Wanna Meet?

Alright, I'm back from vacation. But I've been stuck in meetings this entire week with virtually no breaks. So I'll try to get some posting about my trip with some photos (which I'm not done going through) this weekend. Busy!

Here Kiti Kiti Kiti

Last week, my sister found this Valentine's Day card.

It was from me, addressed to my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Kitagawa. I know she seemed like she was 100 years old at the time, but apparently age was never an issue for us.

Dirty Money

I had an interestingly bizarre though yesterday as I was flushing the toilet. If you accidentally dropped some change into the toilet at home (where no one else would see) after a #2, how much would it have to be for you to stick your hand in to get it? A quarter? A loonie? A toonie?

Obviously, the easy way of doing it would be to get something long to extract the coin(s). But let's assume for the moment you don't have anything but your bare hands, which you're permitted to wash afterwards.

Traveling Much? (Hotels)

AC and I are planning a trip for the Chinese New Year. Without revealing too many details of the trip yet, here are just a few things I'd like to share that might be useful if you're planning your own trip. Got your own tips? Post a comment.

Hotel Bookings: In the past, I have used HotelTravel.com and have been pleased with their prices and reliability thus far. However, for this trip, I found another site Agoda.com, which is providing even better rates and a rewards program. The prices are better than those I've found for the same hotels on HotelTravel.com. I've also looked at Orbitz.com, but I think the Agoda prices are still better. The rewards are credit (monetary value) towards your next booking. The credit is applied to your account 30 days after you check out from a hotel (and expire after 1 year OR at the end of the calendar year, I'm not sure). So, if you're a repeat traveler, the credit can save you more. Since I don't really travel more than once outside of Taiwan each year, I won't consider the rewards - but the listed hotel prices are already cheaper than a lot of other online sites I've used.

And just on hotel bookings, I found this list informative.

1. Special requests. At check-in, ask for a room with a window that can be opened. Cooped up all night with air conditioning or constant heat can be quite confining, and having fresh outside air can often make your stay (except maybe in Beijing). Sometimes a maintenance worker has to be called to open it but the receptionist usually knows which rooms already have adjustable windows.
   
   
2. Location. Don’t get a room by the elevator or ice machine. You will feel the vibrations all night long. It may not be apparent at first, but, believe me, when the lights are out, it will be. One more thing, if the hotel has a disco, make sure you get a room at least two floors away. I can’t tell you how many nights in South America I tried to sleep to the beat.
   
   
3. Stop the free show. First thing, go to your window and close the curtains, especially after dark, because the number of unwitting strip shows that I have been privy to and likely that I have provided myself through the years, is plentiful.
   
   
4. Pass on the cashier. The poorest place to exchange money is at the hotel. Not only will they give you the worst exchange rate possible, they might even charge a commission. Go to the nearest ATM for the rate of the day.
   
   
5. Do not disturb sign. If your room does not have one, call the concierge or make one out of the hotel stationery paper. Without it, the housekeeping crew will drive you bananas in the morning. I have lost count of amount of times a maid has caught me in a naked stumble for the bathroom.
   
   
6. Say Hi to hygiene. Take off your bedspread — the hotels probably clean them as much as the airlines clean their seat covers, which is once annually, if at all. Use a sani-wipe or at least a hand towel and wipe off the TV remote control. I shudder to think what the last occupant might have been doing with it. And I am sure most everyone has heard about the special media report on the scant attention the maid service gives to the room’s glassware. Be sure to clean any kitchen item before using, especially glasses.
   
   
7. Acclimatize the air. Set the air temperature right away, so you can get a feel for it and adjust it accordingly before you call it a night. If you only get to it before you sleep, you could wake to a frosty room or find yourself in a tropical sweat. Either way, your sleep will suffer.
   
