Clark's been here for over a month now. It has been great to have one of my best friend's come half-way around the world to visit me, study Chinese and one of the best parts, he made Vietnamese egg rolls, spring rolls and fried rice! It was perfect and tasted just like at home (or like his mom's).
We started off the day by heading to the San Yuan Li market which is like a farmer's market here in Beijing. They have everything from mangosteens to Maine lobsters. We got some most of the ingredients there such as fish sauce, egg roll skins, Hoisin sauce, cilantro, mint, rice noodles, etc. After that we headed home to start the loooong day of cooking. All in all, it was a nice experience and now i know how to make Vietnamese egg rolls and spring rolls! Clark, thanks buddy, 你真辛苦了！
Monday, July 26, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Its been too long
I've told myself over and over I'd get back to my blog but I haven't. My biggest excuse is that my blog was blocked here in China but now that I have a VPN/proxy, I can log-in and blog, again.
I'm hoping to blog more about my life and whats happening. I'd also like to add things about China, since I've been living here for more than 3 years now.
Alright, I'll be back soon. Signing off for the night!
I'm hoping to blog more about my life and whats happening. I'd also like to add things about China, since I've been living here for more than 3 years now.
Alright, I'll be back soon. Signing off for the night!
Friday, February 20, 2009
Sutra Fashion
I'm back in business. I've had an idea for a long time to make tailored clothing in China and have it sent to clients who purchase wherever they may be in the world. The key to this will be my relation with the tailors in China. I've known them for about 5 years and in my opinion, the most important thing when working with Chinese is to have a good relationship. Quality control will be another key factor. I've got to deliver good high quality, tailor-fitting, and fashionable suits to my clients. I've made some initial sales, which are sort of a test run, thanks to some good friends and family. I must thank all of you who trust me on this and made an order to help me get things going!
While here in Guangzhou, I've visited several markets to find some neckties as well as fabrics and accessories. Its amazing what you can find here if you set out to look for it. Its no joke when they say everything is made in China. I've found some nice neckties and a manufacture that can produce all sorts of ties in any color I can imagine. Today, I visited the fabric and accessories market. A new graduate of fashion school who is an up-and-coming fashion designer in the US doing most their shopping at Micheal's or Discount Fabrics would find this place orgasmic, to say the least. Spools upon spools of threads, fabrics of all sorts imaginable, buttons, belt clips and buckles, patches and heat transfer designs....its all here. I have a feeling I'll be making many more visits to this market. I spent about 3 or 4 hours walking around and collecting swatches and I think I only covered 30% of the Market area. And thats a modest guesstimation since every time you turn a corner or think you hit the end there is another underground shopping area or another floor of a building that never ends....
One of my favorite things about the markets in China is the street food. If I ever need energy or a quick break there is always something cooking up around the corner. I wonder if fabric markets in Milan offer Pizza or Pasta or Arancini (my favorite but from Sicily) for less than a buck right next to the Italian super 150's or or other weaves... probably not.
While here in Guangzhou, I've visited several markets to find some neckties as well as fabrics and accessories. Its amazing what you can find here if you set out to look for it. Its no joke when they say everything is made in China. I've found some nice neckties and a manufacture that can produce all sorts of ties in any color I can imagine. Today, I visited the fabric and accessories market. A new graduate of fashion school who is an up-and-coming fashion designer in the US doing most their shopping at Micheal's or Discount Fabrics would find this place orgasmic, to say the least. Spools upon spools of threads, fabrics of all sorts imaginable, buttons, belt clips and buckles, patches and heat transfer designs....its all here. I have a feeling I'll be making many more visits to this market. I spent about 3 or 4 hours walking around and collecting swatches and I think I only covered 30% of the Market area. And thats a modest guesstimation since every time you turn a corner or think you hit the end there is another underground shopping area or another floor of a building that never ends....
One of my favorite things about the markets in China is the street food. If I ever need energy or a quick break there is always something cooking up around the corner. I wonder if fabric markets in Milan offer Pizza or Pasta or Arancini (my favorite but from Sicily) for less than a buck right next to the Italian super 150's or or other weaves... probably not.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
After 2 years, back to Minnesoooota
A lot happens in a month. 30 days ago I was in Beijing cruising through the winding hutong alleyways in Beijing on a scooter admiring the unique characteristics of the city I love. November 4th, just after voting, I took an exhilarating spin on this beast of a motorbike around the flavorless suburban streets of Eden Prairie. I really felt like I was in a different world. After a quick spin on the motorbike I met with some good friends whom I haven't seen in a while for a bite to eat at my father's restaurant, Red Moon Chinese Cafe (as seen in the background).
