china fab

it’s the most wonderful time of the year for 1.5 billion people who are chinese or have chinese ancestors .. chinese new year. 

i am under pressure to write this while we are still in celebration of the spring festival, because once the lantern festival, celebrated on the 15th day of the lunar new year arrives, spring festival, the 15 day period of merriment celebrating the lunar new year is officially over. the decorations come down and things that you should not do during the spring festival celebration can be done again. there are superstitions about doing specific activities during these 15 days that may bring you misfortune during the coming year: 

do not wear black or white - the traditional colors of mourning (oops, i’m wearing all black today. as a native (almost) new yorker, i am hoping my fortune will still be in tact!) 

do not break any dishes - this is also an unfortunate way to begin the year 

do not take medicine or go to the hospital - this may bring sickness in the new year

do not use negative words - death, illness, poverty, loss, etc. 

and on the first day of the new year, which has passed (feburary 8) do not wash your hair! do not wash away your luck for the coming year! 

as you can tell, the chinese are very superstitions, with strong beliefs about luck and feng shui. there is also a set of things you should do before the new year arrives, like ridding yourself of any debts, and cleaning the house, to start the new year on a fresh clean slate. (also, you may sweep your luck away if you sweep on the first day of the year)

this is actually my fourth year of the chinese zodiac here in china! when i arrived in 2013 it was the year of the snake, next i celebrated the year of the horse and shared a bit about lunar new year on chinafab, last year was the year of the sheep, which i didn’t write about, but i should have, since i was in fabulous las vegas nevada where they go all out for chinese new year celebrations. honestly, the year of the 羊 (sheep / ram / goat) really confuses me. the chinese character is the same for all, but what is the proper english translation?! we settled on the year of the baa. 

beyond my translation issues, i skipped a post about the year of the sheep because i am becoming more and more chinese and chinese people are not really fans of the sheep. word on the street is that sheep are meek. in fact, chinese parents hate the sheep so much that if they were expecting near january 31, 2015, they inquired about cesarians and inducing labor so that babies would be born in the more fortuitous year of the horse. given chinese superstitions it’s not surprising that birth rates fluctuate with the chinese zodiac. i went to the acupuncturist this week and she informed me that people who are born in the year of the sheep have to work harder to be fortunate than people who are born in the year of the monkey. (i hope i’m okay for this year since i went to the doctor during the taboo period. yikes). 

most importantly, let’s focus on today. people who are born in the year of the monkey are naturally quite fortunate. monkeys are known to be: clever, curious, playful, creative, charismatic, they easily adapt to change, and they’re a bit mischievous ;)! everyone LOVES the year of the monkey and there are monkeys absolutely everywhere in china (and las vegas)! we also have 5 monkey emojis! and year of the monkey bitmojis too! enjoy some monkey business below and have a happy year of the monkey. when you’re feeling blue, or confused, remember that all year it’s acceptable to say: 🐒🙈🐵🙉🙊

you too can have a special monkey purse. 

or you can up your selfie game, monkey style. 

if you’re feeling ‘basic’ go with year of the monkey bitmojis. 

and if you want to send new years cheer to your friends in china, send monkey wishes using wechat stickers! 

monkey business at tod’s 

monkey accessories at tod’s 

monkey business at fedon 

monkey business at hogan 

monkey business at coach 

monkey business at gucci

that silly mischievous monkey. which one is your favorite? have you seen any monkeys around town? 

art or artificial? 

it has been a long time since we’ve played my favorite game. too long. so, here we go again! 

these fab furry fendi keychains (also known as ‘bag charms’) .. are they are art or artificial? i know you're thinking, they have to be artificial because who in their right mind would spend money on something this outrageous. but don’t forget, it’s me! and these are super fun, and i feel like they embody karl’s silly side. teehehe! 

xoxo, 

the biggest shopping day worldwide is upon us: 11.11, also known as single’s day and commercialized by alibaba in 2009. 

last year, there were over 9.3 billion USD in online sales on single’s day, and as of 2:06pm china time, sales have already surpassed 10 billion, so the consumer day has officially broken shopping records. for reference, this is bigger than cyber monday and black friday combined! 

single’s day started out in the 1990′s as a valentine’s day-ish thing by students at nanjing university. 11.11 was selected for the proximity of 1′s (singles). it also became a day for meeting and mating (insert wink emoji, think of the world before tinder). in 2009, tmall utilized this day as a clever marketing tactic (marketers love holidays) for single men and ladies, to #treatyoself. or, per alibaba’s press release the idea was to raise awareness for online shopping. FYI - i’ve told you about the magic of taobao before, but tmall is the division of alibaba where retailers (like apple) can sell their goods to chinese consumers without having a website, or in addition to. initially, only alibaba retailers were involved, but now, even alibaba competitors like jd.com participate in the single’s day frenzy. 

today, 11.11 is the biggest shopping bonanza in the world, with participation from both chinese brands and a huge number of international retailers mostly on the aforementioned chinese e-commerce platforms like tmall (which has stores from luxury brands like estee lauder, burberry), and jd.com (sephora, nike) .. but, there are also a number of US brands who are offering steep discounts on their websites as well. i was surprised to open up my email from intermix this morning to see a 48 hour flash sale (with 40% off!). while they didn’t specifically brand it for 11.11, i would venture to guess it’s a good way to reach chinese (and asian) consumers on a day when they’re spending billions of dollars. 

it’s officially fall here, which i’m quite pleased about. i like boots and leather jackets. i like the crisp air. i do miss the east coast foliage. 

so, as the seasons change, i’ll reminisce about seasons gone by and wax nostalgic for summer. i do not miss sweating through my clothes, but i do miss the chinese crop top. crop tops popped up on runways about 3 years ago, and chinese men have a slightly different interpretation than alexander wang. when hot, crop. 

since the met just announced it’s fabulous exhibit for 2016 (manus x machina: fashion in an age of technology, sponsored by apple, yes, yes and yes) i decided to make this topical, and write about the 2015 met exhibit: china through the looking glass. it’s somewhat unclear which is the chicken and which is the egg, the gala, or the exhibit, but i’m willing to say that the exhibit is the hero and the gala is the buzz. some said the celebrities dressing for this year’s met gala didn’t necessarily pay homage to chinese fashion (yes, i’m talking about you beyonce, even though if i had your body, i’d go for the britney ‘toxic’ look too), the exhibit was really fabulous. (sorry, it’s over) 

i had to make it to the met to prioritize seeing it when i was last in new york, because even when i’m not in china, i’m thinking about china. what can i say, it fascinates me. i read this super interesting book the geography of thought which compares eastern thinking to western thinking. i highly recommend it. the key point is that westerners think of everything in a linear way, one thing after another, they think there’s control. easterners think of everything holistically, as a circle. good and bad both happen. yin and yang. it actually draws a few parallels between jewish people and easterners, in terms of their holistic thinking. this made me think of my brothers haftarah portion at his bar mitzvah and his speech, where he spoke about karmic forces and the idea of ‘what goes around comes around’. my grandmother judy definitely believed in this. she actually had some very eastern characteristics (including a passion for astrology), and i also know she would have loved this fabulous asian fashion exhibit at the met. which included a fair amount of sparkles and fur (two of our mutual favorite things). more on astrology (and my recent visit to the burmese astrologist!) and some of my favorite books about china in the future, today, i’ll focus on fashion. 