   
8. Check the plumbing. Turn on the shower and flush the toilet. If there is a noticeable change in water temperature, keep your guard up, because hot spikes are probable. The number of times that I have been burned in the hotel shower is shocking, or I should say, scalding
   
   
9. Avoid room service. It’s expensive, anti-social, anti-cultural and should be reserved for a special occasion or in desperate times, such as romantic interludes, sickness, sunburn or utter exhaustion.
   
   
10. Television timer. If there is a timer function on the remote control, set it, no matter how alert you feel now. Waking up to a horror or war movie on high volume is a scary experience.
    
    
11. Double take. When leaving, look around the room for things you might have left behind. Put your towels in the bath-tub and your garbage in the trash bin. Not only does it help the maid but you may re-discover that thingamajig you almost left behind.
    
    
12. Concierge caution. By all means ask the concierge for directions and recommendations on dining and entertainment, but be aware that many higher priced places offer bribes in exchange for their suggestions. If they tell you to mention their name to the owner, give it a miss.
    
    
13. Relax. Make some time for yourself. Lie in bed for an extra hour, take an extra long shower, lounge around in your robe. You may miss your family, but I bet you could use a time-out. If you take a break from the daily drama, you will be well rested for your return.
    
    
14. Take but don’t steal. We all know the things in hotel rooms that are considered okay for taking home, like pens and stationery, but other items like remote control batteries, toilet paper, light bulbs and towels are in fact stealing and can be charged directly to your credit card.
    
    
15. Earplugs. Yes, my top in-flight tip is also one of my top hotel tips. It’s very important that you get used to wearing them. Put them by the bedside table. Bring a back-up pair, just in case.
    

Add to this list:

• Water Pressure. Ask for a floor with a water pump. For older buildings, the higher floors might have weaker water pressure.
  
  
• Street Noise. Ask for a room that's on a higher floor to avoid hearing street noise from your window. Kind of goes against the previous tip, but if a higher floor has a water pump, perfect.

Ring in the New Year

This year's New Year's Eve was low-key and private. It was too cold to be outdoors anyway. I went to AC's place in Taipei, made dinner, and we watched Disney's High School Musical 2. As the clock neared midnight, we went upstairs to the rooftop above the 15th floor to watch the Taipei 101 fireworks. With 101 towering all buildings and AC's apartment the highest in its surrounding area we had an unobstructed view of Taipei 101, which is about 20 minutes away. Being further away from the action, we also got great view of not only the 101 display, but also fireworks going off around Taipei City. So, at one time, we could see 6 or 7 lighting displays. And an elevator ride put us right back in the warmth of AC's home.

I hope everyone else had a great countdown too...! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

[Photo taken by EW who was closer to the 101 action. A little blurry though.]

New Era

Dec 22nd. It's been a while since my last posting - the longest I've been away from the blogosphere. But as of today, I'm in my 30's, and it's time to usher in a new era. Well, the new era isn't all that different from the old.

It's been an up and down year. I stayed away from writing during the loss of my mother - although anyone who's kept up with my siblings' blogs would have gotten some updates on that. I spent a couple of months back in Vancouver, working from home and helping where I could with whatever needed to be done. My brother got married.

Anyway, I don't want to try to summarize the last 9-10 months here. Just wanted to say that I'm back (online).

The last few days have been enjoyable, having celebrated Christmas and my birthday with girlfriend, relatives, friends, and coworkers.

Minor significant changes include moving into a larger bachelor suite with a kitchen, working now as a Technical Marketer at the same company, and buying a new digital camera (Panasonic LX3). Doesn't sound like much, I know.

2009's going to be a tough year, but there's no doubt we will find little ways to make us smile. So, let's keep smiling, shall we?

Going, going back, back to Cali, Cali

Arrived in California today. I've got a conference/exhibition to attend tomorrow.

