Photos from Phuket Update

just need to share the gorgeousness of it all!

obligatory welcome flowers, cool towel and sweet water 

my own private outdoor bubble bath

a big bed for little me

my own private pool in my villa

the bridge to the beach

the main building

panorama of the white sandy beach 

the hotel pool was incredible that mazed all around the back and into the spa area

cocktails on the beach

sunset

Mossarium

my very eternally cool friend has started up a business.  she creates mossariums.  ive since discovered that it is not a unique idea but i still love it!  i bought "private beach" because it reminds me of holidays while i sit under florescent lighting tip-tapping away on my computer.  my mossarium started to sprout mushrooms as well and my friend told me it is a good thing as it means my little ecosystem is thriving.

now all i need to do is come up with the ultimate idea, quit my job and be the boss!

here are some snaps of my little world:

Paradise

i think ive mentioned, but i will again, that i have upaid days from work i am 'encouraged' to take and then couple that with very cheap flash sales by a major airline in the region and it equals paradise!  so, the haggis jetted off to taiwan for a stag do and i came to phuket to relax and get my chipped tooth fixed as medical tourism is very big in thailand.  i stayed at the most glorious banyan tree and had a wonderful time doing yoga, eating delicious food, reading, napping and swimming in their beautiful winding pool or in the amazing andaman sea.

after getting a new driver from the airport and therefor doubling the time it should have taken - upon check in, i received the welcome sweet water drink, cool towel and floral bracelet requisite for any tropical hotel in asia.  i gave the floral bracelet a sniff and thought if only i could bottle this.  in all my time, ive never smelled anything as lovely - not in a single bottle of expensive perfume or in any other country other than thailand.  then, i was told they upgraded me to a pool villa, not a jacuzzi villa.  oh the JOY!!!  and off i shuttled to my digs.  the villa was large with a big sunken bed, an outdoor bathtub and my own private pool!  i could not have been happier if only my wee haggis was with me.

over the next couple of days, i did yoga and pilates (offered free), had delicious thai food, went to the beach and relaxed by the pool.  i took long baths in the outdoor bath and swam nekkid in my villa pool.

it is not yet the busy season so it wasnt too bad.  a few koreans, japanese and mainlanders but by far, everyone was out numbered by the russians.  i think they could compete with the chinese for "worlds loudest tourists" easily.

anyway, i am still here waiting to shuttle off to the hotel and will post more photos but here is one of the main property (below).  i am looking forward to seeing the wee haggis whom i have not seen since thursday night, really, but it is a beautiful day and i am sad to leave this little slice of heaven.

Excuse Me?

look, i like kids (well behaved kids) but i dont understand where people get off just because theyve had one.

i got this email from work today:
NAME OF IRRITATING COLLEAGUE has decided that he would like us to buy him a high chair for NAME OF HIS RECENT OFFSPRING. Would you be OK with contributing $120? That way, we should be able to buy what he needs.

before you get upset, it is 120 hong kong dollars and the equivalent to 15 us dollars but it is not the money. if i liked this guy, heck, id give 120 us dollars but its the fact that people feel ok to say stuff like this.  and mind you, this is now the second colleague who has asked for a specific gift from the team in the last couple of months. i want to give something that people will use and want but i find asking colleagues for a specific gift that is quite significant a bit crass.

am alone here making a mountain out of a molehill or do you agree?

Brightened Up My Day

this video is just toooo cute and you cant help but laugh when you see it:

The Grinch

here it comes again - the holiday season - and i am dreading it.  i guess this means i am an 'adult' (finally) as i find little joy in christmas any more and isnt christmas really meant for the kids anyway??  for me, christmas used to be about family and food and presents and lounging around and going to movies.  now it seems it is primarily about making sacrifices and jumping through hoops.

hoop #1:  i am staying in hong kong (which i am currently in a bit of a low with) as the haggis started a new job and he dooesnt have time to fly to the states/uk.  this sacrifice isnt huge as i want to be with him for the holidays but i would like to be spending the time with him 'properly' doing fun things we both want to do which brings us to...

hoop #2:  we are doing the same christmas as we did last year.  yep, same restaurant, same people, same food, same, same, same.  i made a couple suggestions to the organiser of other places but it seems they werent good enough...odd considering the place we go to is poop.  anyway, i told the haggis i think i will wear the same dress and give the same gifts.

hoop #3:  the accommodating-everyone-else-except-me has affected my diet the most, it seems as i was asked to make a reservation at the china club (yes, we did this last christmas) for us, another couple and the haggis' mum as THEY want to go.  me, i dont particularly like chinese food nor the china club as i find it very old and stuffy, but that doesnt matter, right?  anyway, this responsibility fell on me as you cant just make a booking at the china club like any old restaurant as it is members only.  i asked one friend last year so decided not to ask here again and found someone new.  she, a very nice colleague, in turn had to jump through hoops to make the booking for me as she gets entree to the club via her black amex.  but then how do we pay?  she had to ask amex to make concessions for me to pay with my own card.  so a huge thanks to her for being so kind but will my party be appreciative...?

hoop #4:  new years eve.  so, the haggis' mother will be upon us after boxing day and through the new year.  as it took her a while to decide if she wanted to come, we went ahead and made new year plans which meant when she finally decided to grace us with her presence in hong kong, another friend of mine had to beg the football club to add an extra chair at our table as our table was full up.  she played the 'shes a widow for the first time' card and they said ok.  again, does she know or care what i and my friends have had to do to accommodate her?

