February 5, 2006

• …a new beginning…
  
  Wow, the Year of the Cock has passed and now we’re already into the Year of the Dog! Happy Chinese New Year everyone!
  
  I’ve been meaning to write an entry for quite some time now, but I just never really found the time. I know, I keep starting all of my entries off by saying this because there’s always such a huge gap between them, but I really do try to be more consistent, it’s just that the end of the year and all of January was quite a hectic time for me. So here’s the skinny on what’s been going on. Warning, this is NOT a short entry…
  
  So I’m no longer living with those dirty, rude, drug-addicted, and simply tragic pieces of trailer trash anymore. If you never got to meet them, consider yourself lucky, and if you were unfortunate to have ever crossed paths with them while visiting me, my sincerest apologies for all the crap they put you through–this especially applies to Chicken Wing and Shirley. Anyhow, I officially moved out on January 17th and have been at peace ever since then. The bitch tried to double dip and make me pay for the whole month’s rent even though she had immediately found a new roommate who moved in immediately after I moved out, but we finally settled it and I got my whole deposit back after threatening to sue her in small claims court. Ugh, I’m so glad to be rid of that utterly stressful and tragic part of my life. Noodle’s the new roomie now and we’re still not quite completely settled in yet, but we’re getting there. The important part is that I’m out of that crazy house and sharing my very own apartment again–something that I can actually call home. We still have to get a futon for the living room and a TV stand, but our kitchen and bathroom is pretty complete. My room still has to be organized a little more, but I’m almost there. Hopefully it’ll be done by this weekend, before I have to start my new job. Speaking of which, I got a new job!
  
  I’d been mulling over the idea of getting a new job for quite some time now, but it didn’t really hit me until I actually got calls for interviews. I had looked at job postings before, but never really made a conscious effort to apply to any of them. The way I figured it, I knew that I’ll be applying to law/grad school in a year’s time, so why bother looking for a new job when I already had a safe and secure job? Blue and Gold Fleet offered me great benefits, a decent wage, and a fair amount of flexibility–during the off peak season this is, so it just seemed to work out; I’d be able to study for my LSAT’s and GREs without worrying about bringing work home, it was a cool and chill environment to work in, and again, the benefits were great. Needless to say, it was quite difficult to finally admit to myself that I needed to move on. The fact of the matter was that there was nowhere else to go at Blue and Gold. It wasn’t my career, and although everything else seemed to be accommodating, it just wasn’t what I wanted. I wanted to be challenged, I wanted to feel as though I’m really making a difference, I wanted something that was more career-oriented, I wanted my Berkeley degrees to mean something, even if it meant taking a pay-cut. Fortunately, the latter didn’t wind up being the case. Anyhow, to make a long story short, I’m now a legal assistant working for Berry Appelman and Leiden, a corporate immigration law firm. My first day will be this coming Monday. Man, what a trip, I’ll be turning in my tourism industry Blue and Gold uniform of 3 years in for the corporate suit and tie. I also won’t be driving into work anymore either as parking isn’t provided by the firm, but fortunately, the N Judah is just a block away from our new place. It’s about a half hour ride into downtown each way, so I figure I’ll finally get the chance to just read on my commute to work. I can’t wait to try public transportation, haha!
  
  As for my love life, things are going wonderfully. After my break up with Chris, I was left with somewhat of a bitter aftertaste about the whole love and relationship thing. I wasn’t quite sure if I’d ever find it again, let alone want it if, indeed, I did find it, but I guess someone up there likes me because I was given another chance at love. In September, Paul came into my life and gave me the opportunity to get to know him better. I knew there was something different and special about him the moment I first met him and he snubbed me, haha. Apparently, we had heard of each other before, but never really got to meet each other until the STD party in late September. Whatever the reasons for our paths crossing, I’m entirely grateful for it. He is an incredibly selfless and beautiful person whom I am incredibly fortunate to call my boyfriend. Ever since the day I met him, I’ve been both sad and ecstatic–sad because I cherish every moment I get to spend with him and I don’t want it to end, and ecstatic because I know that with each new day, there’s a new adventure in store for both of us. From carpooling with him to work to just cuddling together at night, every moment, every touch, and every feeling is one that I wish I could capture so as to savour it all over again. On October 14th, my soul awoke again, and it has been thriving ever since. I still can’t believe that he’s real, but he’s awakened all of my senses and if this is a dream, please don’t wake me up; I’m addicted and, more importantly, I’m in love…
  
  Honeymoon in Hong Kong
  
  Paul and I spent a magnificent week in Hong Kong for Chinese New Year. He had never been before, so I thought it would be a good opportunity for him to see the place that had given me so much.
  