i adored the exhibit. i love that it is based on lewis carroll’s books and the idea of an alternate universe, because that’s really how western designers saw chinese fashion. as something completely foreign and almost imaginary! it’s incredible how many designers have produced chinese influenced collections, starting as early as the 50′s. chanel, dior, valentino and particularly YSL have looked to china’s patterns, bright colors, and even their pottery for years! YSL’s opium perfume (created originally in 1977) is entirely asian influenced and the was highly criticized for the name being so provocative, and promoting drug use! the advertisement featuring jerry hall and shot by helmut newton was also criticized for objectifying women, all of which i’m sure helped to sell perfume. this exhibit not only showcased some stunning fashion, but also took advantage of the chinese galleries at the met, which really enhanced the viewing experience. i loved seeing the older chinese porcelain or ceremonial attire worn by ancient dynasties juxtaposed with newer western fashion. 

chinese influences show up every single season on the runways. this season, there were definitely more nipples than chinese influence, but it ebbs and flows every season. for instance, the current dolce and gabbana blue and white collection is entirely influecened by chinese porcelain.

the first gallery was patterns based on traditional manchu robes (shown in the background). this is a qipao style dress by tom ford for YSL. 

another tom ford for YSL. tom ford is a genius. the film the last emperor was also being shown in this gallery. 

the next exhibit contrasted traditional qipaos with modern qipaos. the qipao was modernized in 1920′s shanghai with foreign presence and western influence, and there’s some debate about the origin. another word for qipao is cheongsam (which is somewhat related to the mandarin word for a shirt or dress: chèn shān. it was a loose fitting single piece of fabric clothing item, that evolved into a sexier, more fashionable item for special occasions. yes, i have one. apologies for the poorly lit photos.  

more qipaos. this gallery also showcased clips from films with women wearing sexy qipaos. 

valentino, contrasted with a lacquer panel. 

this is from the YSL autumn winter 1977 collection which the curators call ‘fashion's most flamboyant expression of chinoiserie’.

didn’t love the dresses by dior in this gallery, but loved the use of the space. and the reflections on the water. 

my favorite gallery, which showed a collection of blue and white dresses influenced by chinese pottery. designers include: dior, rodarte, alexander mcqueen, valentino and many more. no, i don’t have pictures of the pottery, it was not noteworthy in comparison with the fabulous dresses! use your imagination. 

this dress, created in 2010 by chinese designer guo pei, was the start of the show. IMHO. 

this high neckline at sarah burton’s ss16 show for alexander mcqueen is certainly qipao influenced. 

same for this oscar de la renta. 

the patterns at gucci ss16 also felt chinese influenced. 

i am so excited to share my friend piper’s kickstarter campaign for her gorgeous cookbook! 

piper and her fiance chris, are two of my best friends. probably the only couple that i met them both at the exact same time, so my relationship is really with both of them. and, they’re both truly magical, wonderful, positive and generous people. i honestly don’t think i would have moved to china if i hadn’t met them. i’d had this very goldilocks experience when i came here for the month trial in april 2013 (my oh MY time does fly) .. my first night out i met some people who had just graduated from college and felt like they were partying too hard for my LA-body-mind-spirit-health-self. too young. the next night, i met a group of people who had all been in china for about 10 years, and some had children here! too old. then, i met chris and piper, and it was magic. (i’m trying to transition from my most used word from amazing to magical)

anyway, this is really about piper’s cookbook! piper and chris lived here for two and a half years, and during this time tried every restaurant in shanghai. they had a great repertoire of western and chinese favorites, and also could host a fabulous dinner party, usually replicating food from their most recent travel adventures. 

the cookbook has incredible recipes, i can personally vouch for the ones i made during testing (mapo tofu, hummus and zucchini salad) and my mother made a pasta (which my dad said was best ever). i can also vouch for a number of these restaurants, which are on my shanghai favorites list: 

elefante / el willy (all by willy trullas moreno who is the most energetic pillsbury doughboy of a man and has a number of sexy restaurants in shanghai. i know, it’s not the first adjective you think about when describing a restaurant, but for willy, everything is sexy.. sexy brunch, sexy tapas, sexy dessert) 

table no 1 / commune social (both from acclaimed english chef jason atherton) 

grumpy pig (always focusing on their favorite: pork, but i personally love the deserts!) 

di shui dong (home of the spicy cumin ribs) 

goga / hai by goga (both from san francisco chef, brad turley, who is also quite a character) 

lost heaven (where i initially encountered tea leaf salads, and then needed to have as many as possible in myanmar) 

maya (you probably think good upscale mexican in shanghai would be absolutely impossible, but maya proves that wrong) 

and that’s just a few selects! i am getting hungry just thinking about these amazing spots, and all of the recipes! most importantly, i can vouch for piper’s INCREDIBLE photography. she has a great eye, and can capture people, landscapes, food, anything. you name it, she makes it look good.

conclusion: you should buy a cookbook! do something that challenges you every day, so learn to cook chinese food :) or western food. learn more about the restaurants in shanghai! look at great pictures! 

this really falls into the same category as korean skincare, it’s how to be more asian, not just chinese (particularly because sanrio is japanese).  

you know of sanrio, because you know of hello kitty. you know of hello kitty, because i was her for halloween. just kidding, you knew of her before then ;) what you may not know, is that hello kitty is not a cat. the internet was abuzz about a year ago upon learning this, but it really all makes sense. she’s a cute girl, never depicted on all fours. yes, she has ears, but so do i, if i wear certain headbands. or even a fantastic hooded zip up. 

hello kitty (created in 1974) is the most famous of the sanrio characters, but she is not alone. there are hundreds of sanrio characters, created by yuko yamaguchi. 

take gudetama (created in 2014), the newest sanrio character. he is a very strange and lazy egg. i learned about him recently, and he was the inspiration behind this post. he even has a twitter feed! 

seriously, look at the list of character or groups of character names below. this is too good to be true! it makes me smile. and i’m trying to share smiles. and the occasional LOL. i was told recently that LOL is for old people and that the youngest generation simply says laughing out loud. whatevs, it’s not like i’m saying ROTFL (you know you spent tim in an AOL chat room if you know that one). alright, i’ll stop aging myself, for my gen z readers, ha! and dive into the good stuff, some of my favorite sanrio. because cute cartoons are just the best at any age! 

my melody (created in 1975) is a little girl rabbit, who always wears a red hat covering her ears. she even has her own cafe in shibuya. 

chococat (created in 1996) is from chocotown, colorado. his whiskers pick up information like an antenna, so he knows about everything before anyone else! he’s particularly popular in the united states. 

sugarbunnies (created in 2004) are a duo of two of baking bunnies: shirousa and kurousa. they make sundaes, waffles, cakes, cupcakes, lollipops, pretty much anything sweet! 

shinkansen (created in 1999) is a collection of high speed trains. you can truly make anything animated! 

