New York's Chinatown

Whenever Adrian & I yearn for something exciting and fun, we would take the I-95 express bus to Times Square (only 20 mins on a weekend...thanks to traffic-free roads) and switch to the red or green line subway to Chinatown; at the lower east side of Manhattan.

A little history lesson...
New York's Chinatown is the largest Chinatown in the United States but it is certainly not the only one. It came to being when Chinese sailors and merchants entered NY City in the mid-18th. century. While many were lured to California during the "Gold Rush" of the 1840s-50s; some stayed behind and started a life here.

Measuring two square miles and with an estimated population between 70,000 to 150,000, NY Chinatown is even bigger than some towns in the United States. Nonetheless, it is also a diverse spot with other races like Vietnamese, Dominicans and Puerto Ricans living in the nearby neighborhood. Little Italy and SoHo or South Houston; chic and trendy area for the young & hip is just next door.

You can buy almost anything in Chinatown; from the everyday stuff to the queer ones (see photo below) and lots of "branded" products ala Petaling Street in K.L.. You have to look hard for those certain designs as they tend to be hidden from plain view in fear of the authorities.

Tip: Sometimes you may need to go through well-camouflaged doors and walls or walk through garment racks to get to your favorite Burberry, YSL, Kate Spade, Gucci, LV, Chanel, etc.

Lucky boxers and panties...in red, for luck of course! Popular during Chinese New Year but available throughout the year. Worn on most auspicious occasions, I believe. Just not my style, I'm afraid.

Dried mushrooms, shitakes, ginseng roots, dried dates, etc. for your double-boiled or claypot dishes


Dried shrimp of various sizes, dried squid and fish


Lots of fruits from the common to tropical


An array of seafood


Our favorite pastry shop - Fay Da. The roast pork puff is delicious!




And remember your traditional roots once in a while. Watch a spanking hot-pink lion eating a head of cabbage.

Little creature, big capabilities

Gecko n. any of a family of soft-skinned, insect-eating, tropical and subtropical lizards with a short, stout body, a large head, and suction pads on feet. - Webster's New World Dictionary

Who knew a member of the lizard family could be so famous..?!!

Paris Hilton maybe hot but the Geico Gecko is the latest advertising phenomenon in the print and electronic media these days. He is the official spokesperson/mascot of Geico, the No.1 auto insurance company in New York. And, he is one cool gecko. He appeared in TV commercials doing the robot (click on this link to view) a few years back before English soccer player Peter Crouch decided to copy his moves. The Gecko is cuter and more fun to watch, anyway.

Eventhough he speaks with a British accent, he has convinced many American car owners to switch to his employer's company. He loves his job, which is, saving you money; so he says. He is able to creep into your subliminal psyche even if you don't relate to him that much. I can personally vouch for that. Someone rear ended our car about a month ago and when I saw the driver's Geico insurance policy, the Gecko immediately came to my mind. Powerful, huh? Now, that's hot!

Heatwave

If you follow world weather, you would have known that temperatures have been soaring for the past 3 weeks in the U.S. Yesterday was the worst for the tri-state area of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut with temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit and the heat index i.e. how you actually feel, around 112+ degrees Fahrenheit.

Temperatures are still measured in Fahrenheit over here (I really don't understand why?!), whereas the rest of the world is using Celsius. I have to translate this to more user friendly terms.

100 degrees Fahrenheit = about 38 degrees Celsius is already 4 or 5 degrees hotter than my hometown average day-time temperature. Mama, if you are reading this, I know you don't envy us for once. So, we were over that mark yesterday with a heat index of about 44 degrees Celsius.

This is today - August 3rd. 2006. A few degrees cooler but still!!!


In spite of these scorching numbers, there's hope of a cool front heading our way in a few hours time but with dangerous consequences of thunderstorms. Just like Malaysia in the afternoon/evening time :) Relief wouldn't be that much either. Probably just a tat cooler during the weekend. But, I shouldn't complain too much.