  Pre-departure pics – Chillin’ in the Gold Lounge
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Day 1: We stayed in Tsim Sha Tsui at the Taiwan Hotel in Chunking Mansions and it was nice and quaint. It wasn’t a five star hotel or anything, far from it as a matter of fact, but it was cozy and the price was good. The first day was kind of rocky. It started off on a good note, but ended on kind of a sour note. We started out the day by visiting the Po Lin Monastery and the Big Buddha on Lantau Island. We had a traditional vegetarian meal and paid homage to the 100+ Buddhist and Taoist deities. It was after our trip though that things began to get ugly. When we tried to unlock the door to our hotel room, we were shocked to find that someone else was in our room. They had switched us into another room without telling us and we weren’t sure if our luggage and personal belongings were all there or not. We tried to get answers, but apparently some Chinese tour group was having issues with their reservations, so the manager made us wait until he could rectify their situation. He asked for two more minutes after having made us wait for about 15, and then the typical American came out of me. We started demanding he take us to our new room so we could check on things, but he continued to be dismissive. Eventually, he showed us to our new room, but we were already boiling, so we just wanted to leave and get a refund. He said he apologized already and couldn’t give us the refund, but we kept at it, and eventually, his wife came in and appeased us by telling us that she would take care of it in the morning. When morning came, we packed everything up and went to check out, but she said that she didn’t have the money yet, but that we could pick it up later on in the afternoon. We agreed to come back later to pick up the money and left to find an internet cafe so we could find new accommodations. Our efforts were fruitless though. It was the Chinese New Year break, and everyone and their mama was in town and occupying all the cheap hotels leaving only the $200+/per night hotels vacant. We quickly rushed back to the Taiwan Hotel and begged them to let us keep our reservations. The wife was incredibly sweet and understanding and she let us keep our reservations without rubbing it in our face. She apologized for having stressed us out and made sure that the remainder of our stay was a pleasant one.
  
  
  Paul in the MTR
  
  
  (from left to right) Paul, Buddha, me
  
  
  It’s good to take time out to smell the flowers
  
  
  That’s right, don’t mess with us, the Big Buddha’s got our back!
  
  
  Lost in a heavenly potpourri
  
  
  Paying my respects and praying for a wonderful new year
  
  
  The weather gods were good to us on this vacation
  
  
  Day 2: Lamma Island was our next destination. We hiked around the island and finished off the day with a dinner of fresh seafood overlooking the bay.
  
  
  Lamma Island
  
  
  At the beach on Lamma, Paul ponders about the next steps for MigotoFoto
  
  
  Enjoying the sunset on the beach
  
  
  mine!
  
  
  Dorks x 2!
  
  
  Haha, I love my fish!
  
  
  Mmm…shrimp!
  
  
  And the winner of the Karate mussel-eating contest is…
  
  
  Day 3: Hong Kong Disneyland. OMG, I know we were in Asia and all, but geez, this place was ridiculous! There were so many freakin’ Asian people there, I swore I saw people carrying rice cookers with them. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my people, and I love amusement parks, but I never want to be caught during their eclipse. These people were utterly rude, loud, and pushy. They just didn’t understand the concept of patience or what a line was. In the queues for the rides, people never really paid much attention to the fact that there was an orderly line that had formed. They just assumed that those guard railings were there for people to lean on, so they squeeze and pushed their way through any crevice available to get to the front. In the food court, they were just as obnoxious as they pushed forward every time a person was finished at the counter. I got so fed up with being pushed in the back that I started yelling back at all of them to just back off and stop pushing. I screamed it all in English, so I don’t think they understood what I said, but they got the point. Geez people, GET SOME PATIENCE PLEASE! Anyhow, so yeah, HK Disney: the lines were long, the people obnoxious, but the company–couldn’t be beat!
  
  
  
  On the way to Disneyland!
  
  
  Welcome to Hong Kong Disney!
  
  
  The Magical Kingdom
  
  
  The Sharpshooter
  
  
  I let him win, I swear!
  
  
  Rest break!
  
  
  Teacups!
  
  
  More teacups!
  
  
  Space Mountain
  
  
  There was a line queueing up for this photo spot, I swear!
  
  
  Haha, Paul: the balloon man!
  
  
  Exhausted from the craziness!
  
  
  Day 4: Sai Kung. This is one of my favorite places in Hong Kong. It’s far removed from the hectic atmosphere that is Hong Kong city life, and is just so peaceful. We rented a saipan to take us out to one of the outlying islands for two hours and we just relaxed on the beach. Afterwards, we had fresh seafood again, this time for lunch.
  
  
  Blinded by the sun
  
  
  Yup, that’s fresh seafood alright!
  
  
  Hmm, which one is gonna be our lunch???
  
  
  Ngoh bei neih yat baak maahn la (I’ll give you $100 HK)
  
  
  Wheee! Let’s go for a ride!
  
  
  
  
  
  Sunbathing
  
  
  It’s the little things in life that make a world of difference
  
  
  Paul: “OMG, he’s making me fat with all this eating!”
  
  
  Day 5: Mongkok and Ladies Market. We didn’t get to do much shopping while we were there, but we did get to explore some of the touristy shopping areas. The main focus of our attention though still remained on the food, haha. Hui Lau Shan, I love you, haha.
  
  
  Hmm, must have been a slow day in Mongkok
  
  
  Nope, it was just early
  
  
  Mongkok, I love you!
  
  
  Day 6: Victoria’s Peak. Ok, the view was fantastic, but it soooo wasn’t worth the 45 minute wait to get up there, and the 1 hour wait to get back down! We were there for all of maybe 5 minutes and then rushed back down because it was so cold and because we needed to pick up our custom-made suits before the store closed. The whole custom made suit thing was an ordeal all by itself. It worked out in the end, and hopefully my new job will appreciate it.
  
  
  Atop the world
  
  
  It was cold up there! Thanks for keeping me warm hon!
  
  
  Day 7: Time to leave. We didn’t get to do much shopping, but we did get to spend a lot of time together exploring the hidden treasures of Hong Kong. Although our trip has come to an end, every day with you is paradise! Here’s to love, living, and many more Hong Kongs!
  
  
  All packed and ready to go
  
  
  We’ve only just begun…

  • 5:24 am
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