Foot Massage

One common indulgence in Asia is going for a foot massage. There are numerous places offering this service – from a simple common room with several lounge chairs, to high-end luxury spa establishments offering air-conditioned private rooms that can accommodate an individual or a group, complete with an in suite washroom and television. One recently-opened spa in Xiamen is the Bokent Health Club on Hexiang West 2nd Road. A 90-minute foot massage costs 168RMB or $27 – and this includes a lunch or dinner buffet! The service starts off with a hot foot bath with herbs in a wood-lined pail for…

Huānyíng huílái

March 8, 2014May 15, 2014 Categories: China · Travel · XiamenTags: China · Nanputuo Temple · Travel · Xiamen

“Welcome back” to Xiamen! Ranked as the most attractive city in the Fujian province of southern China, many of Xiamen’s old colonial buildings have been carefully restored and its lively waterfront area give it an alluring old-world charm — together with many new modern buildings rising throughout the city. PS : I had a difficult time accessing my blog while in China. Seems like blogging is restricted. The Nanputuo Buddhist Temple is famous in the province and is a pilgrimage site for many in Southeast Asia. The temple has been repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, with the latest reincarnation from the early…

Manila Food Scene

February 27, 2014February 27, 2014 Categories: Food · Manila · PhilippinesTags: Food · Manila · Philippines · Restaurants1 Comment

There is a sudden abundance of international food outlets opening in the Philippines. Ranging from patisseries from France, to gyoza and ramen shops from Japan, BBQ and KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) from Korea, and to Hainanese Chicken specialists from Singapore. The array of international food choices adds another dimension to the ever-growing food scene in the Philippines.

Art Fair in Manila

February 22, 2014May 9, 2014 Categories: Art · Art Fair · Manila · PhilippinesTags: Art Fair · Art Fair Philippines · Philippines2 Comments

Art Fair Philippines is the premier platform for exhibiting modern and contemporary Philippine visual art. Only on its second year, this year’s fair already features twenty-eight of the country’s foremost contemporary art galleries and seven solo exhibitions. Held at The Link in Makati City from February 19 to 23, 2014.

Eggs, Tacos, Pasta & Cupcakes

January 21, 2014January 20, 2014 Categories: California · Carlsbad · Food · San Diego · USATags: California · Carlsbad · Caroline's Seaside Cafe · Elizabethan Desserts · Haggo's Organic Taco · La Jolla · Spirito's Italian Diner

Not necessarily in one sitting, in one day, nor in that order! Brunch with a view: Caroline’s Seaside Cafe is located in the UC San Diego Scripps Institute of Oceanography campus in La Jolla. Set in a relaxed contemporary interior design, the cafe and patio offers a view of the ocean (and the surfers). Owned by chef Giuseppe Ciuffa, the cafe serves brunch on weekends and is also open for breakfast and lunch on weekdays. Two food spots featured in restauranteur Guy Fieri’s TV show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives are Haggo’s Organic Taco and Spirito’s Italian Diner. Haggo’s in Leucadia…

Del Mar

January 10, 2014January 10, 2014 Categories: California · Del Mar · Travel · USATags: California · Del Mar

Luckily, there is no sign of the polar vortex in Southern California! The small affluent coastal city of Del Mar (“Of the Sea”) is located twenty minutes north of downtown San Diego. With a population of less than 4,500 people in a 2.1 square mile area, Del Mar has two miles of pristine beaches. Home to the Del Mar Racetrack and the San Diego County Fair in the summer, its historic downtown village dates back to the 1880s and has over twenty-five restaurants. Because of an active resident group, billboards and high rises are not permitted within the city limits. The city is immortalized in…

USS Midway

January 6, 2014January 6, 2014 Categories: California · San Diego · Travel · USATags: aircraft carrier · California · San Diego · USS Midway

The giant USS Midway aircraft carrier was one of the U.S. Navy’s flagship vessels with close to 50 years of history from 1945 to 1991. It was commissioned towards the end of World War II and has been through the evacuation of Saigon, Operation Desert Storm in the first Gulf War, and into evacuating 1,800 Americans from Subic Bay in the Philippines during the volcanic eruption of Mount Pinatubo. Before being moored in San Diego and turned into a museum in 2004, this “floating city” with a 1,000-foot-long flight deck accommodated a crew of 4,500.

San Diego Zoo

January 3, 2014January 3, 2014 Categories: California · San Diego · Travel · USATags: Balboa Park · California · San Diego · San Diego Zoo · Zoo

The world-famous San Diego Zoo is one of Southern California’s major attractions. The zoo showcases more than 4,000 animals, representing over 800 species, on 100 acres of beautifully landscaped lush setting that is an accredited botanical garden. Located in the northern section of Balboa Park, the zoo originated with the Panama-California Exposition of 1915-1916. San Diego Zoo is privately operated by the non-profit Zoological Society of San Diego and is one of four zoos in the U.S. which have giant pandas on display and the most successful in terms of panda reproduction.

Balboa Park

December 27, 2013December 26, 2013 Categories: Architecture · California · San Diego · Travel · USATags: architecture · Balboa Park · California · San Diego

The country’s largest urban park with 1,200 acres, Balboa Park in San Diego, is home to 15 museums, performing arts venues, gardens and the world famous San Diego Zoo. Balboa Park was the location of the First World’s Fair of the 1915-1916 Panama-California Exposition (in commemoration of the opening of the Panama Canal) which created many of the stunning Spanish-Rennaissance architecture. Named for the Spanish maritime explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa, the park was also the location of the 1935-1936 California Pacific International Exposition.

La Jolla

December 18, 2013December 18, 2013 Categories: California · Food · San Diego · Travel · USATags: California · La Jolla · Puesto · San Diego · University Town Center

With advance apologies to my friends back in the northern part of North America, I escaped the -20C windchill and snowstorm on the weekend and headed to Southern California, where it is a gorgeous +22C sunny day in La Jolla. My system seems to be in a state of confusion, but I am not complaining! La Jolla, or “The Jewel”, is a hilly seaside community in northern San Diego occupying 7 miles of coastline along the Pacific Ocean. For real estate watchers, this neighbourhood is one of the most expensive in the. U.S. Voted one of the best restaurants in San…