A Walk in the Park

 

Made in China

It's been just over 3 weeks in China now and I feel as though it's been the widest awakening I've had, since coming here for the first time when I was 7.
Although it's my fifth return to the so-called mother land, it's my first solo adventure.
And shit, being solo makes such a difference.

I've always been able to understand more than I could say in Chinese, so my mother has always been the bridge connecting me to my relatives (and shop assistants). But this time, its all me, baby, and frustration levels have hit all time peaks. To be fair, this is what I needed and what I wanted.

Luckily, growing up listening to my parents speak Chinese has in a way, stored it all in my head. I explained it to Gang the other day over the phone - it's all locked away but different keys can open different things. The keys being certain topics, memories and emotions. 

My teacher has been teaching us all sorts of sentence structures and I feel as though I already know them, even though I've never learnt them. I don't know the rules. I just know what sounds right and what sounds wrong. Like when you learn to play a song, you can hear a wrong note. 

As for the cultural differences here... well lets just say the acronym "IDGAF" actually stands for China.

Anyway, here are some photos of stuff: 

Anthony and I at the top of Victoria Peak in Hong Kong. It was windy. 

Giant Buddha at the top of a hill in Hong Kong. I viewed it with such awe, thinking it was a mighty historical site dating back to the dynasty of some ancient emperor. But it was built in the early '90s. 

 Some of the kids here dress better than I do.

My class at the language school. This was taken with a selfie stick.

My Aunty told me she was taking me to SeaWorld one night. Turns out SeaWorld is not SeaWorld. It is a giant shipped that docked at a port years ago with several restaurants built around it. It's a hotspot for Westerners because it has all sorts of international cuisine. That's why she took me there. 

 

The school took us to LianHuaShan Park which is basically a giant park surrounding a (mini) mountain that you can go up. It takes maybe 400 steps on the stairs and a mad sweaty shirt to get to the top.

 Old mate was riding an electric panda in the shopping centre. As he passed me, I didn't think twice. By the time I realised he was sitting on an electric panda, the money shot had gone.

These guys on the bikes with umbrellas sit outside the metro station everyday and every night. They're (illegal) taxis that will take you to anywhere nearby for a negotiated price.

Up in the Air

Three months since my last post and I've forgotten all about 

Not Your Average Ju.  

And if Blogspot statistics don't lie, you're out there, still reading these snippets of irrelevant nothings, whoever you may be. 

And it is to you, my faithful/curious/bored/randomly-stumbling-upon readers that I share my next big adventure with. 

After 5 and a half extra long years at university, I'm set to graduate this July. 

And what better way to reward one's self, than with a European summer!

My heart aches each day, waiting to see these souls again. It's a strange feeling, knowing all our friendships are frozen in a time that almost feels like an illusion. With no trace of its existence, other than photographs and what lies in our memories. 

L: the cheekiest Italian I know, Jacopo.

R: dearest Sara, from a family of kings.

L-R: Maria, Charlotte, Myself, Sara, Teresa 

The best housemate I've ever had, Edouard. 

Or, my first Jewish friend and window to a culture full of holidays. 

Manic and frantic

Over the past few weeks I struck a goldmine of motivation, inspiration and dedication. 

And used it all on my sewing. 

So in my usual tradition, I made myself something jazzy to wear to the festival I went to last weekend. 

In my opinion, the distaste toward Stereosonic is disproportionate to the quality it presents. 

Ok yes there are girls and boys in scantily clad clothes, if any clothes at all. 

But when you realise that it is a gathering of the best DJs in the world all in one place, it simply blows your mind.

Sew I'll do it better

You know that feeling you get, when everyone you ask for help just doesn't seem to understand what you need and you ultimately have to do it yourself? 

That's how I often feel about retail. 

In recent weeks, shopping for a work Christmas party dress proved to be frustrating and difficult and so with two days to go, I gave up and hit my favourite stomping ground, Lincraft. 

With (unfortunately expensive)fabric in hand I dashed home to begin my 36 hour project from scratch. 

I'm fortunate enough to have a mother who was once as passionate as I am about sewing and has boxes of patterns that I've rummaged through many times over my sewing life. My sewing style is rather stubborn, as I've never followed a full pattern from start to finish. I'll take a pattern piece from one thing, trace something from an item I already own, draw something in the hope that it's right and then mash it altogether.  

The process ends up being: sew, try it on, fix, sew, try it on, fix.  

Anyway, here is the final product of my last minute dress. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. 

 

Front

Back

My best angle

With my gorgeous friend, Sharna as I hide the photographer's beer behind my back.  

Something Different

So it was my mother's 50th birthday a few weeks ago and I thought I'd go the extra mile and bake her a cake from scratch (dad's cake was from a packet). 

I used Yummly to find a recipe and it brought up this gem 

Moist Blueberry Cake with Light Lemon Icing

Batter and berries

Egg whites & sugar mix into the berry batter

Before going into the oven

I failed at the icing part so I tried to scrape it off (to no avail) and left it with a glaze of some sort. 

I must say, it tasted pretty good, but in essence I think it was a giant berry muffin. 

Haunting

Watched a trailer for HBO's new show True Detective yesterday and this was the tune behind it. 
It's not that often that a song will hit you in the soul like this one.