Today was the first day of the tradeshow. Who did I get to meet? A businessman from Manila. Man, it was so refreshing to be able to bust out in Tagalog with someone. It made me think about the Philippines, too. But that's another story for another day. LoL.
Yesterday, I got to see Ken Chu's video on MTV. It's a sign! LoL. We also went to Causeway Bay and checked out the electronic stores in Times Square. Seriously, I wanted to buy everything. It's techie geekland, man! Sadly though, I didn't get to buy my digital camera because believe it or not, it's cheaper in the U.S. Weird, right? Then, I went to check out my English-subtitled Korean videos. None of them had English subs! Talk about disappointment! That's two out of two strikes!
While on the way back to the hotel, The Boss made a comment about going dancing. I said, "But I need to go to a club with young people!" Can you blame me? I need to take care of my lovelife, married people! And hanging out with married, middle-aged people isn't exactly helping. It's bad enough that I'm always around men which leaves me no chance to be approached by guys my age. Hmph!
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Monday, May 9, 2005
Hong Kong Day 1
I swear, I'm in love with Hong Kong. It's like Manila, but cleaner and less chaotic!
We just came back from Stanley Market. The curvy roads reminded me of Baguio. Sadly, I ended up not buying anything. I'm saving my dough for a digital camera and my DVDs.
We went to the IFC Mall. Ahh, what a nice mall. I swear, Asia malls are so nice and huge! I saw way too many yuppies that caught my eye, but of course, they're all dressed up, while I'm in my casuals. It's pouring down rain here, but I'm in my skirt. HeHe!
I love my hotel room, too! It's so nice and simple. I want my apartment/house to have this kind of ambiance!
Wish you guys were here!
We just came back from Stanley Market. The curvy roads reminded me of Baguio. Sadly, I ended up not buying anything. I'm saving my dough for a digital camera and my DVDs.
We went to the IFC Mall. Ahh, what a nice mall. I swear, Asia malls are so nice and huge! I saw way too many yuppies that caught my eye, but of course, they're all dressed up, while I'm in my casuals. It's pouring down rain here, but I'm in my skirt. HeHe!
I love my hotel room, too! It's so nice and simple. I want my apartment/house to have this kind of ambiance!
Wish you guys were here!
Sunday, May 8, 2005
Cramped
San Francisco to Hong Kong: 14 hours = not fun. Although, surprisingly, I survived despite the cramped conditions in the economy section. I even managed to sleep for a couple of hours! I’m quite proud of that accomplishment!
First impression of Hong Kong? Beautiful! Marry me, Ken. Marry me now! We can live in Hong Kong! LoL.
Work starts tomorrow already. Bring it on!
First impression of Hong Kong? Beautiful! Marry me, Ken. Marry me now! We can live in Hong Kong! LoL.
Work starts tomorrow already. Bring it on!
Monday, May 2, 2005
Looking Good in the Neighborhood
At work, I pulled out my HK/China itinerary and did a "clothing inventory". It turns out that I'll have 7 business suit days and only 5 casual days. !Que horrible! (Why do I know more Spanish than Mandarin and Japanese combined?!)
Since I wanted to de-stress myself, I went to Target today. What did I buy? A set of make-up brushes. I don't know why from time-to-time, I spend money on things that I don't know how to use! Anyway, I think I'm going to try this make-up thing again. On Wednesday, I plan to drop by the mall and beg one of those make-up counter people to teach me how to put on make-up. That's what they do, right? They don't just sell make-up, they actually take pity on people like myself, right?
Then, there's the casual clothes thing. I must admit that often times, I look quite gusgusin in my casual clothes. Hey, comfortable to me means sneakers and the last time I checked, jeans and a crewneck shirt go well with sneakers. Anyway, so I'm thinking of buying some nice clothes for those after business hours. But how does one go walking around anywhere in open-toed sandals with white slacks and a nice blouse? Plus, when you're haggling for prices, you don't want to look rich either. *And* let's not forget that it's summer in Asia. Why put on nice clothes if you're just going to sweat in them? But I guess I'm forgetting that I'll be in Hong Kong...where the likelihood of me finding an English-speaking Asian boy is quite high. Do I just wear nice clothes, grab my laptop, and sit my butt every evening in the hotel lobby, and bat my eyelashes; or do I put on my gusgusin gear and take care of my agenda of buying my Korean DVDs and digital camera? Yes, these are issues that I actually spend time thinking about! HaHa!
Since I wanted to de-stress myself, I went to Target today. What did I buy? A set of make-up brushes. I don't know why from time-to-time, I spend money on things that I don't know how to use! Anyway, I think I'm going to try this make-up thing again. On Wednesday, I plan to drop by the mall and beg one of those make-up counter people to teach me how to put on make-up. That's what they do, right? They don't just sell make-up, they actually take pity on people like myself, right?
Then, there's the casual clothes thing. I must admit that often times, I look quite gusgusin in my casual clothes. Hey, comfortable to me means sneakers and the last time I checked, jeans and a crewneck shirt go well with sneakers. Anyway, so I'm thinking of buying some nice clothes for those after business hours. But how does one go walking around anywhere in open-toed sandals with white slacks and a nice blouse? Plus, when you're haggling for prices, you don't want to look rich either. *And* let's not forget that it's summer in Asia. Why put on nice clothes if you're just going to sweat in them? But I guess I'm forgetting that I'll be in Hong Kong...where the likelihood of me finding an English-speaking Asian boy is quite high. Do I just wear nice clothes, grab my laptop, and sit my butt every evening in the hotel lobby, and bat my eyelashes; or do I put on my gusgusin gear and take care of my agenda of buying my Korean DVDs and digital camera? Yes, these are issues that I actually spend time thinking about! HaHa!