It was nice to finally visit home and see my family and friends. I decided to come back home for a few reasons; vote, be with my family for the holidays, and re-asses my goals and priorities and decide if I want to continue to live in China or move back the the US. I thought I'd need a couple months but the answer became clear after about 24 hours. I want to go back to China and find a job and other opportunities.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Goodbye Beijing, for now
Beijing has changed a lot in the past year and a half that I have been here. Everyday a new building reveals itself or another subway line opens. Its amazing how fast the rate of change is here. The thing I love about this city is not all the tall buildings that go on forever but whats mixed in with that is the old, such as hutongs, temples, neat neighborhoods with their own characteristics, 后海和南锣鼓巷,长城, and the old Chinese guys with their shirt folded half-way up smoking a cigarette and always ready to spit a big loogie.
I've made the decision to move down south to be with Catalina, to find work, and also to be closer to my family. I'm sad about leaving Beijing but I am also excited about the future I have ahead of me. Its going to be interesting and I'm glad I've decided to take this step as it is time I make some commitments and take on some responsibility.
I think next time I come to Beijing, I'm not going to recognize anything. I'll be sure to add pictures of Beijing to this later.
See you later, Beijing! Thanks for the great memories and I'm sure there are still more good times to come!
I've made the decision to move down south to be with Catalina, to find work, and also to be closer to my family. I'm sad about leaving Beijing but I am also excited about the future I have ahead of me. Its going to be interesting and I'm glad I've decided to take this step as it is time I make some commitments and take on some responsibility.
I think next time I come to Beijing, I'm not going to recognize anything. I'll be sure to add pictures of Beijing to this later.
See you later, Beijing! Thanks for the great memories and I'm sure there are still more good times to come!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Good friends visit to Beijing
My best buddies from college made it out to Beijing, finally! Kais, Clark and Dipesh made the journey to the "fa, fa, east." They arrived late one Friday night and my friend Xiaomei and I tried to play a trick on them at the airport. I made signs with their names and told Xiaomei to pretend she didn't speak English and give them a run-around. It was funny to watch whilst burning time waiting for Kais's flight to come in from Jordan. Kais finally came in and our first stop was Sanlitun, Beijing night life. For their first few hours in China, we were in bars with few to no Chinese, eating pizza and dancing salsa. This is China. Well, less than 12 hours in China and we were already climbing the great wall. It was great to be with my friends again. Its been over 6 months since I saw Kais and over a year since i saw Clark and Dipesh. We all get along great and have good chemistry together. Like we always say, no matter where you are you can make a good time if you are with the right company. Well, I was with the best company in some of the best places in the world. If I could sum up our time in Beijing in a few words it would be:whiskey and green tea.We went on to Zhuhai, Macau, Bangkok, Phuket and Hong Kong together and had an unforgettable time!
Qingming Festival
It was the first time I celebrated Qingming festival with my family and in fact, it was the first time I have ever heard of the festival. In English, it means "tomb sweeping day," and thats just what it is. Think of it as Easter in a Chinese way or a day to remember your ancestors.
I arrived to Zhuhai late Thursday night after a rainy day in Guangzhou. Of course when I went to buy my ticket at the bus station, all of the tickets were sold out. That's just how things go when holidays come around in China. I managed to find a guy who was also going to Zhuhai so we got a black cab and were on our way. I wasn't feeling well that day and just wanted to sleep but then the 20-something guy i was sharing the cab with shared a horror story about black cabs with me. He was in a black cab with 3 other guys, including the driver, in Shenzhen and they all turned on him and robbed him at knife point! So, i couldn't sleep but by the time I arrived to Zhuhai i was ready for bed!
"Jo-san! Wake up boy!" Its 8 in the morning and my uncle wakes me to get ready and head to Samzhou, the village. Shortly after arriving he said, "lets go boy, we're going to a restaurant." Alright. So we started walking towards the village center and took a detour straight into the jungle. "Where we going?" I asked in a confused way. He said "we're going to see some live entertainment" then he giggled a bit. Alright, whatever. So we climb the hill a ways through the jungle and we arrive to a tomb where there are another 50-some-odd other people. I recognized a couple people and my uncle called me over to meet some one new. After jabbering some Cantonese he says to me "this is Uncle Kwan." I say "Ne ho!....uncle, who is that?" He said "that's Uncle Kwan, too." "and her?" "that's auntie Kwan." I stopped asking questions. My uncle then explained to me that the tomb was for great, great, great, great, great, great (plus or minus more greats) grandpa Kwan. I think he passed on 1060 years ago. Very interesting. After we lit some incense, poured some baijiu and tea and burned some money, we all headed to Uncle Kwan's restaurant. We ate good food and drank beer and baijiu at noon.
