September Hong Kong Jewellery & Watch Fair

View from the Convention Centre
The Hong Kong Gem Fair in September is the largest fair of its kind in the whole world. My friends and I just spent four days in Hong Kong attending the fair and having an all-around great time.

The fair is held in two locations: the main fair is at the Hong Kong Convention Centre and a second fair is out at the airport at the new Asia World Expo. Apart from the amazing gemstones and pearls, the organization of the fair was impressive. There were free shuttles to and from hotels, train stations and the remote airport location; full time toilet attendants cleaning and stocking paper towels and toilet paper; information booths for the fair, information booths for the city of Hong Kong; security up the ying-yang; kiosks with food and full service restaurants; ATM machines and even a foreign currency exchange booth.

Carmen M and I with Ken, our favorite pearl vendor
The fair is really geared towards wholesale/retail and not really for ‘designers’. Luckily, we were three, so we split bunches of pearls and strands of gemstones, but we didn’t buy enough to have any bargaining power. Surprisingly, there was little silver/components for sale. Here and there, an Indian vendor offered some brushed vermeil and silver alongside the gemstones. We had hoped to find some Bali vendors, but only one booth was selling Bali pendants and they were located in a special hall by country. We did get their business cards and an offer to look them up next time we are in Bali as they also produce silver beads.

We were in gemstone/pearl overload, spending at least six hours each day at the convention. On Saturday after breakfast, we headed over to Sham Shui Po, an area of Kowloon where you can find gemstone vendors. We did quite well there; the prices were good and the quality adequate for our needs.

We made a pact to try and attend the Hong Kong Gem Fair each year, no matter what part of the world we are living in!

Can you believe all these pearls?!

Homesick for Chicago

Yesterday afternoon, I caught a segment on the Travel & Living Channel featuring one of my favorite Chicago restaurants: Chicago Pizza and Ovengrinder at 2121 N Clark. They talked about the pizza pot pies, the ovengrinders, the wonderful sweet-sour poppy seed dressing, and the delicious Mediterranean bread. It would be worth a 24 hour journey just to swing by and have a meal...

Last night, we were invited to another Chicago institution: Morton's Steakhouse. Years ago, I had eaten at the original Morton's and remember the gigantic, mouthwatering steaks as well as incredible side dishes and desserts. We weren't disappointed in Singapore, either. A friend of mine went to Morton's here and dropped $800 for a party of three, so it's really a special occasion or business dinner place.

SURROUNDED BY CONSTRUCTION

Construction Site Off Back Porch

Construction Site in Front
Life in Singapore includes construction, construction and even more construction! Buildings less than 10 years old are being torn down so that twice the amount of condos can be built on the same site. We moved into our apartment knowing that construction had begun next to us. One day last fall, I walked into the kitchen and saw that the giant ficus tree off the back porch was being cut down! Now we are surrounded by construction. Today there was remodeling noises coming from the unit above us. I will probably develop hearing problems from cranking up the TV and my Ipod!

KUALA LUMPUR

City of Contrasts

In between trips to Thailand and Vietnam, Gerhard had a convention to attend in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. Best known for the world's (now second to) largest building, the Petronas Twin Towers, there were other interesting sites to see. It was a 3+ hour road trip from Singapore, but Malaysia's highways are in great condition.

While Gerhard was in his sessions, I kept close to hotel, having been warned about some of the other parts of town. Gerhard and I visited these same areas on Friday afternoon and I would easily go there on my own next time. The market is really nice; all enclosed, clean and air conditioned!

I could have spent all day in the textile area; the most beautiful fabrics you will ever see. A typical Malaysian woman requires over 4 yards of fabric for their 'tudung', a long garment covering most of their body.

Malaysian law prohibits Muslim women from wearing burkas as, according to our friendly cab driver, they want to see that it is really a woman and prevent hidden explosives, etc.

The subject came up as our driver explained it was 'Arab season' in KL: many Arabs travel to KL during the hot summer months, mostly to shop. The Arab women all wore black burkas, with a small slit for their eyes. The men, on the other hand, wore Western clothing - sloppy shorts, baseball caps on backwards, designer sunglasses. Quite a double standard, especially in the grueling midday heat.

*** *** *** PHUKET *** *** ***

Marriott's Evening Entertainment
Man's Best Friend, Thai style
Aw, look at the baby!
Twin Palms - How cool is this?
,Very Cool Bathroom
Private Screened Porch

Phuket

Gerhard had a business trip to Phuket come up and we decided to add on the weekend.

We arrived on the early Tiger Airlines flight and made our way to the awesome breakfast buffet at the J W Marriott. Our room was on the ground floor with a back door leading out through a tropical garden. We spent the day under a sun umbrella overlooking the Andaman Sea and next to a pool.

It was a lazy day only interrupted by lunch, a beach massage and the antics of a little boy and his elephant. In the late afternoon, Gerhard came upon the boy and his elephant body-surfing in the ocean. We were mesmerized by the sight of an elephant playing like a little kid in the surf.

On Monday morning, we moved to another hotel for Gerhard’s business meeting. It was called Twin Palms in Surin Beach. The hotel was really great; very modern and minimalist. Probably one the best hotels I’ve stayed at in terms of modern architecture.

Mekong River Tour

Self Portrait
The Mighty Mekong River
Coconut Factory

Saigon

A couple of weeks ago, Gerhard and I spent a long weekend visiting Ho Chi Minh City in South Vietnam.

There wasn’t too much to do except shop. The market was very overwhelming at first, but once you figured out how it was laid out, it got easier to navigate. I bought a great Dolce & Gabbana purse, a classic Louis Vuitton, some surprises for my family when we go to the States in December, some knockoff golf tops and of course, I seem to always find a white blouse I cannot live without!

We took a day tour to the Mekong Delta region. After a two 2 ½ hour minibus ride, we arrived at the mighty Mekong River. We were ushered into the boat and headed across the murky waters to Ben Tre Province. It was very wide at this point and you mostly saw large car ferries on the water.

Once we arrived, we stopped at a coconut candy factory, where they demonstrated how they make a kind of coconut taffy. We got into smaller longboats to navigate the smaller canals. We moved silently through the lush tropical landscape and it would have been quite idyllic if there hadn’t been so many other boats passing us in the opposite direction!

If there is any anti-American feeling, it is well hidden behind the open, friendly Vietnamese smiles.

Pictures from B A L I Hindu Offerings

Gerhard's New Remote Shutter Control Thingie

View from our Balcony
Woman Working in Rice Paddy