[potential] hoop #5:  lodging.  we have wonderful friends who have opened up their home to the haggis' mum for her stay in hong kong as our flat is tiny and cant take one more person, let alone her.  now, i am unsure about this one as this posting will go to press because the haggis has had a very big week at work and i havent wanted to bother him with this but has he told her she wont be staying with us?  am here waiting with baited breath...

i know i sound selfish and grinch-like but this past holiday and the one coming are primarily dictated now by the haggis' mother.  if SHE wants to come to hong kong, what SHE wants to do, what SHE needs, where SHE wants to stay, where SHE wants to eat.

so, after all that whinging, what is my plan of action, you ask?  i am of two minds.  the first says - go with the flow but dont say 'yes' to things just because i feel like i should.  and the other says "get the hell out of here!"

needless to say, my christmas wish is that it would all be over.

The Doorway of Death

my wee haggis is very sweet and supportive so i left the flat this morning feeling perky.  then i walked into the office, crossed the threshold of happiness into...needless to say, the weather is depressing in hong kong and i cant say my mood is much better.  it is so interesting how your environment can so strongly influence your life.  at this moment, feeling delicate, i have to admit that my environment is affecting me a lot as i dont have the strength to combat it.

so yes, i am ms. grumpy pants.  and this morning, i am bothered by the fact that people RUN around the office.  i mean, really?  what is the point?  and for a set of people who are so little, it confuses me how they are able to make so much damn noise.  i am going to see if i can capture it on video or a sound note and share.  its truly impressive.

but in the meantime, ive got this to tide you over:

Red Cross

ive been feeling a little down.  not completely sure but i think its a combination of feeling a little like my family needs me, a little bit like "hong kong is miserable offering no depth to my life and a little like my job is unengaged at the moment as i work in a global role on uk hours all alone in hk. 

however, i feel like this happens every once in a while with hk.  it is a serious love-hate relationship and its not like living in manhattan, life was perfect, as it wasnt.  to boot, i know i would move back tomorrow and have lots to whinge about but for now, i am feeling the superficiality of hong kong at its utmost.  and no matter how i try to find new things, i feel like it offers very little.

when i used to feel this way in the city, i would volunteer lots, more than usual - like once a week versus once a month.  it was the perfect antidote to get myself out of myself and do something for people less fortunate.  i used to love the dance classes with the kids.  they would be so happy running around some studio and would forget that they slept somewhere new last night for the 6th night in a row.  they would smile in a mischievous way and you just couldnt help but smile back.

so, since volunteering in hong kong is typically limited to those that speak the language or the non-working tai-tai's, i decided to donate to the red cross for disaster relief from sandy.  it isnt much but has made me feel a bit better to hopefully have helped someone.

Exciting Events

the weekend was a busy one!  we went to an engagement party as apparently hell has frozen over.  never did we think but one of our friends proposed.  her first response was "are you sure?" which is just so fitting.  anyway, when it happens, it will surely be a par-tay to remember.

then, i had 'around the island' outrigger race which is a 44k (approx. 4 hour) race around hong kong island.  it was a beautiful day for it and then we had a nice bbq at the club after.  there were lots of old dragon boat friends there as well so it was a great reunion.

not surprisingly enough, i went home, ate a pizza and went to be around 7:30!!!

生日快乐

otherwise known as 'happy birthday'.  another year older and potentially wiser.  i am definitely another year older as my clothes are a bit more snug and no matter what i do, it seems pointless as my metabolism has just slowed way down.  i am definitely another year older as people, at work and in general, expect me to behave like an adult.  and on a related note, i am definitely another year older as hangovers dont go away so easy anymore.

but am i any wiser?  i like to think so.  ive finally realised i will not go where i want in my career without a bit of assistance and planning so last year i hired an external career coach.  ive stopped dating jerks and found myself a really great, loving boyfriend.  and weve even moved in together and are trying to save money.