"Jo-san! wake up boy!" Then next morning my uncle woke me a bit before 8 to head to the village again. So much for a vacation! My uncle and I went to the village and got into the back of some uncle Kwan's truck and went for a short drive up a big hill. We drove on a paved road half-way up the hill then hit a dirt road that was barely visible through the thick jungle bush. After driving a ways, we arrived to an area where the sun shined. It was an open field in the middle of a jungle where there were about 20 rows of roofed canopies each stretching about 50 yards long. It looked like something out of a Pablo Escobar film. The thing that got to me was that when we got out we were greeted by about 15 others who handed us a couple large baskets tied on each end of a wood pole. They also handed over hoes, shovels, rakes and other farming like tools. "uncle, what are we doing here?" He said, "this is your first time doing this....mine too." It was a beautiful day and as we hiked further up the hill i only got more curious as to what it was we were doing there. I hiked further up and passed another group of people who all had similar tools as we did. All i could think was, whats going on here. I stopped to have a drink of water and take in the view. I turned around to an amazing view of our village nestled between 2 other large hills and the sea in the background. It was a beautiful view and gave me a perspective I've never seen before. We continued hiking up the hill and arrived to 3 other tombs similar to the one the day before, just smaller. They were the tombs of great, great, great grandmas and grandpas. We cleaned them off and did a similar routine of burning incense, pour tea and baijiu and then burn money for our ancestors.
Day 3, "Jo-san! wake up boy!" The thrid day we went our immediate family went, which included my cousins, niece, brother-in-law, grandma, aunts and uncle. We went to the tomb of my grandpa and uncle. The previous 2 days i wrote off as an interesting learning experience but this day had meaning to it. It was my grandpa and uncle there. I never had the chance to meet them, until this day. It brought me joy to know that they are at rest and have loving family that still remember them and care for them. We did a longer ceremony here, which included a roast pig and firecrackers. It was a good experience being in my father's home-town for Qingming festival. Maybe i can make it down again next year.
I arrived to Zhuhai late Thursday night after a rainy day in Guangzhou. Of course when I went to buy my ticket at the bus station, all of the tickets were sold out. That's just how things go when holidays come around in China. I managed to find a guy who was also going to Zhuhai so we got a black cab and were on our way. I wasn't feeling well that day and just wanted to sleep but then the 20-something guy i was sharing the cab with shared a horror story about black cabs with me. He was in a black cab with 3 other guys, including the driver, in Shenzhen and they all turned on him and robbed him at knife point! So, i couldn't sleep but by the time I arrived to Zhuhai i was ready for bed!
"Jo-san! Wake up boy!" Its 8 in the morning and my uncle wakes me to get ready and head to Samzhou, the village. Shortly after arriving he said, "lets go boy, we're going to a restaurant." Alright. So we started walking towards the village center and took a detour straight into the jungle. "Where we going?" I asked in a confused way. He said "we're going to see some live entertainment" then he giggled a bit. Alright, whatever. So we climb the hill a ways through the jungle and we arrive to a tomb where there are another 50-some-odd other people. I recognized a couple people and my uncle called me over to meet some one new. After jabbering some Cantonese he says to me "this is Uncle Kwan." I say "Ne ho!....uncle, who is that?" He said "that's Uncle Kwan, too." "and her?" "that's auntie Kwan." I stopped asking questions. My uncle then explained to me that the tomb was for great, great, great, great, great, great (plus or minus more greats) grandpa Kwan. I think he passed on 1060 years ago. Very interesting. After we lit some incense, poured some baijiu and tea and burned some money, we all headed to Uncle Kwan's restaurant. We ate good food and drank beer and baijiu at noon.
"Jo-san! wake up boy!" Then next morning my uncle woke me a bit before 8 to head to the village again. So much for a vacation! My uncle and I went to the village and got into the back of some uncle Kwan's truck and went for a short drive up a big hill. We drove on a paved road half-way up the hill then hit a dirt road that was barely visible through the thick jungle bush. After driving a ways, we arrived to an area where the sun shined. It was an open field in the middle of a jungle where there were about 20 rows of roofed canopies each stretching about 50 yards long. It looked like something out of a Pablo Escobar film. The thing that got to me was that when we got out we were greeted by about 15 others who handed us a couple large baskets tied on each end of a wood pole. They also handed over hoes, shovels, rakes and other farming like tools. "uncle, what are we doing here?" He said, "this is your first time doing this....mine too." It was a beautiful day and as we hiked further up the hill i only got more curious as to what it was we were doing there. I hiked further up and passed another group of people who all had similar tools as we did. All i could think was, whats going on here. I stopped to have a drink of water and take in the view. I turned around to an amazing view of our village nestled between 2 other large hills and the sea in the background. It was a beautiful view and gave me a perspective I've never seen before. We continued hiking up the hill and arrived to 3 other tombs similar to the one the day before, just smaller. They were the tombs of great, great, great grandmas and grandpas. We cleaned them off and did a similar routine of burning incense, pour tea and baijiu and then burn money for our ancestors.
Day 3, "Jo-san! wake up boy!" The thrid day we went our immediate family went, which included my cousins, niece, brother-in-law, grandma, aunts and uncle. We went to the tomb of my grandpa and uncle. The previous 2 days i wrote off as an interesting learning experience but this day had meaning to it. It was my grandpa and uncle there. I never had the chance to meet them, until this day. It brought me joy to know that they are at rest and have loving family that still remember them and care for them. We did a longer ceremony here, which included a roast pig and firecrackers. It was a good experience being in my father's home-town for Qingming festival. Maybe i can make it down again next year.
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