alfredaloha (created in 1986) is known for being a fashionable elephant who can often be found in hawaiian shirts. he was created with adults in mind 

ichigoman (created in 2011) is hello kitty’s superhero alter ego. you know how all superhero’s have belts? ichigoman’s is a strawberry. he also has strawberry coverlets for his ears. 

goexpanda (created in 2011) also known as ‘go-chan’ is a shy and athletic panda that was created to raise awareness of digital over the air tv for the tv asahi network. 

zoozoogang (created in 1984) is a collection of 4 animals: a pig, a bear, a rat and cat. from the japanese translation of the website, they like ‘very naughty mischief’. 

cheerychums (created in 1979) are a group of friends: cham, pam and mu. cham, who is most often featured, is a fun-loving girly bunny. although she is a little lonely, she loves parties with friends and baking cakes and cookies. there is a theme here. it’s sugar. this must be why i love sanrio. it’s a chemical attraction. (side note, since i’m discussing the chemical attraction of sugar - have you seen the documentary fed up? it’s scary. processed foods are scary. soda is scary. watch it.)

happakids (created in 1994) are small, fun, colourful insects. they have boundless energy! 

big challenges (created in 1978) is an innocent, laughing crocodile. 

fresh punch (created in 1981) i can’t find much about this, but it’s too cute! it’s a collection based on a punch bowl at a party, and one of the tag lines i saw was ‘nice and sugary’, also friends with the punch bowl: candy and lipstick. this collection speaks to me. 

pompompurin (created in 1996) is a golden retriever puppy, he has a doggy best friend muffin, and a signature brown beret. he also loves shoes, so we have that in common. 

yutakun (created in 1986) a watermelon eating blob. i wrote this before i translated the japanese site. yutakun is actually a large ghost who loves watermelon. i was close. 

as you can see, i’ve included links to purchase sanrio gear featuring your favorite character, or relevant hilarious videos, or to the japanese sanrio site describing the character. i recommend a quick google translate for a good giggle. 

and, i did save the best for last. YOU TOO CAN BE A SANRIO CHARACTER. yes, this deserves caps. head over to the chanrio-maker and prepare to be amazed. samantha-chanrio is below. pretty accurate, if i do say so myself! 

in honor of tomorrow’s iphone 6s, and 6s PLUS launch, my tutor taught me the particular chinese names for gold, and rose gold. gold is VERY popular among the chinese. and with me. go gold or go home. 

gold is tu hao jin (土豪金). which basically means ‘new rich’ gold. tu hao (new rich) used to have a negative connotation but now apparently everyone wants to be tu hao or friends with people that are tu hao. 

rose gold is mei gui jin (玫瑰金). this just means rose pink gold. it’s a little less exciting. 

chinese people tend to make up new names for things they like a lot. for instance, katy perry’s chinese name is shui guo jie (水果姐), which means fruit lady. and taylor swifts is mei mei (霉霉), which means little sister. 

at the end of last year, i updated my travel accomplishments. so now i need to get focused on my travel to-do list. this is a list of some of the best places i've yet to hit in asia. so come visit and let's travel together! 

disclaimer - travel porn below pulled from the internet (as i don't have these photos yet) but i will. i did modify them slightly. it's fun game that i've modeled after where's waldo. we'll call it: find sam. please note, not all sam's are to scale. i may or may not have taken some artistic liberties with the bikini shots. i’ll never tell. 

overused words in this post include: heaven, dream, magical. my typical adjectives to describe travel paradise. 

1. palawan / el nido, phillippines (specifically el nido resorts) 

this incredible resort collection includes the price of a flight from manila in the price of the room (which is a bit hefty). i've heard it's phenomenal for scuba, snorkel, sand and sun. 

2. boracay, phillippines 

people rave that boracay has some of the most pristine and best beaches in asia. also an active nightlife. 

3. hoi an, vietnam (specifically need to stay at the nam hai) 

hoi an is a UNESCO world heritage site that also has a world class luxury resort. everyone i know that has gone here has absolutely loved it. 

4. halong bay, vietnam 

one of the most scenic parts of vietnam. 

5. hanoi, vietnam 

some people have said that ho chi minh city is shanghai if hanoi is beijing. it's the capital of vietnam and there's lots of vietnamese history. also a relatively recent 36 hours (one of my favorite providers of excellent travel recos) and the jump off point for halong bay. 

6. song saa, vietnam 

this tiny private island resort looks like heaven. 

7. chiang mai, thailand 

lions and tigers and elephants, oh my! but seriously, this is where everyone's pictures of them laying down with a tiger come from. also, the elephants make paintings. last but not least - lush and beautiful and endless fabulous hotel options. 

8. pai, thailand 

i  heard about pai from a former colleague, who reported that it is more or less the ubud of thailand. sign me up. 

9. hua hin, thailand 

i found the chiva som wellness retreat on goop (where most good things are found) and its seems like a heavenly place to relax and detox. 

10. yangon, myanmar - planned for october 2015 

myanmar, previously known as burma, is also known as one of the most untouched places in south east asia. i want to check it out before people start touching it! yangon, the capital city, is the jumping off point for travel within myanmar. 

11. inle lake, myanmar - planned for october 2015 

heard this lake is where you can really get exposed to the locals lives and i was told that when in myanmar (burma) one should spend as much time with the locals as possible. 

12. bagan, myanmar - planned for october 2015 

another ancient city with templescape perfection. apparently the hot air balloon during sunrise cannot be missed.  

13. ngapali beach, myanmar - planned for october 2015 

friends said this white sand beach is totally pristine and untouched. 

14. christchurch, new zealand 

a lot of well-traveled people say that new zealand's south island is easily the most beautiful place in the entire world. i want to do a road trip (or a bike trip!) through the entire south island, soaking in the natural beauty and fueling my inner wilderness being. 

15. queenstown, new zealand 

just so beyond beautiful. 

16. kauri cliffs, new zealand 

this is scenic part of the north island. beautiful golf, if you’re into that. i like to joke that my family doesn’t go on a vacation unless a golf course is within reasonable driving distance, as my dad and my brother are both obsessed with golf. i do appreciate a scenic golf course for about 7 holes. who has the patience to play 18 holes?! my golf gear is pretty, fly, yes? 

17. port douglas, australia 

highly recommended by friends who lived in australia for 5 years.

18. sydney, australia 

there was a point when i thought i would live in australia. i never thought that i would EVER live in china. so now, i'm still trying to make it there. particularly bondi beach. i may never leave. the australians are just so cool. 

19. fraser island, australia 

who doesn’t want to go to a place called rainbow beach? if you don’t love rainbows, butterflies and sparkle magic glitter cupcakes, i don’t know why you’re reading this blog. 

20. great barrier reef / whitsunday islands, australia (specifically one & only hayman island) 

21. lord howe island, new zealand

this island between australia and new zealand looks like heaven on earth. and so does the capella lodge. 

22. kangaroo island, australia 

wildlife, wilderness and warmly embracing my inner nature lover. a part of myself i truly do enjoy, in a glamping versus a backpacking sort of way. 

23. wilson's promontory, australia 

this national park in the southern part of australia's east coast looks like perfection. 

24. byron bay, australia 

this is why australians are so chill and happy. i can tell you after almost 5 years in california, it’s true, sunshine does make people happy. and australia is just the most stunning sunny place. 