Friday, April 29, 2005
Survivor
I'm back! I survived my first business trip! Hooray!
Yesterday, I went to Brugge. I had special permission from The Boss to miss the last day of the tradeshow and so I did. This was my first real solo adventure outside of the country; I only had myself to rely on to figure out how to get from one place to another and back. The result? I got lost. HaHa!
I took the wrong Metro (subway) so I ended up going the wrong way and had to ride it all the way back to where I started plus two more stops. You know, it was then that I realized that knowing English is really a powerful thing. As long as you know English, I think you'll always find your way to where you need to go. After a quick talk with a Metro attendant, I was on my way to the train station.
At the train station, I relied on myself to figure out what to do. Who knew I was smart enough to figure out where to buy the ticket and which platform to go on! LoL. After an hour on the train (sitting next to youngins on a fieldtrip, Pen!), I got to Brugge successfully.
The first thing I ran into was Michaelangelo's "Madonna and Child," his only masterpiece outside of Italy. The church where this is located is great in itself. I can't believe that churches could have so many religious masterpieces. I swear, the churches in Manila and Seattle are so plain compared to the ones in Europe!
I didn't have a map with me so I just wandered around until I found the next tourist-y thing. After walking endlessly and ending up in so many back alleys, I found my way to the center of it all: the market place. I gasped upon seeing it. The Grand Place in Brussels is nothing compared to the one in Brugge. The architecture is amazing; it was vibrant with all the flags; and it was lively with all the people. Simply beautiful!
After eating frites for lunch, buying souvenirs, and seeing some more churches (they get old after awhile, and yes, that was a pun!), I started heading home. Well, sort of. I got lost again. Seriously, the skinny European streets all look alike and trying to memorize the names aren't that helpful because they're usually long. I wandered for maybe 45 minutes and found my way to what I called "downtown Brugge" where all the restaurants and hotels were. I finally gave up being my own radar and went into a hotel and asked where the train station was. The front desk lady was nice enough not to roll her eyes at me and told me that I just needed to follow the street in front of the hotel.
After walking forever, I almost passed the train station. Thank God, I turned back and checked it out first before walking another mile and a half. There was a point in time when I thought I would have to cry my little eyes out because I had no idea where the hell I needed to go to catch the train. And I thought backpacking in Europe would be easy!
Once the train arrived, it was easy as pie. When I saw the Hilton after hiking up the subway stairs, I breathed a sigh of relief. Being lost in a foreign country is a bit scary. I don't know how non-English-speaking people travel the world. If anyone cares to enlighten me, please don't hesitate.
Anyway, we all gathered for dinner again to celebrate the success of the tradeshow. There was some drama that came up which I shall talk about in the next few days. I actually cried in the hotel room before going to bed last night. Tsk. Tsk. Let's just say that I'm having doubts about what my position requires, most of which were not listed in the job posting when I applied. How difficult it is to be a businesswoman!
For now, the important thing is that I'm home...for one week. HeHe.
Yesterday, I went to Brugge. I had special permission from The Boss to miss the last day of the tradeshow and so I did. This was my first real solo adventure outside of the country; I only had myself to rely on to figure out how to get from one place to another and back. The result? I got lost. HaHa!
I took the wrong Metro (subway) so I ended up going the wrong way and had to ride it all the way back to where I started plus two more stops. You know, it was then that I realized that knowing English is really a powerful thing. As long as you know English, I think you'll always find your way to where you need to go. After a quick talk with a Metro attendant, I was on my way to the train station.
At the train station, I relied on myself to figure out what to do. Who knew I was smart enough to figure out where to buy the ticket and which platform to go on! LoL. After an hour on the train (sitting next to youngins on a fieldtrip, Pen!), I got to Brugge successfully.
The first thing I ran into was Michaelangelo's "Madonna and Child," his only masterpiece outside of Italy. The church where this is located is great in itself. I can't believe that churches could have so many religious masterpieces. I swear, the churches in Manila and Seattle are so plain compared to the ones in Europe!
I didn't have a map with me so I just wandered around until I found the next tourist-y thing. After walking endlessly and ending up in so many back alleys, I found my way to the center of it all: the market place. I gasped upon seeing it. The Grand Place in Brussels is nothing compared to the one in Brugge. The architecture is amazing; it was vibrant with all the flags; and it was lively with all the people. Simply beautiful!
After eating frites for lunch, buying souvenirs, and seeing some more churches (they get old after awhile, and yes, that was a pun!), I started heading home. Well, sort of. I got lost again. Seriously, the skinny European streets all look alike and trying to memorize the names aren't that helpful because they're usually long. I wandered for maybe 45 minutes and found my way to what I called "downtown Brugge" where all the restaurants and hotels were. I finally gave up being my own radar and went into a hotel and asked where the train station was. The front desk lady was nice enough not to roll her eyes at me and told me that I just needed to follow the street in front of the hotel.
After walking forever, I almost passed the train station. Thank God, I turned back and checked it out first before walking another mile and a half. There was a point in time when I thought I would have to cry my little eyes out because I had no idea where the hell I needed to go to catch the train. And I thought backpacking in Europe would be easy!
Once the train arrived, it was easy as pie. When I saw the Hilton after hiking up the subway stairs, I breathed a sigh of relief. Being lost in a foreign country is a bit scary. I don't know how non-English-speaking people travel the world. If anyone cares to enlighten me, please don't hesitate.
Anyway, we all gathered for dinner again to celebrate the success of the tradeshow. There was some drama that came up which I shall talk about in the next few days. I actually cried in the hotel room before going to bed last night. Tsk. Tsk. Let's just say that I'm having doubts about what my position requires, most of which were not listed in the job posting when I applied. How difficult it is to be a businesswoman!
For now, the important thing is that I'm home...for one week. HeHe.
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