be no more new years’ bidings and life goes back to normal. Side note: the Chinese really know how to celebrate the New Year with 15 days of festivities. Why isn’t the Western New Year like this?? And what happens on the 15th day of…
Chinese New Year: the first seven days
Happy Travel Tuesday! I’ve been in Beijing for a week already. I don’t think I’ve been this cold for a lonnnng time! I’ve borrowed a coat from my mom’s friend, a sweater from my mom, and wool pants from somewhere, and I’ve literally been wearing these same few pieces of clothes every single day (which you’ll see in the pictures below). But nevermind the weather, I’m loving being back at my birth city with my favorite people. :) And Chinese…
[Beijing] A Chinese New Year feast
This is the first time I’ve ever been in Beijing during Chinese New Year! (Except for when I lived here as a little girl, that is.) During the week of Chinese New Year, the city empties as the transplants all return to their hometowns, the usual horrendous traffic disappears, and for these few days, Beijing belongs only to the local Beijingers. Truthfully, I never really realized what a huge deal CNY is. Growing up in America, this holiday is not recognized…
A sampling of Chaozhou cuisine
After visiting the famous Chaozhou bridge, we headed through the old city gate and entered the Old Town area. We walked around a bit, occasionally popping into shops to take a look at the local handicrafts. The day was brutally hot and humid, even for the locals. So it wasn’t before long that we decided to seek refuge indoors – somewhere that we can sit for a bit and fill our tummies, and most importantly, somewhere with air conditioning. The…
Of pavilions and little wooden boats: a walk across Chaozhou’s ancient bridge
Since this blog is still foremost a travel blog, I guess I should get back to sharing some travel adventures, lest I lose whatever credentials I acquired as a travel blogger. :P I feel like I’m trying to get back into blogging with words (which are still scarce these days) and pictures (which I have too many of), so I’m just taking it easy today and sharing some of my favorite photos from Chaozhou.
Queen for a day: a glamour photoshoot in China
As full time travelers who live out of carry-ons, there is no argument that the best souvenirs are photos. They cost nothing, weigh nothing, and there is literally no limit to how many you can have. Well they should cost nothing, in most cases. Not unless you want to be queen for a day. While in China, I splurged big time on a set of photographs.