25. melbourne, australia 

one of my besties, and a highly trusted travel consigliere, has said that i absolutely must go to melbourne. it has everything i love about a new city: great  restaurants, hotels, bars, cafes, coffee, art, shopping, hipsters. photo below from a new boutique hotel in the CBD with rooftop glamping (yes, i did some foreshadowing here, if you’re actually reading and not just looking at the pictures) complete with afternoon tea and cupcakes. 

26. goa, india - planned for dec/jan 2015 

my best friend sylvie is getting married in india at the end of this year. i could not even be more excited. new years 2016 (yikes!) is planned for goa. 

27. kerala, india - planned for dec/jan 2015 

and the wedding is planned for kerala. the backwaters look absolutely stunning and unlike other kinds of nature that i've been exposed to before! 

28. mumbai, india - planned for dec/jan 2015 

after reading shantaram, i need to see bombay, which is now called mumbai. 

29. jakarta, indonesia 

a big, busy, asian city. i think want to see the city life of south east asia, not just the beaches. but, maybe i should just stick to what i know. 

30. gili islands, indonesia 

escaping from the world to remote islands off of bali. #yesoryes

31. lombok, indonesia 

my friends spent part of their honeymoon in the muslim part of indonesia and said it was pretty heavenly. 

32. langkawi, malaysia 

you’ve already learned from this post that for some places, a fab luxury hotel is the destination. in langkawi, that place is the datai, which i’ve been told has a seriously excellent wine list.

33. kandy, sri lanka 

the royal botanical gardens look a bit like alice in wonderland. and i’m always game for a trip to wonderland. 

34. ceylon, sri lanka 

my good friends have planned a dreamy trip to sri lanka, which kicks off with a stay at the ceylon tea trails. your bungalow is set among historical tea plantations, complete with a butler to serve you tea (duh! among other delicious things). all relais and chateaux properties are known for having fabulous food and wine. 

35. galle, sri lanka

known for gorgeous dutch colonial architecture and great restaurants. 

36. dambulla, sri lanka 

home of the golden cave temple. so much buddha fab. 

37. chengdu, china

specifically need to stay at temple house, the latest from swire hotels (upper house - HK and opposite house - BJ are both pure gold, yes i just described something in BJ as pure gold, maybe i’m hallucinating) and i MUST see those pandas. 

38. jiuzhaiguo, china 

a stunning national park outside of chengdu. while not what it’s recognized for, china does have a great deal of natural beauty! 

39. guilin, china 

the landscapes of guilin by boat are spectacular and i don’t want to leave china without seeing it in the flesh! 

40. dali, china 

dali is one of the old traditional towns in the yunnan province of china (far west). i’ve heard that it’s one of the most peaceful places to uncover traditional china. i’ve been to lijiang (also in yunnan) but dali is still on the list! 

41. tibet, china 

so much political tension. plus unbelievable landscapes, yaks and a plethora of five star hotels. you need to be part of a tour group and be wary of altitude sickness, but i am definitely game for this adventure! 

42. suzhou, china 

only an hour outside of shanghai by train, known as a ‘water town’ for it’s canals. also the wedding dress and fabric capital of china. interesting. 

43. harbin, china 

in january, there is an ice festival in one of china's northernmost cities, near russia. it's -30 degrees fahrenheit. it also looks like disneyland, candy land and hello kitty land made of ice. this is why they made fur. 

44. macau, china (accomplished in august 2015)

at the end of last year, i read the novel the ballad of a small player, and even though it's a rather troubling tale about a seriously addicted gambler, there's just something glamorous about being a high roller. i guess that's why it's addicting? i also want to eat portugese egg tarts and hang out with leo, martin and robert. 

45. huangshan, china 

i'm going to see more of china. i'm also going to climb more of china, including the very famous ‘yellow mountain’. in heels. do as the chinese do. not even kidding. well, kidding that i will wear heels, not kidding that chinese tourists go on treks in heels. 

46. paro, bhutan 

home of the taktsang (tiger’s nest) monastery. bhutan seems like the perfect place for a spiritual awakening. people that i know who have gone have had transformational experiences. 

47. phobjikha, bhutan 

also a great place for himalayan trekking. 

48. st petersburg, russia

when i initially made my travel list, i left russia off since it's not technically in asia pacific. but now that the ruble has crumbled, it is shockingly affordable. 

49. moscow, russia 

same reason as st petersburg. oh and to wear lots and lots of fur, and speak using only a faux russian accent. which is the only accent i can actually even attempt to do. you it's a lot of 'ze'. i’m also thinking ice bars and cold cold vodka. this all may be in my imagination, but i’m willing to let my mind run wild. 

50. jeju island, south korea 

my cool korean friend says this island, which is only like an hour flight from shanghai, says this island is beautiful. and it's also where a number of my skincare products are made. awesome. 

51. sapporo / niseko / hokkaido, japan

skiing japan is my number 1 thing that i want to do. i love japan so much, and skiing is the only sport i've ever been good at. it's a match made in heaven. add sushi and sake and i am jumping for joy, flipping over the moon excited! 

52. hakuba / nagano, japan  

another japan skiing option that comes highly recommended. both of these japanese ski destinations have hosted winter olympics, back when they used to select places that actually have great skiing and great snow. yes, beijing, that’s a jab at your ridiculous bid for the 2022 winter olympics. 

53. luang prabang, laos 

laos was my friend lili's favorite part of her asiaventure (which also included cambodia and thailand, which are two of my personal favorites) so it’s a must do. she loved the lush greenery and that’s it’s sort of a hidden gem. 

54. vientiane, laos 

known for french colonial architecture and buddhist temples. 

55. kathmandu, nepal 

must conquer everest. at least part of it ;) or you know, see it from a distance. it's all same same, right?

56. mauritius 

another beachy paradise. because you can never go to enough perfect beaches. 

57. male, maldives 

one of those places where you can press ⌘, option, escape. key word: escape. and seriously, if you don't like a thatched hut above clear water, i don't know what you like. 

anyone who has spent time with me recently knows that i describe asia in the summer as a swamp. some places, like new york or europe, you spend the whole year looking forward to summer: a time spent wearing less clothing, frolicking on the beach, eating popiscles, drinking bottomless rose, throwing white parties, as you do. there’s just something about the warm summer air that makes you want to have a summer fling.

in asia, and specifically in shanghai, it’s ‘the rainy season’, which is also called the ‘plum rain’, because it’s a season when plums ripen. i see you rolling your eyes. this is very, very real. yes, coming from santa monica, i also had a challenging time grasping the idea of ‘the rainy season’ since it rained for a grand total of 5 days in the more than 4 years that i lived in california. i know, there is a very serious drought now, so serious that you are no longer served water when you sit down at a restaurant, but instead have to ask for if. this is one of my very favorite features about dining in america, endless water consumption, since in china, they serve you endless tea.

