Chinese New Year 2014

Every time during the early months of the year, i always look forward to the festive Chinese New Year, where celebrations are in full swing. Chinese decorations and colorful flowers are seen everywhere, from the streets, shopping malls, offices, and homes. Red represents good luck and gold represents good wealth so these two colors will always be strongly visible during this time of the year.

It’s been a tradition since I was in high school, where my family and i will go back to our village in Shenzhen, China to spend 2 or 3 days there, just visiting relatives and experience the festive Chinese New Year spirits. There are firecrackers heard in the day time and night time in our village to celebrate the new year, and kids are running around everywhere as schools are closed during Chinese New Year. Plenty of luxurious food such as Chinese style roasted pork, chicken, seafood including shrimps, oysters, scallops, and fish, are served to the family to represent wealth and a prosperous year ahead. My favorite is always the candy box where you serve this box to families and friends whenever they come over to visit, and you welcome them with Chinese candies or other snacks such as pistachios, nuts, and etc.

There’s also a dragon dance in our village during the early morning on the first day of the Chinese New Year, and i woke up just in time to witness it this time. The dragon is actually supported by people who are holding it from underneath in order maneuver the dragon, and i’ve been told that it’s quite a tough job. The dragon also has to do one entire lap around the entire village, which takes around 45 mins to 1 hour.

My mom like every year, will always decorate our home with colorful flowers to welcome the new year and i never get tired of taking photos of these gorgeous flowers. This year was no exception, and here are some photos that i took over the Chinese New Year.

This year my family and i decided to be experimental so we took the Shenzhen Metro and headed to our destination, the Houhai station. It took around 45 mins to get there from where we live and i thought that was pretty far but it fun to explore something new. We took the escalators up from the Shenzhen metro and upon arriving to the surface, i felt the warm sun beaming on my face, and the sky was light blue with some fluffy clouds floating around. It was the perfect weather to be out and as we were about to walk through this white tunnel passage way, that had Chinese lanterns hanging from it, i couldn’t help but notice how lovely the skies looked against the white tunnel passage way. As we walked through the tunnel, there was this big spacious area that was filled with cafes, bars, and some benches for public usage. I instantly felt like i was in Europe and they even had Costa cafe, one of the cafes that i would frequent when i lived in London!

I was quite taken by surprise to see how westernized this area looked and shortly after, i quickly followed my parents as we went inside a shopping mall to try this lunch buffet that my mom had tried before. As expected, the food wasn’t that good and i didn’t even bother taking photos of the food. However, the restaurant itself was beautifully decorated with Chinese lanterns and flowers, and it had such a festive vibe to it.

The day ended with some window shopping and then we had to return to the village as other relatives were on their way to wish us a happy Chinese New Year. And not long after that, i took the train back home by myself to Hong Kong, which i had dearly missed…

Photo credits: all photos by me

A look back into 2013…

Time awaits for nobody and with that, 2 months passed by me in the blink of an eye since my last blog post. As we enter the second month of 2014, i thought it was about time to get back into blogging before my laziness got the best of me.

Looking back, 2013 was indeed a great year, filled with both good and bad times, a balance much needed in order to appreciate even the simplest of things in life. Great adventures took place such as discovering new eateries in the city, spending quality time with loved ones over family gatherings, catching up with friends over coffee by day, and cocktail by night, and spending some alone time by myself to do things i enjoy. Celebrations were in full swing with Chinese New Year, Mid Autumn festival, birthdays, and friends from across the globe coming to visit. Of course, a trip back home to Denmark to see my friends and family over Christmas and New Year, was the best and perfect way to end the year.

I am grateful for every moment shared with my nearest and dearest, as well as every single new friend i befriended, and new experiences that i encountered over the year. Here’s a quick glimpse into my 2013.

