Hey guys,

So i had a fever for the last couple of days. I am ok but just really choked because everyone is freaking out and won't let me outside. That means no shopping and no sightseeing. sucky.

Hong Kong so far is great! lots to see and lots to be seen. I really like it here. something homey and famailiar about it. could be because i am "hong kongese" (mh, apparently that is what we are called). or its all the tv series i have watched.

I have also come to realize that i have a lot of relatives. I always knew that but seeing them in person is different. I got to see my grandma. She is so cute. i love her to pieces. I am getting to know my aunt and uncle who are so giving and caring. My cousin is the sweetest one of them all. He took care of me while i am sick and even waited with me at the hospital to see a doctor. I feel so bad because he went the distance for me and now he's caught my cold! :(

Other neat observation: I recognized the park that my mother and brother had taken a picture in more than 20 years ago. I so did a double take because i recognized the McDonalds behind which is still here today. it was so trippy as i have only seen the place in pictures.

anyways gotta run. more later from super hot Hong Kong.

(hee hee always wanted to say that.)

Greetings from Shanghai!!! What an interesting big huge city. Have so much to say but i will concentrate on one thing for today and that is driving in Shanghai is OMG!!! I am absolutely in awe of the drivers here. They are soooo different than what we do here and are so experienced. A two lane road has three lanes of cars (one lane that goes over the dotted whites). Our driver (actually all drivers here) can cut across four lanes to catch an exit within a metre of space in a jammed pack highway. At one point we even squeezed (and i mean squeezed) between two vans and i can literally reach out and touch somebody. The drivers here ALL know their cars so well i am so impressed.

Crossing the street though is a real challenge. Its just like the episode on Seinfield about the video game(froggers?)where he moves back and forth across the lanes to get to the other side of the road. two steps forward, one step back. We crossed at a marked pedestrian crosswalk at one point and all the cars honked at us because they wanted us to move away asap and i am not talking Toronto here. Being in a car and weaving across traffic is also like playing grand theft auto. You are dodging other cars and objects in the road and honking at all the bicycles and ppl to tell them you are coming through. Despite all these things, i felt completely safe in their car. its the funniest feeling. the ride was smooth and i even wanted to nap in the middle of going to Suzhou.

The pedestrian also have amazing guts. they are obviously in our way (smack middle of the highway) and to a north american, doing s/t totally dangerous. however, when we honk like a mad man, they don't even flitch. i guess they are so conditioned so it doesn't matter but still. wow. others would cross and stop in between rows of cars to wait for a good opportunity to cross. they are so close to the car!!

Its just amazing. did i say that already? i am in total awe and thinks that these commuters are super heros. So impressed.

tomorrow: how shanghai is such a beautiful and cultured city and the hottest plane i have ever been on.

cb is gone. yay. hope its for forever. i guess some people are born evil. good riddance.

on to an unrelated thought, today i realized that being human is hard. being a woman is even harder. we have to deal with so much emotion that sometimes i don't even know how i do it.

anyways, i hope that the next five weeks will be good for my soul.

will keep you posted. :)

4 more dayz baby, 4 more dayz. muuuhahaaa ;)

ps. Happy Birthday, D and F!!

This is a real airport. (and this is proof)

This is really a man naked.

and this is just plain cute.

ewwwwwwwwwwwww...think my fish is going balls.

I was in the bathroom washing up this morning and heard one lone crow crowing. crow crow crow. All normal.

Then i heard another join in. Crow-crow, crow-crow, crow-crow.

Then i heard ANOTHER one join in. Crow-crow-crow, crow-crow-crow, crow-crow-crow.

It was followed by another, and another, and another.

There must have been like HUNDREDS of crows twirling around (not exaggerating) and they were all crowing like there was no tommorrow. I thought maybe there was an earthquake coming (like when animals act all weird). It was really odd and the most annoying sound. [onk-onk-onk-onk-onk-onk x 100]

btw, how do you spell the sound that crows make?

Everytime I rub my nose with my hands I notice a very distinctive smell. I am not sure what it is. I can't say it smells good nor does it smell bad. I discussed it with my colleague during a pre-meeting chit-chat and he told me it could be my soap. However, it doesn't quite smell like the soap either. What is it? does your hands smell?