anyway, I’m supposed to be talking about typhoons. this summer, during ‘the rainy season’ which lasted at least an entire month, i experienced a number of ‘typhoons’. at first, i thought they were just a ridiculous name to exaggerate about a lot of rain that people in asia use, but i have now done my reasearch and feel that i should share the difference between the different types of storms with you:

typhoon / hurricane / cyclone - they are the same same: a tropical storm that begins over the sea. same same is convenient vocabulary that i have picked up in asia to describe something that is exactly the same. here’s a circumstance where it might work: you want another glass of white wine somewhere in southeast asia, you ask for the same glass of wine. blank stares. point at the original glass and say, same same. should work like a charm. if we want to get into semantics about tropical storms, a hurricane is used for storms initiating in the atlantic ocean, carribbean sea,  and the central and northeast pacific ocean (california side). a typhoon is a storm that originates in the northwest pacific ocean (japan, korea, taiwan, etc side). cyclone is used for storms that originate in the bay of bengal, the arabian sea or the indian ocean. 

tornado - this is different. smaller vortex, higher velocity. dororthy really was experiencing something out of this world. 

so ‘the rainy season’ brings a lot of rain, and the occasional typhoon / hurricane / cyclone. typhoon is just a fancy name for an especially big storm. they still give them names like they do in the US. but instead of ‘katrina’ you have ‘chan-hom’ ‘linda’ and ‘haikui’. also, good luck if you try to fly. typhoons are so fear-inducing that they can lead to airport cancellations and flight delays for days! and then when the rainy season ends it’s 95 degrees with 95 percent humidity. regardless, you’re soaking, either in rain, or in sweat. i think i prefer sweat soaked, but it’s not exactly fling inducing.

here are some asian ‘rainy seasons’ so you can appropriately plan summer travel:

shanghai: june-july 

japan: june 7-july 20 (according to wikipedia) 

korea: june-mid july 

hong kong: may-september 

singapore: supposedly the ‘wet season’ is september through february but i’m a seller. it was torrential when i was there in august. 

thailand: july-october. again, highly questionable as i experienced significant rains in march. i think SE asia as a region simply gets a large amount of rainfall. 

i’ve been encouraged to get back to blogging. i could give you a whole laundry list of excuses about why I have not been. the biggest would be that my new job, which I love, is busy! but, i just read brene brown’s book, the gifts of imperfection (she’s famous from her ted talks on vulnerability) and i’m trying to practice courage. so today, it’s the courage to share my thoughts on this blog after saying my new years resolution was to blog more, and totally failing.

since I’ve last spoken to you, my fab followers, i have seen A LOT more of china. i’ve been to the capital cities of a number of provinces and I feel like I have some level  of familiarity with mainland china, especially for a white girl from connecticut. there are some spots i’d recommend for an adventurer who wants exposure to authentic day-to-day chinese life, and some places i don’t think you’d ever like to go to (and i certainly never want to go to again). here’s a list, and some thoughts:

chongqing (population: 27 million) this is a vibrant Chinese city. i’ve been told by Chinese colleagues that the cities in western china are sleepier and people enjoy living their lives more. they take their time to do things and they’re not always rushing around. chongqing has a lot of students and universities and has the energy of an up and coming metropolis. i’ve heard there’s an interesting art scene as well. you may think as i describe this, ‘oh sounds cool, maybe i should go here.’ this is when I warn you that i have been in china for more than two years (o.m.g.) and my perception has changed since i first touched down in shanghai and was totally taken aback. chongqing is certainly not shanghai, and the average white person may struggle to get themselves around a bit. it’s not pristine in any regard, and certainly feels like china. it does have character. they are known for extremely spicy hot noodles and hot pot. It’s also extremely hot. chinese people think that eating spicy food when it’s hot helps to cool you down and maintain your qi. my american colleague that visited chongqing described it as eating ‘fire soup’ inside of a ‘fire pit’. to each their own.

spicy spots (i did learn while writing this post that eating spicy food activates the parts of your brain that associate with both pleasure and pain) 

links are from dianping, china’s yelp equivalent. 

吃面不要钱 (fire noodle soup) 

大队长 (spicy hot pot) 

chengdu (population: 14 million) i need to come back. i was only in chengdu for about 15 hours, so i didn’t see the main attraction - panda bears! i will not leave china without a picture of myself snuggling with a panda bear and us eating a shoot of bamboo together. my tutor and i agreed that we both love panda bears. just one of the many things we bond about: love of pandas, love of pink and purple, love of shopping, love of shoes and bags. once again, i did manage in the short time here to showcase my ability to eat extremely spicy food (it must be the pleasure and pain thing!) also, thank you sylvie for feeding me the spiciest Indian food in LA, and building my spice tolerance because i got quite a bit of spice street cred in chengdu. first at the spicy fish head hot pot and the following day when i was forced to have a bite of spicy brain. i was told it tasted like tofu. i’ll leave it at that.

spicy spots

谭鱼头 (fish head hot pot) 

三只耳火锅 (standard sichuan hot pot) 

zhengzhou (population: 8 million) do not go here. do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars. do not. stepping outside into the thick polluted air is unfortunate. putting your black suitcase into the trunk of a taxi and removing it with a film of dirt is unfortunate. the airport is extremely unfortunate. the apple store and the le meridien are quite nice (where i spent 85% of my time) but the other 15% did not make me happy. and by not happy, i mean borderline panic attack.

shenyang (population: 8 million) this is a cold northern city. i went in June, so it wasn’t cold. it wasn’t notable, but it wasn’t as bad as zhengzhou. After zhengzhou, it felt cleaner and more established. there’s only one northern city i really want to go to, which is harbin, because they have an ice festival that looks like disneyland created out of ice. i’ll go to that even in negative 30 degrees just for the instagram picture. 

tianjin (population: 11 million people) suburb of beijing and where the crazy explosions happened recently. when i went, i actually thought it was quite lovely. there was blue sky, i went running, there were ‘european’ style buildings juxtaposed with modern asian buildings. exceeded expectations.

shenzhen (population: 15 million people) the day we went to shenzhen I had gone to carbone in hong kong the night before, and holy hangover. carbone was fabulous, major food group can do no wrong in new york, and hong kong too. so, the way I was feeling taints my short visit to shenzhen. crossing the border in a car was pretty much unbearable without sunglasses. i don’t know that I’ve ever gotten my passport stamped via car before, so there’s a first time for everything! i felt like i was going to TJ. (yes, that’s an OC reference). didn’t see much of the city, really only saw the apple store. i did have a lunch with an american colleague and two chinese colleagues, and the american colleague ordered for us. he takes pride in his embracing local culture, so he asked us, on a scale of 1-5, one being not chinese and 5 being very chinese, how chinese his order was. the two chinese colleagues said they didn’t want to disappoint him, but it was only a 2. For me, it was at least a 4. We ate a tripe salad among other things not typically on my must-eat list. it’s really all about your perception! there was also a couple that ordered a spicy fish dish next to us and the man was sweating so much as he ate it that he had to chinese crop top (pull his top up to expose his belly) in the middle of the restaurant. i wish i had a picture, but i’ll let your imaginations run wild.

wuxi (population: 6 million)  suburb of shanghai, 20 minutes on a high-speed train. at least an hour getting to and from the train and printing the train tickets. just trying to manage expectations here. it’s funny to think that i grew up in a suburb of new york with 27,000 people, and a suburb of Shanghai has 6 million. There are just so many people in china!

