Scrambled

There's a waiter at the Australian Dairy Co. who doesn't seem to understand your Cantonese when you have an English menu in front of you.

*points to lunch set on Chinese menu* Ngo yiu li go (I want this one)
You want fried? scrambled?
Chow
Scrambled?
Chow
Scrambled?
*sigh* Scrambled
Ham? Bbq pork?
Cha siu
Bbq pork
Yes, bbq pork...

That was the first time when I went with Alice, Paris & Justin.  About a week later, I went with Alice, Laura & Lydia and got him again.  This time, he eventually gave in midway and switched to canto.  Both times, I've found the conversation quite amusing.  Either it's a game of who gives in first or he just has a hearing problem.

Australian Dairy Company is a famous "Hong Kong style" restaurant on Parkes Street in Jordan.  It's always packed and the service is speedy.  Less than a minute after you order, the food arrives and the second you're done, the hawk-eyed waiters will snatch the finished plate away.

Every time, I get their popular lunch set of macaroni soup, buttered toast, ham, and the BEST scrambled eggs ever.  In my opinion, they're worth the be rushed, eat fast, and leave in 10 environment, but if you're lucky, you can get a corner table tucked away--giving you the extra 10 minutes to digest, which is what happened the first time.  When I still have room, I'll also get dun lai (steamed milk), which is a custard/pudding-like dessert that's really simple (milk & sugar), but oh so good...especially for a milk lover like me.

I still don't know why it's called Australian Dairy Co. when they use Kowloon Dairy milk.  Anyone know?

Alice & Paris<--the only thing Australian about the place

Our waiter :)

Finding Nemo

Photo taken while snorkeling in Dauin, Negros Island, PI

Every summer as a kid, I'd head to Industry Hills and swim for a few hours on their summer swim teams, head back home, watch TV and eat fast food and tons of watermelon.  My mom made my sister and me learn how to swim when we were wee little tykes because swimming was something she never knew how to do, but wished she could do.

I've always loved being in the water whether it be swimming  laps or playing around.  I'd often go to the bottom of the swimming pool and just look up to the surface--and that's exactly what I did the day I learned how to scuba dive in the Philippines.  I'd remember to do it every once in a while just to remind myself that yes, I was really deep below (12 meters or so) in the ocean and that yes, I was scuba diving that very moment.  After snorkeling in Thailand, I had an urge to try scuba diving.  It's something I've always wanted to do, a "things to do in life" item, but I didn't think this dream would be realized so soon.

When I was down there, my mind jumped around to thoughts from Am I breathing right?  Should I breathe in and exhale longer?  Ahh my throat is dry to OMahgahh I'm scuba diving!!  Omahgahh there's a sea turtle!  We're underwater!  Most of the time, I was concerned with my breathing.  You know the sound Darth Vader makes?  Well, that's what you sound like and all you hear down there.  Sometimes I had to remind myself to just look around and take it all in.  I still try and search for those images in my memory because I don't want to forget them.

Something about scuba diving made me feel like I was in space--not that I know how it is.  You sort of float around like I imagine an astronaut would.  You have weights that make you stay underwater, but then there's air in your vest that keeps you from hitting the bottom so you're free to glide through the water.  Oh and the water!  Crystal clear and a nice temperature, unlike the murky freezing cold waters of Cali's beaches.  We did a discover scuba package, so we got to do 2 dives, starting from the shore and into the ocean--no boring ol' swimming pool.       

To make things even more amazing, we got the boat to ourselves on our way there and learned off a gorgeous place, Apo Island:

Apo Island, PI

L

Welcome to Sea World! Laura, Kevin and me after our first dive

In short, my Philippines trip began on Monday in Cebu City to Moalboal on Cebu island.  Tuesday we arrived in Dumaguete on Negros Island and explored the city.  We stayed at Harold's Mansion, which I highly recommend for the price & activities they offer.  Plus Harold isn't an expat, but a local who owns the place and knows everything you need to know there.  On Wednesday we all went scuba diving and on Thursday, Laura and I relaxed by getting swedish massages and shopping, on Friday we snorkeled in a nearby city, Dauin, and by Saturday we returned to Cebu City for our flight and just stayed in the ginormous SM Mall the whole day for last minute shopping and grubbing.  Every night in Dumaguete, we hit up the restaurant/bar Hayahay for some drinks and good live music--from reggae to alternative depending on the night...a very good place to chill.  Out of all my trips so far, this was the perfect balance of activities and relaxing.

Dumaguete, Negros Island, PI

*Ah and yes, we found Nemo and were lucky enough to see 3 of Squirt's friends, Peach (the starfish), and thankfully, no Bruce.