My luggage for this short 4-day trip includes an oversized pop-up booth. The pop-up booth's travel case measures L + W + H = 209 cm, exceeding the maximum allowable limit of 203cm. So, if Eva Air wanted to make a fuss, they could penalize me the cost of 3 luggage pieces (> $300 CAD). Fortunately, while they noticed it was big, they didn't bother measuring its dimensions. Although I got quite a few looks as a wheeled around that massive luggage.

Hint to those taking long-haul flights... request that you don't get seated in the first few rows behind the "baby row" (where the young parents with their crying babies are seated). I was behind a row of 3 babies. 3 babies do a lot of crying over a 10 hour flight. Fortunately, I had the foresight to bring my earplugs, so I wasn't annoyed by them nearly as much as the people around me, I bet.

After landing at SFO, I rented a car and drove to Fremont, CA. Chevy Impala. Big car, big trunk - perfect for my oversized luggage. Checked into my Holiday Inn - got a big room with a kitchen. Drove around the surrounding area, just to see what's around. It looks like Langley - with all the outlet type stores.

I had a Wendy's chicken club burger... just because I haven't had Wendy's in a long time, and because it was just around the corner from my hotel. But what's funny is that the guy behind me (in our two-person queue) ordered his meal in Spanish. Because he, and all the people behind the Wendy's counter were Hispanic. Not sure if I should be surprised.

Anyway, a pretty normal work day tomorrow. Driving down to San Jose after lunch for the conference. 3 hours on Wednesday, 3 hours on Thursday. Pretty short, and guaranteed to be uneventful.

Happy Chinese New Year~!

恭喜發財!
Happy Chinese New Year!

First off, I'm typing this blog wearing fleece gloves because it's just so dang cold here in Hsinbchu. So, ther may bre spelloing mistgakesa, and theyt're not intentional./ But just to prove to anyone who suspects that it's esay to type with glooves on, that it's not.

It's a mere 17 dewgrees here in my office - pretty darned cold. Everyone's wearing their jackets or extra layers as we bare the cold wind current coming from China.

To pass the Chinese New Year holidays, I was with my sister and university frioend BC (visiting from Tokyo) on the East coast of Taiwan - Hualien County in particular. It was warmner out there/.

Just wanted to sayt Happy CNY. I'll post abouyt my holidfay travels. They aren't that interesting anyway.

Cuts

(Last, last Thursday's news)

I knocked over an empty glass and it shattered on my desk and onto the office carpet. When I picked up the bottom half of the cup (laying on its side), the weight of the base turned the cup in my hand, slicing a 1.5cm cut into my palm with its jagged top edge. My first thought was "F**k, how am I going to play in the foosball tournament this weekend?"

Went to the hospital emergency room, and lay down on a bed with my arm straight outwards ready to get stitched. I told the doctor "Can I raise my head to watch (you stitch my wound?" He replied, "Sure, if you want." I put my head down while the anesthetic was injected, wincing at the pain. Then the doctor lightly wiped my wound and asked me if it hurt. I said it did just a little. Then he starts rubbing it really hard, wiping it clean. And with the way he ruthlessly rubbed back and forth, I said "Uhh... I don't think I want to look any more."

It took about 5 minutes to give me 3 stitches, as seen in the photograph.

---

That Saturday, I still played in the annual Taiwan Foosball Tournament. Unfortunately, I couldn't really play to win, so I played to have fun and be a part of the event. I know a good number of foosball players in Taiwan (at least from Taipei, Hsinchu, and Taichung).

After a week of showering with my hand raised in a plastic bag, and bi-daily cleaning and dressing my cut, I had the stitches removed on Friday. I'm still showering with my hand in a plastic bag, but I don't really need to. I just want the wound to be more or less completely healed before I subject it to water. Should need just a couple more days.

End of update. Go out and play now.

Absent what?

I just put on a sock, and then I was looking left, right, and around me for the other sock. Then I found it... on my other foot.

I haven't blogged in a while, have been busy. I hope everyone's doing well out there. I'll try to blog a little more when I find the time.