lolo on the gogo

Taking a mini journey of epic proportions. Or, otherwise known as a long walk in China.

[waltersjen]

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Late night feelings

[emptty13]

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sleep better

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My man the mangrove snapper fish. #eatchinesetucson

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Pickling begins. Garlic, red onions, green tea #eat #eatchinesetucson

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The other day we went to Caishi Park.  A place dedicated to scholarly and poetic works amongst some of the best Chinese Classic writers.

I grew up being forced to memorize Li Bai poems by my Chinese teachers, appreciating it in hindsight.  Li Bai, a drunkard and brilliant poet lived during the Tang dynasty.  During this Golden Age of China, he befriended Dufu and they would both go on to write thousands of poems, both now translated into hundreds of languages.

My papa grew up and lived his childhood where Li Bai ultimately died.  The story goes that on a wine filled night, he went by the waterfront of the Yangtze and gazing upon the reflection  of the moon, grasped for it and fell into the river.  The moon, wine, friendship, and chivalry were many the subject of his poems.

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She is very understandably angry.

[deborahchi]

Installation at an art gallery in Hangzhou, China. And yes, this is a kind of a #selfie and #tbt (at Hangzhou, China)

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This is where I’ve been staying in Maanshan at my half sister’s old place.  Its great to have a breather from huge high rise buildings and never ending rail expansions.

My pops grew up not far from here.  Tomorrow I’ll be visiting where he was born and then raised by his grandparents.

Going through some old photos while doing laundry (gah! The many uses of bamboo!!) and found these two pictures I’ve never seen.  One of my brother and I at a time in life where I actually thought I’d catch up to his height (6ft1ish2 eventually never occurred) and another of my sis and her late husband.

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PANDA!

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PANDAPANDAPANDA

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Over half way through this trip and loving the little moments.  Walking around, sleeping and reading in the train, listening....listening.  Sometimes the best part of traveling alone is that you just hear and watch and take in everything.  Sometimes you go for hours without saying a word.  It can be a struggle being quiet in our buzzing world, traveling to places in the world you’ve never been is a good lesson in it.

Next up, visiting some über lazy panda brethren.

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So it starts out with my Uncle taking me to this foot massage place.  Not only did he work on some serious pressure points (my face was tingling) but he also removed my callouses.  Now for those of you in the service industry, or just my fellow heel wearers, this can be a daunting task.  However, now I can say for the first time, I know what a foot straight edge is.  With clean tools and total precision, he not only did the fore mentioned, he also clipped nails and all with tremendous accuracy.  This all with what he called in Chinese, a pedicure knife.  It is like trusting a man with a straight edge at your throat.

The following day, I was blown away by a blind massage therapist called Xiaopang (translate:littlefatty). Round like Totoro and with a soft smile, he set me straight in a two hour long session. Snaps, pops and all.  Probably the deepest tissue I have yet experienced.  He chuckled and said, “you have a foreigner’s body.” of which I responded, “mmmffffftttttttbbbbb.”  Appropriate.

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Shenzhen for me is like waking one morning having never eaten anything and someone blows a whistle sayin’ GO!

I am happily full of food.

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That beautiful mix of the old and the new in Hong Kong is inescapable.  I just arrived in Shenzhen and its a whole different story.  The new is all around.  The youthfulness, the giant neon and LED lit shopping centers (just to clarify, there are large shopping centers in all Chinese major cities...however the sheer massiveness of these take the cake), and the vibrant life of a city built on tech, business and commerce.  It is the Silicon Valley of the mainland.  Stay tuned for pictures of Shenzhen.

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Walked the Dragonback trail with my buddy Lauren.  It was beautiful and exhausting.  Testing our limitations and weariness while jetlagged and silly, it ended up being a truly wonderful experience.  I mean, what can bound you better to a pal than sweat and tiredness and a the willingness to press on.  Tomorrow will be our last day until she presses on to Japan, and I continue to the mainland.  Ending with a beautiful night time cityscape...pretty epic. 

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My first day in Hong Kong, I decided to take a walk with no map, no GPS...and just get lost.  I am staying in the Chungking Mansion and for those of you who have seen Chungking Express by Wong Kar Wai, you’ll remember the markets, and Wang Faye being the bored stall girl with the Mamas & the Papas playing in the background.

I am constantly amazed at the rate of things being built in China.  As I stared across the water at these buildings strolling along, I couldn’t help but think of the rate of industrialization in China and the impact on the people and environment.

Of course then I walked back to the street, turned the corner to the first hole in the wall restaurant I ate at and saw this ridiculously hot ass Lamborghini Aventador parked outside. A Hongkongese girl in hiphop gear and high heeled kicks jumped in and sped off. I love you Hong Kong.

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Awe…