My first experience of indulging in a box of macarons from Laduree in Hong Kong, as my BFF knew my love for these gems and gave them to me as a surprise. Trying on my new American Apparel nail polishes and kicking the new year in style with some glitter. As every year, there were gorgeous flower decorated at home to welcome the Chinese New Year. It was also another year of festive Chinese decorations and flowers seen everywhere in the city, and firecrackers could be heard from a distant in our village back in Shenzhen, China. A free heart shaped cookie gifted to me from a staff at Pret A Manger, upon my routine morning coffee run there, really touched my heart and it’s such small gestures that really gets to me. The perks of living in a small city like Hong Kong, are discovering new bars, such as the recent Lily & Bloom, in Lan Kwai Fong, which serves absolutely divine cocktails. The bartender was ever as friendly and surprised me with a cocktail that wasn’t on the menu, when i asked for what cocktails to recommend. My all time fave Japanese Pop singer, Namie Amuro, who i have adored since high school, was finally coming to Hong Kong for her ever first concert, for her 20th anniversary Asia Tour 2013. I was standing and dancing, and singing all the night long to her good old 90s songs, such as Body Feels Exit, Can you celebrate, Dont wanna cry, and many more.

Audrey Hepburn fever in full swing after watching her movie, Sabrina, and spontaneously bought her book “How to be lovely”. The book  is an easy read and great way to look into the life of this stunning and iconic lady during her time. Furniture and home decor shopping is one of my fave past times and i was beyond excited when i spotted these wooden alphabets in the home section of Cotton On. I am still deciding what alphabet to get and in what color. One of my good old friend from Canada was in town, which offered the perfect opportunity to take her around the city, which we both grew up in. A visit to the Man Mo temple seemed like the ideal thing to do after brunch’ing in the area. It was truly fun to rediscover Hong Kong and explore around like a proper tourist. Mothers day was celebrated over steak for dinner and some lovely flowers to surprise her. Topshop had finally come to Hong Kong, where i received their goodie bag with a lipgloss, leaflet, and a magazine. Getting all dressed up in my LBD (little black dress) with cute ruffles and a red clutch, to meet some friends to try out this new Italian restaurant on a Saturday night.

Getting into healthy mode and enjoying my morning hikes again, where my surroundings consist of  lovely flowers and a beautiful scenic view of Hong Kong. That very moment of reaching the top, and breathing in all the fresh air and having the sun beam on my face is priceless. One random trip to Starbucks for my cold lemonade and i met a complete stranger, whom i disguise as Mr. A here, happened to be from my home town, Denmark, and the rest was history. I arranged for a trip up to the peak with Mr. A, upon his request,  and it was an experience that was absolutely unforgettable and worthwhile. We had some delicious steak over red wine, where the night ended with this breath taking night view of Hong Kong, with all the sky scrapers lit up in unison from afar. Celebration for my birthday with close friends over a nice meal and great company, and a surprise of two mini birthday cakes, which just completed this special day of mine. One of my good friend from high school, being as thoughtful as she always is, got me a Tiffany jewelry bowl for my belated birthday. It’s a perfect storage space for my precious Tiffany necklace and bracelet. During the mid September month, along with the moon being fully rounded in shape, it was blatant that Mid Autumn festival was upon us. With my sister and her boyfriend in town, we decided to visit the local Mid Autumn Festival market in Causeway Bay. A market packed with people taking photos everywhere, we patiently savored the moment and enjoyed the sight  of beautiful lanterns designed in all sorts of form, such as dim sum, lotus flowers, Chinese goddesses, and etc. A weekend getaway from the busy city to Lamma island. The peaceful and scenic view of this island, which is only an hour away by boat, never fails to refresh my mind and soul.

Stashing up on my fashion magazines to stay updated on the current fashion trends. Enjoying a quiet weekend on my own over brunch at this new restaurant i discovered, with my fave eggs benedicts and a cup of cappuccino.  I always think that “me time” are very vital and precious, and it’s a good time to reflect on myself. Lying in on a lazy weekend and catching up on my fave old American series, Sex and the City, is the best way to combat the cold winter season. Doing research at home for my up coming Europe trip with a friend, to London and my home town, Copenhagen. Started my health morning breakie at work again, where i have oatmeal topped with a lot of fruits and sunflower seeds. At the Christmas market in Tivoli in Copenhagen, where i was in awe by the sight of this tree filled with hearts and this Christmas tree behind it.