"old" age inst so bad, is it?  have to say, i hope this will be a good year!

however, i am still "young" enough to celebrate.  on friday, the actual day, i had a dinner at a semi-private kitchen.  the food was french and did the job well of lining our stomachs for the copious amounts of alcohol we consumed and the long night we had.  it was great - spent with a handful of friends from odd pockets in my life in hong kong.

saturday was pathetically spent hungover though so...enter "old" age.

sunday, the haggis and i went to the four seasons for a couples spa treatment.  it started with our own very large private room with a big jacuzzi bubble bath and a glass of champagne.  then we had scrubs and massages.  we looked out over the hong kong harbour and really had a great time.

he gave me a tooth brush (sonicare for my obsession with dental hygiene), a book and printed & framed photos from our trip to the states.  but that evening we went to sushi sase for my "real" gift and it was one of the best meals ive had in hong kong.  the haggis and i enjoyed ourselves with the chef's tasting menu.  all the fish comes direct from tokyo and i was wonderful.

yep - liking "old" age for sure!

not me but you need to see...and this is JUST the jacuzzi tub!

General Ramblings

the weekend was as always, good but short.

las week during the start of the haggis' gardening leave, he painted the sitting room ceiling and walls which has freshened things up.

saturday night we went out with a friend and sunday afternoon was spent at a typically hong kong champagne brunch.  we went to one of the hotels in tst and it was an oyster fest.  the oysters were good and fresh so would definitely go back with selections from the us and australia.  my friend who organised it cannot come to my birthday dinner so she surprised me with a little birthday treat.  very sweet.






















sadly, both the haggis and i have been hit with a bit of a cold.  the haggis worse than me, i think.  he was all sweaty and stuffy yesterday but he was so funny - funnier than usual.  i think the fever made him a little wonky and he was just cracking me up.  i felt bad laughing as he was so sick but we could have discovered the secret to true comedy - a fever!

so this week will culminate with my birthday dinner on friday and a spa visit for both of us to the four seasons - cannot wait!!!  and then off to borneo for the bank holiday.

speaking of travel, we have two really long breaks for chinese new year and easter.  we're looking into skiing in korea nd then a bit of travel around the country for chinese new year and india for easter.  does anyone have any good suggestions on what else to do and see in both korea and india?

Money Obsessed Asia

there has been small town news (in print and word of mouth) lately about high paid people losing their jobs that has got me thinking*.  so, some banker-wanker lost his job at japanese bank.  his wife uses a self-promoting blog to try to convince herself shes happy and fabulous and more recently was interviewed by a small singaporean newspaper in a section called "money and me".  in both mediums she talks all about money money cars money more material goods money and how much money they have but she doesnt want to talk about money because it is tacky.  after all that, i have to wonder when she will post about how her husband lost his job and what cuts they plan to make.  like, "redundancies are difficult as we had to sell two of our 7 mercedes and i no longer have a fleet of people to raise my own children.  life is just SO hard!"  in all honesty, their lives are probably unfazed and just fine in comparison but it seems for some, its never enough.
*yes, i do occasionally think but like to keep it to a minimum.
 
then there is another exec around town who agreed to a very long gardening leave should they go to a competitor.  but first, while running out of the last employer's office, it has been said the message was basically, 'smell ya later, losers - i am off for more money money money'.  the short-sightedness of this has repercussions as 1) you dont burn bridges and 2) there are certain people in hk business circles you do not mess with.  since, ive heard conflicting stories about the status of current employment and the latest rumour is the former employer is now being sued.  unsure if there is any viable case but at the end of the day, NOBODY wants to hire someone who has sued a former employer...i think i see a departure from hk as the best option but sadly, there are not many options left.  i hear brazil is beautiful and the market needs talents like that...um....not - regardless, bon voyage!

next, meet closeted guy marrying rich chinese girl.  i just met the latest guy to snag a chinese girl from a wealthy family where the guy seems pretty camp.  there seems to be a small niche group of western men who settle down with these girls yet they seem gay.  theres nothing wrong with being gay - anyone who knows me knows i love gay men - but marrying a chick for money when youre so clearly closeted seems a bit off to me.  call me traditional but i think if youre straight you go for someone of the opposite sex and if youre gay, you go for someone of the same gender  kids these days...

what is is about money that makes us do such things?  do we need MORE?  i realise that money is important and admittedly, i like nice things (mainly shoes and handbags) but there is a limit, no?  living in hong kong, it is a complete money bubble.  we think this is normal life.  it is not.  we live such a privileged life of travel, easy living, buying most things we want, not need, but want, eating out all the time.  after a long weekend of catching up with friends and spending time with my haggis, i feel fortunate to have what i have and blessed to have the people i have in my life.  isnt that what life is about?  well, its what mine is about.

To the US and Beyond

a flash trip to the states was action packed as expected.  the haggis and i spent a few days in new york then off to the cape and back to new york for one more day before heading back to hk.  highlights of the trip include catch up with friends, food, more food, fishing on the cape and all the trains, planes and automobiles we needed to take in order to do all this.

a big thanks to family and friends for making the trip memorable as always, time is never enough but i guess something is better than nothing.

we didnt take loads of pictures, but here are a few: