bosphorus, where east first met west

after spending two intense days with my new italian family - inside the swissotel with an invitingly glorious view of the bosphorus, I finally got a take in a breath or two of Turkish air on Saturday afternoon, wandering around the old part of town, into the famous blue mosque that looks so much like something out of a fairy tale, where I half expected to see Rapunzal let her hair down..

one grand bazzaar and a shisha later, I was beginning to forget that I came to Istanbul for business - it helped that my peers were real people who like me, have a crazy appetite for life! Downtown in Taxim by the Mahmara, the traffic was buzzing with life at 3pm or 3am, where the snow doesn't dampen the spirits. And one brief hour in the Museum of Archeology takes you back into time, even before the Otterman, Constantinople and Alexander the Great, when the land was known as the Byzantine Empire.

one night in dubai, one week ago

from the arabian gulf, into the dubai creek where trade began ~ now the old town of a new city. One hour drive south, along the coast, past prime private real estates, you will see Burj-Al Arab: epitome of modern-day dubai architecture, ultra sleek glass & steel, with its distinct coastal-ethnic style. Venture on to one of the palm-shaped man-made islands, and you witness the magic of money. Alas, one hour east, you will see what it was like just 30 years ago - endless miles of desert.. an amazing city, built by men with vision and imagination; which will undoubtedly will go down in history, as the metropolis representing the Golden Age of the UAE civilization.
driving into the sunset towards the Jumeirah beach, we found the Souk Madinat quite by accident - which is best described as the Xintiandi of Dubai (souk means market). I finally bought myself a dishdasha ("it's for men!" I heard the alarmed sales girl whisper) - a romantic white robe traditionally worn by the Arabic men. And driving back north along the coast, we had the good fortune to be cruising at snail's pace, alongside jubilant locals who were out in the streets, waving their national flags, hanging out from their cars and doing the victory dance - all these from winning the Gulf Cup. A first it seems; and a priviledge to be a part of.

sunday brunch in hong kong

If i hadn't had so many good experiences with the customer service people in the past, I would most certainly have made a scene 2 thursdays ago at hsbc. Fortunately Jason & Kitagawa kept their cool & a sense of humour until we made it to the still-smoking-permitted Armani Bar (which Simone promised to take us in Milan but hadn't... humphh!). Then as usual, our eyes were bigger than our stomaches at Lei Yue Mun - I think lobster sashima came out of my ears afterwards. And as promised, 2gg's apartment has a view of the open sea - but lo & behold, those posh apartments at Cyberport have talking elevators which trapped Meng & myself in twilight zone, conversing with a digital recording of a women's spooky voice LET ME OUTA HERE!! NOW!!! (pleeeeaase 2gg, move back to the comforting mid-levels where we can walk up to the peak or down to lankwaifung)

Jordan

"A ray of hope flickers in the sky
A tiny star lights up way up high
All across the land dawns a brand new morn
This comes to pass when a child is born

A silent wish sails the seven seas
The winds of change whisper in the trees
And the walls of doubt crumble tossed and torn
This comes to pass, when a child is born

A rosy hue settles all around
You got the feel, you're on solid ground
For a spell or two no one seems forlorn
This comes to pass, when a child is born"

Jordan Tan (Jan 9, 2007) , sister of godson Ryan (Jan 7, 2004) and baby girl to Linda & Richard

From the name of a river flowing between the countries of Jordan and Israel. The river's name in Hebrew is יַרְדֵן (Yarden), and it is derived from יָרַד (yarad) meaning "descend" or "flow down". John the Baptist baptized Jesus Christ in its waters, and it was adopted as a personal name after crusaders brought back water from the river to baptize their children.

happy birthday to me!

bang!

another new year's celebration with 2gg! as usual, she was a superstar from the moment she landed in PVG - always happy to trot along doing this & that, always loaded with amusing stories, always game for mid-afternoon champagne & always jolly to meet new friends.
this time, jennie & sophie came along with jolyn and for one night and we even had cousin heng & may with connie... just imagine, women from 20something to 30something to 40something to 50something to 60something creating havoc from guyi to jz!

new year's eve at glam bar was... pretty perfect! i think martha had more fun than arnold - but then again, she always does!

resolutions get harder every year for me... offer my opinion only when asked for it! which means this is my only outlet to air my royal views! thank god for blogs!

finally, the most impt event over the weekend, 2gg bonded with her god-daughter & her little brother k2.. and after she left... this is the sms i got:

"Actually missing them a tini tini bit"

black-out

6pm hh on thu with brenda... nothing unusual... 1 glass of red wine... massive download... nothing unusual... 3 glasses of bacardi coke... chatting with random people... nothing unusual... 10pm dropped off by brenda... nothing unusual...

6am woke up in bed with ZERO recollection of anything after 8pm... huh? complete black-out?! what was that about??? super scary stuff!

thank my lucky stars the girls at velvet kept my computer bag safe for me!