my favorite thing about the travel throughout china was getting to know one of my coworkers better, whom i traveled with for a number of these trips. we work together every day and she is an absolute delight. in fact, she is a saint. so patient. such good perspective. she’s seen me at my highest highs and lowest lows (think 5 hour delay in zhengzhou or sitting in the last row of a plane for a 2 hour delay leaving shenyang). for me, it always comes down to the people you meet (or are with) on the journey that really make it an adventure.

one of the great benefits of traveling in china is flight delays. a flight taking off on time is like actually seeing a proboscis monkey when you go to borneo (highly unlikely). the delays are typically due to ‘air space restrictions’ which i learned from the book china rich girlfriend means rich, important people (who likely have some affiliation with the government) are flying private, and they take priority. if you haven’t read crazy rich asians, the precursor to china rich girlfriend, i can’t recommend it highly enough. enough of that diversion. this is me, sleeping, in a flight delay situation before i realized that the priority pass card gets you into even the dirtiest of chinese lounges. 

fire noodle soup in chengdu. 

i can’t even caption this, i can’t even believe i’m posting it, but i feel like it needs to be included to really beef up the authenticity of this post. 

my favorite part of a sichuan meal. coconut milk and a fried sesame ball filled with sesame paste for dessert. 

my typical hotel breakfast. i’ve had a lot of these lately. 

view on my run in tianjin. kind of nice, right? sky looks blue? 

china train travel. 

high speed bullet trains are one of the things that china does quite well. someone pointed out to me recently that building new infrastructure is always easier than updating old infrastructure which is one of the reasons why it’s such a challenge to build high speed trains in the united states. after living in china, it’s absolutely mind boggling to me that it is going to take the next 14 years to build the california bullet train. china will have built trains covering the entire nation by then! 

a sunset in chongqing 

download this asap: wechat 

if you know me well, and i imagine if you're reading this blog, you probably do, you know that i am a little bit of a nerd, especially when it comes to iphones and apps, and i really love emojis. if i could communicate using only emojis, gifs and stickers, that would be my preference. people would smile more. 

you may be wondering, what is a sticker? this is where wechat comes in. a sticker is an animated emoji, and it is amazing. wechat even has hello kitty stickers. so download wechat immediately, find me, samia449, and i will send you seasonally appropriate stickers, mood appropriate stickers, life altering stickers. i will share my joy with you. my dream is for stickers to be available on all platforms and i would really like to create my own stickers. like hello kitty cheers-ing with a champagne flute. 

see attached video to entice you to use wechat. and here's a quick crash course for how to best communicate using emojis:

going to barre class with your bestie (insert 'basic' joke here) 👯

happy birthday to a boy who loves music + lives in new york  🎉😜😎🔥🙌🎩💙🐵⭐️⛄️❄️🎁🏀🏈🎤🍻🍷🍔🎂🍪🌃🗽💋😘

las vegas 🍸🍺🎲♠️♥️♣️♦️💯💰🎉⭐️👍💶💳💴💵💷

uh oh / yikes / i just finished a whole chocolate cake 😳😜😁

cooking veggies for dinner 🌽🍅🍆🍠🍓🍒🍋🍏

australia 🐨

in my hiatus from blogging, korean skincare has become all the rage (and rightfully so!). the ny times wrote an article 'skin care products from korea catch on in united states' at the end of october and refinery 29 hired a korean beauty correspondent in june. just to set the record straight, i got on the bandwagon in may and it is so good. it's time to divulge my secrets. 

this should technically be categorized into 'how to be more asian' .. since everyone here (china, korea, japan) is benjamin button. i never know how old anyone is because everyone looks so young. thankfully, i've started the reverse aging process as well. 

i read extensively about korean skincare products before i arrived in korea for the first time, and thankfully i have some friends who visited shanghai in march who were getting masters in cosmetic and fragrance from FIT. yes, that's real. they gave me the download on korea and said the koreans know what's up when it comes to skincare and makeup technology. welcome to the future.

i should note here that there are also a ton of whitening skincare products in asia. as we've learned from the sunbrella, sun is not your friend in asia, you want to be as white and pure and pristine as possible. i don't use these products, i still believe in the magic of sunshine. i lived in los angeles, and i know that sunshine makes people happy. 

i've been doing my korean skincare routine for 8 months. it's heavenly, and every time i do it, i feel like my face is a cloud. and that is a good feeling. there's a reason why that expression 'treat yo' self' exists .. this is a lovely treat. i do cheat occasionally with the neutrogena make-up removing towlettes. everyone should know that sleeping in your makeup is downright sinful, and i'd prefer to sin by way of excessive white wine and chocolate. 

you can read up on the 10-step korean skincare routine here, which is what i loosely follow. i end up with about 7 steps. it is said that you should spend as much time taking off your face as you spend putting it on .. so i take 10-15 minutes. 

step one: cleanse (this is technically two steps, as you should use two different products for eye makeup removing and facial cleansing) 

step two: tone (toner makes your face feel truly clean after cleansing, many korean products are called 'refreshers' versus toners but they do the same thing) 

step three: essence (this is an essential part of the process; essence is that burst of energy to revive your skin, and in actuality it's helping with cell renewal. key takeaway, add essence and you'll be positively glowing) 

step four: serum (in korea these are often call ampoules and are more concentrated forms of essence. serums can be targeted to different problem areas: fine lines, whitening, dryness, pores, sensitive skin, etc) 

step five: other serums you might want (as they typically focus on only one thing) 

step seven: face masks (some women do them every single day, they are downright magical although you look a bit like hannibal lector when you're wearing one .. see selfies below. is this why i am not in a relationship? the best thing is they have so many kinds to choose from!)

step six: eye cream (because you don't want droopy eyes or under eye circles. keep those eyes firm! ps. tap eye cream, don't rub it) 

step seven: moisturizer (you should massage your moisturizer into your skin. don't forget this is all about treat yo' self!) 

step eight (night): night cream (at night, you need another layer, i know, you're rolling your eyes. need to make sure that your face is still feeling dreamy when you wake up out of bed, looking like sleeping beauty, but years younger, in the morning! 

step eight (day): sunscreen (do not skip if you want to be asian, or have young looking skin forever). a must have for face and neck and really all over your body. even when it's cloudy. better safe than sorry! 

brands and products i use .. 

innisfree - this is all natural, inexpensive, lovely products. and there is a vibrating wrinkle spot essence wand, pictured below. say yes to the face massage. 

laneige - great creams. i love the water sleeping pack after a mask on a long flight. yup, i've been known to do a little skincare routine on a long haul flight. it's dry up there!  

skII - this is a japanese brand. they're the only ones using 'pitera' in their facial treatment essence, which is known in these parts of the world as 'miracle water'. skII is expensive, it's like asia's la mer. 

syn-ake - their agetox cream is the ultimate night cream.

it's skin - another cheap brand with great toner / essence / cream sets. another plus of korean skincare brands is they give you tons of samples, so i'm currently working my way through tons of it's skin goodies, deciding which to purchase at full size! 

mg - this is a chinese brand, and i love their sheet masks. they have so many varieties and they're like $1.50 each!

missha - this inexpensive line has the best snail cream, which koreans swear by for whitening, wrinkle reduction and general glow. i know, it sounds disgusting, but i love it, all of my friends who are in the know love it, and so does my mama. their snail masks are A+ too. (insert 100 emoji - if anyone knows how i can design my own emojis / stickers to use on all platforms, please let me know)

sulwhasso - i haven't gotten into the skincare, but i did buy my mom a lovely cleaners that she really enjoys. i will tell you, that i am completely obsessed with their skin perfecting cushion, which is it in cosmetics these days. run, don't walk to buy a cushion product immediately. lancome is starting to make them too, and they give your skin a fabulous dewy perfection. 

i saved the best for last, to make sure that you're still reading ;) 

masks are fun on your own, or with a friend! 

back in july 2013 i shared 57 places to go in asia. i'm happy to report that i've crossed 18 places off of that original list, and added a few more! here's the list of everywhere i've been the past 18 months (asia only!) and some of my favorites to date. 