I have experienced temperatures of > 45 degrees Celsius during summer time in Perth, Australia. Plus, I am from Malaysia so I should be used to this type of weather, right? No...actually I hated the warm and humid like conditions for as long as I could remember. I haven't met anyone from Malaysia who loves the hot, humid weather either.

Meanwhile, to help me through these rough days, I just have to remind myself that we're half way through summer and fall is coming soon . Oh yes, and turn the A/C UP! That helps :)

New York City Tour

I accompanied Ange on the Hop-on and Hop-off double decker bus tour of downtown Manhattan on her last day here. Since she was on a time constraint we couldn't really hop off the bus. But, I did learn some new things about the City despite being here for 3 years.


Top deck of our tour bus...


Nasdaq screen at Times Square - the world's largest and most expensive video screen on the Conde Nast Building cost $37 million. But why am I seeing some ad for Zantax diet pill instead of stock prices??? Hmm...


Needle threading a button, as we passed the Fashion District (formerly Garment District) - home to the warehouses and workshops of the fashion industry.


The Art Deco Empire State Building - the world's tallest building until 1972.
P.S. Best time to go is night time so you can see the lights of NYC. Go in the day time and you risk waiting in line for up till an hour or more (it is normal to see tourists queueing by the sidewalk) for just some really fast elevator ride and hazy/smog like view.


The famous MSG (no, not that "bee-cheng" monosodium glutamate for cooking), Madison Square Garden - home to NY's NBA team, the Knicks, NFL Rangers and the many concerts.


Fuller or Flatiron Building - built in the early 1900s, it is better known as the flatiron due to its unique shape like what else?! Grandma's iron. It has been featured in many movies like Spider Man, Armageddon, Hitch, to name the few.


9/11 Painted Memorial Tiles at the Village - more than 5,000 tile pieces hung on this vacant lot's fence as a rememberance to the victims of terrorist attacks. A very poignant moment.
P.S. We didn't stop at Ground Zero as the main spot is now cordoned off for rebuilding works. I was there 3 years ago and it was just an empty levelled surface. Maybe I'll be able to take better pictures once the rebuilding is completed.


Deutsche Bank Building - damaged beyond repair in the 9/11 attacks, the German bank has since relocated to Wall Street but demolition process to this building was halted when they found human remains and bone fragments in March this year. Hundreds of bone fragments were also found on the roof top. DNA tests hope to match the identity of the approximately 3,000 people killed that day. Good luck to the City Examiner's Office on this very noble endeavor to help victims' families find closure.


St. Paul's Chapel (built 1766) - despite being located directly opposite the former World Trade Center, this chapel remained structurally safe and became an instant dining and rest area for the hundreds of emergency services workers working 24 hours at Ground Zero. For 8 months, this Episcopal Church housed volunteer-relief efforts and has an interactive new exhibit entitled "Unwavering Spirit: Hope & Healing at Ground Zero". It is also the oldest public building in Manhattan still in continuous use; St. Paul ROCKS!


The United States Court House - break the law and you end up here, like Ms. Martha Stewart and "La Bella Mafia" Miss Lil' Kim.


The Gothic Woolworth Building c. 1913 - another NY skyscraper belonging to a man called Frank Woolworth who became a millionaire running five and dime stores (just like the 20 sen discount stores in Kuching) in the 1880s.


United Nations Building - considering all the troubles, wars & genocides happening in this world, it makes you wonder what those people are doing in there...I like to call it "NATO (No Action, Talk Only) Building" instead.


Trump Tower - office of real estate mogul Donald Trump or "The Donald" as he is fondly known here. Home of reality show, The Apprentice. Yep, this is the famous "You're fired" office.

Visitor from Kuching

My good friend Angelina was in town last weekend. We spent Sunday and Monday together before she left for Washington D.C.. I've been anticipating her call since her arrival on Saturday from Toronto. Somehow, we were in upstate NY and didn't get her text message until 10 p.m.