Originality

Over the summer before coming to Hong Kong, I interned for adidas in Hollywood.  The office focused on the entertainment industry, so they mainly dealt with product placement in TV & films and giving celebrities adidas gear.  It was a fun internship--meeting celebs once in a while and dealing with their products (if they were a marketing division for say, office products?, maybe it wouldn't have been so fun haha).  Since they gave product as the form of pay, a good chunk of my stuff here is adidas.

After 3 months, I was of course, brainwashed, so now I notice any adidas product from a mile away.  In Hong Kong and Asia in general, adidas is huge!  Half the people I see on the streets of HK are sporting a pair or even wearing their clothes (which I rarely see in Cali).  They even know what Y-3 is, which most people back home generally have never heard of unless they're really into adidas or high fashion.  I've seen some bad knock-offs of Y-3 stuff...who knew?

During my internship, my supervisors were having talks and negotiating with agents/managers/whatevs to get people in on the new campaign for the year.  I left before I knew who they secured, but last night, I finally saw the new ad.  I'm lovin' the tune and seeing Agyness Deyn, Jay Baruchel, Ciara, Hyori Lee, Noel Gallagher and of course, Snooop.



I think it's a fine piece of advertisement.  It's super fun, makes me wanna be there, and get me some more adidas ish. When I get back home, I might be able to work for them if they get more positions *crosses fingers*

Tokyo

Almost four years ago, I went on a tour with my sister to Osaka & Kyoto during the summer.  When I was 9, I went to Tokyo.  All I remember was the subway, cool air, and seeing everyone dressed up in Harajuku.  Will I go again while I'm here in Asia?  Probably not since it's expensive and I don't have a huge urge to go, but hopefully I will sometime again while I'm in my twenties.  The point of this post?  Nothing, but I dig this:

Eh eh eh

One of my (unhealthy) obsessions this past year has been korean pop music aka kpop!  2NE1 is one of my fave groups because they have catchy tunes, crazy outfits, they bring a different vibe to the kpop scene, and they don't act super cheesy cutesy like most kpop girl groups.  At first I thought this tune was ok/pretty good, but I think the video brings it to life.

Unexpectedly, we saw a lot of Korean dive shops, restaurants, churches and people in the Philippines.  Wiki tells me that Koreans in the Philippines "form the largest Korean diaspora community in Southeast Asia and the eighth-largest in the world, after Korean Australians and before Koreans in Kazakhstan."  Something I would have never known otherwise. *I forgot to add that one of the girls in 2NE1, Sandara, is actually an example of a Korean who lived in the Philippines.

With the hallyu wave ever expanding, we also heard 2NE1's "Fire" twice and Wonder Girls' "Nobody" a few times during the trip.  While we were in a shopping center in Dumaguete, "Nobody" came on, causing an employee and Laura to sing right then and there.  Made for a fun shopping experience : )

Blue

I've been spoiled this past week.  Spoiled by the beauty of the beaches in the Philippines where the water is so clear you can see the sand below until it gradually deepens into a glittering aquamarine and borders a deep blue only nature can paint.


We arrived early Monday morning at 4AM in Cebu City and eventually made our way over to Moalboal, a small town on the southwestern coast of Cebu.  Other than a few small streets catering to tourists in Panagsama Beach, the rest of the area was rural, with families living what seemed like the simple life.  Moalboal was initially the destination of choice for scuba diving, but after walking around, we realized we only needed to spend a day there.

In the afternoon, we took a tricycle to Kawasan Falls and showed up only to find that they wanted to charge us 3000 pesos to take a raft to the waterfall.  If you ever go, don't fall for this trick.  We didn't want to pay, so Kevin led the way, hiking up above the waterfall until we found a lagoon above the main waterfall.  The others walked in first and after some hesitation, Laura and I eventually stripped down and went in.  The water was fresh and cool--a nice contrast to chlorine pools and salty ocean water.  I couldn't stop thinking, "OMG we're swimming on the top of a waterfall!" I floated along on my back looking up at butterflies and tree branches against the sky.  I don't consider myself a nature/outdoorsy girl, but when you're in a place like this, you can't help but appreciate nature for the beauty it offers.

After some more exploring around the falls, we headed back to Moalboal and took another ride to White Beach, where we watched the sunset.  I fell asleep on my towel and woke up to local kids laughing and playing nearby.  It was already dark and we looked up to see the stars--something I haven't seen in a while.

Panagsama Beach, Moalboal

Kawasan Falls

 

Susnet at White Beach, Moalboal