1. beijing, china

the most chinese city in china with incredible history and delectable duck. also polluted and spread out.

2. hangzhou, china 

a peaceful city on a beautiful lake. only a quick bullet train away from shanghai. possible for a day trip! 

3. moganshan, china 

shanghai's mountains, a place to breathe fresh air, be active, and get away from the big city for the weekend. 

4. guangzhou, china 

a rapidly growing and expanding city in southern china, formerly canton.  

5. lijiang, china 

gateway to the yunnan province; some parts feel untouched while other parts are packed with chinese tourists. 

6. zhajiangjie, china 

the adventureland that inspired avatar. 

7. taipei, taiwan

clean and easy to get around; you can eat street food and ride a bike in the streets without fear. most importantly, home of the original din tai fung. 

8. beitou, taiwan 

hot spring haven just outside of taipei. 

9. hong kong 

endless energy and endless shopping, great restaurants and bars. plus gorgeous hiking. a little bit of what i love about both LA and NY in asia! 

10. singapore 

super clean but also hot and sticky, some of asia's best street food at the hawker markets juxtaposed with michelin starred restaurants and world class luxury hotels. 

11. tokyo, japan **favorite city in asia 

i could go here a thousand times and still have not seen everything: epic food, thoughtful design, impeccable public transportation, transcendental sushi. 

12. kyoto, japan

i could just say incredibly beautiful temples, but wouldn't be doing the city justice, as there's a historical old city and a vibrant new area to see as well. 

13. osaka, japan

cheaper than tokyo, same great food, shopping and general japanese amazingness. 

14. kobe, japan 

known for beef and onsens (hot springs), if you go, do both. 

15. ho chi minh city, vietnam

more people on motorbikes than i've ever seen, absolutely buzzing with people; the spirit and energy of growth is palpable. complemented by french influences everywhere and top notch vietnamese food.

16. nha trang, vietnam

an interesting jumping off point for adventures, if you're going to hit the beach expect crowds of russian tourists. (although, given what the ruble is doing, perhaps travel to vietnam won't be as accessible) 

17. ninh vanh bay, vietnam 

five star luxury beach heaven. 

18. siem reap, cambodia **favorite historical / cultural adventure to date

must see cultural wonder, prepare to be amazed. and tired from seeing all those temples. 

19. bangkok, thailand 

spicy and wild - a city that never sleeps. 

20. koh samui, thailand 

from the instant you step off the airplane you know you're in thatched roof paradise; endless luxury hotels ranging from affordable to absurd. 

21. koh phangan, thailand

one night a month it's a place to dance all night, the other 30 days, it's a secluded beach paradise (so i've heard). 

22. phuket, thailand **favorite beach to date 

some people love it, some people hate it. we loved our secluded private beach and perfect hotel. 

23. seoul, south korea 

best shopping and plastic surgery in asia.  drink the rice wine, makgeolli as often as possible. 

24. kuta, indonesia

this is the bali you think of when you read about bali - scenic beaches, yummy seafood and epic sunsets.

25. ubud, indonesia **best non-beach relaxation 

for the zen lifestyle in the rice paddies north of bali - be ready to see a ton of caucasian people who have found the good life. 

a new year. but still the same person. 18 months in china. but am i really still counting? 

do i need to make resolutions when i'm happy with who i am? no, but reflections are good, goals are good, dreams are good. writing them down helps make them a reality. 

i'll start with reflections. last year, i shared three 'thoughts'  for the new year on this blog. first, i wanted to develop a daily meditation practice. total fail. did not do that 51% of the time, it is not a habit. i am lucky to get 35 seconds when i catch myself about to lose my mind because i don't understand what someone is saying in chinese and vice versa for the 75th time that day (you would think by now i could pronounce the cross streets for my office and my home 18 months later, but apparently my hybrid valley girl / new york chinese tones are a bit challenging to understand) to stop and think, relax. think about how amazing your life is. breathe out what you can't control, breathe in everything you're grateful for. daily meditation is still a goal. general positivity i have down, so i'm grateful for that. 

next, i said i'd develop a skincare regimen. done and done. i am benjamin button (in a snow white sort of way). i promise i will share my 7-10 step korean skincare routine this week. yes, you should be very jealous of the incredible skincare products they have in asia. they're the products of the future.

third, i said i'd enjoy china. for that, i get a gigantic check plus. an A+. i was always okay with the A (or even the A-) but on this one i deserve over 4.0. to think about how i felt at this point last year, compared with how i feel now, it's night and day. i've even committed to spending more time here (OMG) .. more on that later. 

lastly, and i didn't say this on the blog, i said this in my journal (which i flipped through last night), i promised myself that i'd keep writing and be more creative. and i stopped focusing on my blog. i think that's exactly the opposite. i'd like to think i kept releasing creative energy through travel and socializing. for some, socializing is a chore, not a passion. for me, i love people. i thrive off of relationships with other people and i'm super happy to share that i've made some genuine and wonderful life-long friends here. 

so on to the goals. this year, i'm going to do more things that scare me. eleanor roosevelt said to do one thing every day that scares you, and while i think she was an incredibly admirable lady, i don't think i'm up for that yet. i'll start with more scary things. 

so far, i've done three scary things.

i learned photoshop basics which i've been wanting to do forever. i completed my first project.

i told my team that i am leaving my job. the family that has welcomed me to china with open arms. the people who have worked around the clock and taught me what it's like to be a manager. to not focus on my individual growth, but the company's growth and others' growth. honestly, i've grown up at media arts lab. i've learned about aesthetics, details, seriously hard work, and most importantly, i've collaborated with incredible people. i've laughed a lot. they moved me around the world. leaving is bittersweet,  but it's time to move on, and i'm very excited to join apple retail's team in shanghai later this year.

and, the last thing i'm doing right now. part of me is scared to start writing on this blog again. scared that i'll stop again. scared that i always start things, and don't follow through. scared that i'd like to see what it's like to really build a following, and challenge myself to do that, but not succeed. scared because i hate that tumblr isn't functional enough for my aspirations, but even more scared to learn how to build my own site. 

today, i give you a lazy post. 

faux or fabulously french made on this chanel card holder ? 