May this year bring everyone even more happy memories and fulfilling experiences to live by. Happy New Year and welcome to 2014!!!

Photo credits: all photos by me

February Love 2013

Chinese New Year celebration was in full swing with colorful flowers and kum quat trees being decorated around the house. Lovely afternoon chill time with friends over cake and tea at the cosy “Zelo” located in Pacific Place Shopping mall, which has a really modern and stylish design to its interior.  Painted my nails in green with some glitter to add some fun as we entered the year of the snake!

Ms. C was in town visiting and had arranged a lovely evening for Ms. S’s birthday and also for my belated 30th, at the Domani Ristorante. She had some contacts and managed to get us a lovely table with the view of Hong Kong island, where drinks were prepared in advance. Drinking the night away with champagne, red wine, and dessert wine, while catching up like old times, was definitely a  great way to spend a joint birthday together. Valentines Day came before i knew it, and being still single, i was really touched when i went to Pret A Manger for my morning coffee and salmon/cucumber bun, and  found a small heart shaped short bread placed inside the paper bag along with my breakie. It is these small gestures that really gets to my heart at times.  Quiet stroll along the Victoria Harbour after a filling meal to burn off some excess calories, whilst taking in the beautiful night view of Hong Kong, never fails to impress me.

Spent a relaxing Sunday evening over a friend’s house party where the fabulous host had prepared delicious food and desserts. A pot of hot lychee and rose tea was served into these lovely looking Wedgwood tea cups, which complemented well with the home made chocolate cake, to neutralize the overall sweetness. Regular visits to the Vibe bar at the Mira hotel as of lately, has proved to be an enjoyable experience where my friends and I sit and talk for hours over wine and cocktails. The circular chandelier at its lobby entrance manages to fascinate me every time i go there and i think i’ve fallen in love with it. Lovely daffodils were welcomed into the house to welcome the Chinese new year and to hope for a fresh and better start.

I am blessed for each and every day that was filled with love, fun, laughters, and sharing special moments with people i love and care for. You are my February Love 2013.

“Happy Chinese New Year”

It was Chinese New Year last week and like every year, my parents and i went back to Shenzhen, China, to spend some quality time with our families. I always love the time spent with families over delicious and traditional Chinese food, and catching up with loved ones. This a very festive time of the year in Shenzhen where the city is bombarded with lovely flowers and Chinese fireworks being set off from a distant.

One of the things i like most about Chinese New Year are the beautiful flowers that my mom and dad hand picks from the flower market. The flower market is always busy during this time of the year, both during day time and night time. It was my third time going to the Shenzhen flower market with my parents, and i was basically squashed like a pancake. We managed to buy a pot of beautiful Daffodils and left the place within 20 minutes.  My mom also loves buying lilies, orchids, and other flowers, and decorates them around the house, as a way to welcome the new year.

My parents had some super cute red pockets (lai see) this year, where there are two designs, a cute Chinese boy and Chinese girl dressed in traditional Chinese clothes. It’s a tradition for married couples to put money into these red pockets and give them out to kids and families, or friends, that are not married, as a blessing to them.

Another thing that i enjoy very much about the Chinese New Year is helping my mom to fill up the candy box. It’s a tradition to have a traditional Chinese style box that is filled with yummy candies, different kinds of nuts, and all sorts of goodies, that are passed out to families or friends when they come over to visit. My mom always gets the most delicious goodies s or anything that is new or looks interesting. This year we also included the Cranberry flavored nougats that i got on my trip to Vancouver and people loved it! My other favorites were the Macadamia filled crunchy nut bar and the Lindt Landor milk chocolate truffle.