We met up on Sunday morning and took her shopping around NY City. She wanted to go to Macy's at Herald Square after hearing about it being the largest departmental store in the world. I supposed 7 floors of shopping is BIG?!

Ange and I at Rockefeller Center, home of NBC Studios.

Outside Saks Fifth Avenue. No shopping in there unless you've lots of $$$ to spare.

Getting ready for some serious shopping at Macy's.

Later, we had a late lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Market & Restaurant.

Ange wanted to try something new and we thought Bubba Gump would be the perfect place. Bubba Gump is a very unique restaurant based on the movie, "Forrest Gump". The place is decorated with southern bric-a-bracs, knickknacks, gimcracks and Forrest Gump movie memorabilias & photos.

Inside Bubba Gump...

Our table...

Flip this sign over means everything is ok. Waiter/waitress will not interrupt your meal.

This means you need something from them e.g. water, napkins, ketchup, etc.


Our meal...


Adrian & Ange had this and they loved it! It's called Lt. Dan's (something, something... I forgot the name) Shrimp. The savoury sauce has andouille sausages. Andouille (pronounced "ahn-DOO-wee") is Cajun smoked sausage made with pork butt, shank and a little fat smoked over pecan wood and sugar cane for many hours...a southern delicacy with French influence. Since Forrest Gump is from Alabama, I supposed he must have this.


I had the Shrimpin' Dippin' Broth...the broth is midly spicy and great with bread. Yum...! I love the little pot. Very "out-doorishly" quaint but very hot..ouch!



Here's Ange again with her speckled lemonade i.e. lemonade with crushed strawberries. We had a good table with the view of Times Square outside. Unfortunately, Ange had to head back to the hotel immediately after our meal since she had bought tickets to see the Broadway production of "Chicago".

Alyanna's Aloha Haven


I was at a birthday party for a seven year old girl last Saturday afternoon. The theme was "Hawaiian". Kids were told to bring their bathing suits and everyone to come bringing their widest & sunniest smiles.


Alyanna Sophia Felix or Yanna as we all fondly call her, is Shirley & Abner's daughter. I first met her when she was 4 years old. Since then, she has blossomed into a smart and pretty young lady, started school and has a bright future ahead of her.

Our Hawaiian equivalent names that day: Serene = Kelena & Adrian = Akiliano.

Kids had their faces painted, played games on the family's outdoor deck decorated with Hawaiian decor & trimmings.


Martina getting her face painted by Ivy


The little ones played passing parcel, the Yannaaaaa... sound dragging contest, answered questions about the birthday girl,


and were entertained by Yanna's magic trick. Tita Tuesday was the hard-working MC.



And then, chow-time (favorite part for the grown-ups).



There's macaroni salad, mixed fruits dessert, cut fresh fruits, spaghetti, baked penne (pasta), vegetable spring roll (lumpia), Shanghai lumpia, fried chicken, fried vermicelli (pansit bihon) and some other unique Filipino dishes like...


Lechon or roast pork - looks scary but really tastes GOOD!

N.B. The best thing about the lechon is that after several days of re-heating in the oven, the meat is still tender and juicy. Spread some sweet gravy (the condiment) and you're good to go. The skin is extra crispy. There must be a special way of preparing & roasting the pig to produce such "juicy" results. I've yet to find out...



Embotido - home made sausage



Menudo - stew dish of diced pork, potatoes & peas


Yes, we had a lot of pork dishes . It was baboy-overdose day...still, we ate it anyway :)

And to top it off, Shirley's specialty desserts - leche flan (similar to cream caramel custard) & cassava cake (similar to the Malaysian kuih bandung).

There was so much food left untouched at the end of the day, everyone had a doggie bag or two to bring home. Needless to say, we too, had left-overs for lunch and dinner over the weekend.