perfect for those little mini purses that don't have slots for cards and can't hold a continental wallet. since who wants all that cash floating around their bag ?? 

organization is key my friends. 

okay, so yes, i've mentioned this before, but i've yet to dedicate an entire post to it. i know what you're thinking, i haven't dedicated an entire post to anything lately. i know. going to try to get back in the groove. when you do something at least 51% of the time it becomes a habit. so here's to at least 4 days of updates this week. 

enough about that, back to the marathon! i can say that it was definitely the hardest thing i've done physically in my entire life. i've always been very active, but not very competitive. i was never really a team sports star. unless you count playing with my tomagatchi in the outfield during little league an MVP move .. i knew japan was what's up well before 2013. i've always spent time 'working out' and i think i've probably taken every yoga and fitness class in los angeles and new york (bar method, physique 57, exhale, equinox, barry's bootcamp, cardio barre, SLT, soul cycle, flybarre, studio MDR, the dailey method, pilates platinum, yoga works, city yoga - which is now sadly a yoga works, still yoga, jivamukti yoga .. should i keep going!?)

i need my daily endorphins to keep me happy (since happy people don't kill their husbands) and, i've always WANTED to run a half marathon. 

i planned to run one in 2012; my brother and i signed up for the ojai to ocean half marathon in ojai, california. this was supposed to be the perfect jumping off point, it was mostly downhill and we could spend the nights before and after relaxing (and playing golf for those of us that can't spend a vacation without doing that, hint, not me) at the ojai valley and and spa. 

so i started training for the race, and whenever i got to more than 3 miles, i would have an excruciating shooting pain in my right knee. so, we ended up pulling the plug and just going to hang out at the spa. if you ever find yourself wanting to take a little adventure to a nature-filled paradise outside of los angeles, the ojai valley inn and spa is magical and the skillet cookies at  jimmy's pub are heavenly. 

so fast forward to march 2014, i'm at dinner with some girlfriends, and my friend aimee casually mentions that we have two friends that were supposed to run the great wall half marathon with her and her husband, but no longer can. somehow (after bottles of wine) my friend jess and i are in! aimee has done an amazing job selling this 'experience' .. we'll be staying at the best hotel in beijing, the opposite house, and there will be endless bubbles flowing after we complete the race.

i started training immediately, and i decided that since i get enough cardio from tracy almost every day, all i needed to do was one long run per week in the 6-7 weeks leading up to the marathon. 

i started in thailand with 7 miles on the treadmill. terribly boring, but no problem. i'm telling you, dance cardio does SERIOUS work on one's stamina. try jumping like a maniac every day for a year (fine 60% of days) and then train for a marathon, you'll be amazed! the next week, i was at duke for my 5 year college reunion. i don't know how i did it, but i managed an 8 mile run, hitting up my two favorite spots to go running on campus (the washington duke trail and the east campus loop, in one run!) it was the only thing i did all weekend that made me certain i'm no longer in college - the rest of the decisions we're questionable. then, back to shanghai, where the polluted air prohibited me from an outdoor excursion, but i headed over to twelve at hengshan, the luxury hotel across the street from my apartment, pretended i was a guest and ran 9 miles on the treadmill. my parents do stay there when they're in town, so i think it's okay, and i don't think they're frequent visitors to chinafab. the next weekend it rained, which is when pollution levels are the lowest, so i headed out for an outdoor run. i ran into aimee on the bund (also out for a long run) and i finished 10 miles in record time, at 9:25 per mile! i was crushing it. i was super pumped about not only being ready for the half-marathon, but possibly finishing in under two hours! 

then, my knee started to hurt. if i walked, if i sat on a plane, pretty much always. so, i didn't train at all for two weeks. it was still hurting week of the marathon, but i was already in it to win it and decided i'd take some aleeve and suck it up the day of the race. as i popped my aleeve on race day, someone advised me against it, but, whatever. and we were off! aimee said that the first mile was up hill, and boy was she wrong! it was closer to the first three miles! but, i got off to a speedy start, with about 9:15 minute miles up the three mile hill. when we got to the wall, i was feeling great! and then .. the wall happened. oh my god. so. many. steps. two miles on the wall was just. so. hard. it was incredible seeing everyone climbing around you, but it was PAINFUL. when i finished with the wall, i felt liked i'd already run a half marathon and i was only done with 5 MILES. holy $h!t!!!! there were still 8 MORE TO GO. at this point, pace was completely out the window, i was aiming to finish (and to not walk). miles 5-8 were okay, since they were on a slight decline into a little village. 8-10 were through the village and i mean, i wanted to die, but less than i wanted to die miles 10-13. on miles 10-13, it was the reverse of the ever-so-slight downhill, an ever-so-slight uphill. absolute torture. at one point this really friendly chinese dude took a selfie with me and tried to get me to keep pace with him. i was like - sayonara, bye-bye, zai jian, adios, leave me to my personal physical and emotional struggle buddy. somehow, and i don't really know how it happened, i was at the end, crossing the finish line. 2 hours, 42 minutes and 24 seconds later, although, it really felt like a lifetime. 

someone asked me what i was thinking about and i was able to say i was 'in the moment' because i think i was so focused on one foot in front of another and finishing the damn race that i couldn't possibly have thought about anything else. 

a bit later my girlfriends aimee and jess finished, looking like models as they leaped across the finish line. i can promise you, i did NOT look like a model. and then, the celebrations, endless eating and bubbles began. 

recently, i was asked to describe a peak experience during a talent development training at work, and it was easy for me pin point the marathon! it was the dedication + challenge of training, the group achievement of doing it with three close friends and the weekend we spent together gearing up and then celebrating. 

next up, a flat half marathon, so i can really try to break the two hour mark! i've heard that the great wall marathon is hard enough that it takes time and  a half of your typical marathon pace, so i think it's do-able. and then a new lifetime goal: the new york city marathon. 

the sweetest welcome note + bubbles from piper and chris (who we got the marathon tickets from) .. the perfect motivation to make it to the finish line! 

welcome to the race day celebrations! ji county warmly welcomes friends from all over the world! 

pre-race photo. doug and i are sleeping still. 

so. so. so. many. steps. 

headed up .. yes, you walk, you have to, otherwise your legs fall off. i'm not joking. 

and headed down .. and repeat. 

crowds and welcome breathing moments headed through the view points /watchtowers / tunnels connecting the different parts of the wall. 

this chick a) beat me handily and b) is wearing a furry leopard tail. she's a boss. 

the ultimate photo finish from these amazing mermaids! 

post-race smiles + bliss. 

post race dinner of champions (yes, i made everyone wear their medals to dinner, duh!) at duck de chine. we had not one, not two, but three ducks for five people. and attempted to order a 4th, but they'd already sold all of them for the evening! 

and some cupcakes to kick off the birthday celebrations for yours truly ;) 

my favorite hotel in beijing, the design-centric, uber-modern opposite house. 

post race breakfast of champions: mimosa, pancakes + bacon! 

i can't put into words how painful going up and down steps was. 

so, we sat and made friends with this adorable lady selling these #chinfab glasses + mustache sets. yes, we paid the laowai (foreigner) price, but as you can tell from the look on my face, they were priceless. 

a dragon boat at the summer palace.