We finished off our Chinese New Year in Shenzhen with a trip down to Dongmen, which is an shopping area, where you can find cheap goods, such as gadgets, clothes, fake designer bags and shoes, kitchenware, local food stands, and the list goes on. We had dim sum for lunch in the area and then took a walk before we called it a day.

Photo Sunday – year of the dragon, happy Chinese New Year!!!

Welcoming the Chinese New Year

Yes, i’m finally back home and back to my blogging again!!! I gotta say, it’s good to be back to a more civilized world, lol.  To be honest, i’ve missed my blogging and fellow bloggers too!!! These past 3 days have been a well spent Chinese new year with my families where i was surrounded by Chinese fireworks 24/7 and it would scare the crap outta me. There was constantly this sudden loud bang that erupted in the village with no warning, and they lasted for a good old minute or so. But it was a great joy to see everyone with  high spirits and selling food/fruits in the village with such happiness.

The after math of the Chinese fireworks

The fruit markets in the village

The family visitations, family dinners, delish traditional Chinese food, fire works, festive flowers, and just all the prep work leading up to the big Chinese Lunar New Year’s Day, is truly a fascinating moment. It’s a lot of work but definitely worth all the effort. Trust me, there’s like a gazillion things to do! This year i took part in cleaning the house, changing  bed sheets, helping my mom put money in the red pockets/envelops (aka lai sees) for good luck to people, arranging the lovely flowers, and piling up on the nuts and sweet treats for visitors when they come over to send their new year greetings.

It’s also a custom to buy these mini posters look alike with Chinese blessing words on it, and hang them in your house throughout the year. Normally i never have to take care of this but i found these really super cute Forever Friends Chinese blessing words the other week, and bought them righ away, as shown below.  I think they are just soooo adorable and brings that bit of a modern feel to our tradition,hehe. 

This is only the beginning of how many red pockets i’ve received, hehe

Sweet treats and savory nuts for visitors

Festive flowers for Chinese New Year

Lovely pink flowers

Daffodils symbolizing rebirth or new beginnings

Kumquats (tangerines) tree symbolizing prosperity

Blessing words that are put up at home throughout the year

I hope all these photos of how i spent my Chinese New Year will enable you to get a better feeling of how it really is!!! Once again, Happy Chinese New Year and  may this year be a great one for you all!!!

All photos accredited to me

Fashion takes on Asia!

The Chinese New Year is arriving in exactly 2 days and that means Feb 3nd will mark as the first day of 2011, by Chinese definition,lol. Oh, and it’s the year of the Rabbit if you guys were wondering. Anyhow, so i’ll be getting off work at 1pm tomorrow and then i get 4 days off straight up!!! Yeahhhhhhh!!!! What a great way to celebrate eh!?!?! No work – i love it!

Like every year, i’ll be going back to my parent’s village in China where we basically meet families, eat traditional family dinners, go visit families/friends and have a good laugh and of course, i get to receive my red pockets. For those of you that don’t know about this Chinese tradition, the elderly or married couples hand out red pockets with money in it to people that are single, which is for good luck and prosperity. The Chinese New  Year is like the main event of the year for the Chinese people, and everyone enjoys the Chinese style fireworks, getting jammed into the New Year flower markets, where they sell loads of lovely flowers, random gadgets, and it’s  just a wild festive spirit! But i do get overwhelmed by it all after a while and i’ll just die to go home to chill in my own space, lol. Oh and the worst is, we have to clean our house up side down on a particular day to symbolize renewal (new year, new year, u get it?lol)  and i absolutely dread that day! lol 

As i’ll have no internet access during my stay in China, i’m afraid i’ll be away from my blogging for a few days but i’ll be back before you know it, i promise;) As a pre – celebration for this big day, i’ve decided to post some fabulously and fashionably Asian  infused photos of these gorgeous Chinese models and actresses.  Hope you guys like it!

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!!!! 

Wishing you all the health, wealth, and happiness in the rabbit year:) 

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