London | 28 Degree and Sunny
There's something special about the European Summer. Those sandy beaches and seafood pasta, pink sky and longer days are making it much harder for anyone to be anywhere else. I love Shanghai as much as the next person, but god, summer in the city is just a cross to bear. 100% humidity, rains almost every day, sometimes 48 hours non-stop. Like what?
So this summer I planned a two weeks getaway to England and spent a wonderful time with my nearest and dearest.
I know, I know, England for summer? Really? Why?
Honestly, I wasn't sure in the beginning either. But I figured as long as I'm in Europe, I can just hop on a train or plane if England's summer fails me. So with some extra scarf and jacket packed in my summer luggage, I took the flight to a little town called London.
Wow, was I surprised that the whole time when I was there, United Kingdom was sunny and hot like a proper summer every day! They even had their heatwave (29 degrees! LOL) ！Summer '18 might just be Europe's best summer yet.
First and foremost, we obviously took our first day in London as proper tourists and went to all the sites that you've probably seen a million times. But like "There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people's eyes", my experience is unique to myself. Walking on Piccadilly street like what I have read from "Mrs. Dalloway" is something personal and emotional, and when we walked down the Fleet street, I thought of Yeats and his "The Lake Isle of Innisfree " immediately.
We went to the London Eye and my fear of height decided to kick in at that very moment. It's not even that high but because it's not very still as the cabin is shaking by the wind, I couldn't move at all only to hold on to the bench. Money well spent.
If the London Eye made me almost cry, then the London Dungeon just made the 27-year-old me burst into tears! Even though I know everyone is just acting and everything is fake, it's just way too much for me to handle. I only signed up for it because I saw a 9-year-old boy was in the group too, and I figured it can't be that scary, turned out, I can't even beat a 9-year-old. Shame.
I couldn't be happier when the tour in the dungeon was finally over, and I was able to breathe under the sun again. Walking around with ice cream in my hand, I felt grounded and safe. Tate Modern in front, St. Paul's Cathedral in the back, Jasmine blooms on the sidewalk and the wall, red phone booth kept reminding me where I was.
The sundown came as late as 10 pm as we were crossing from the south bank of the Thames. The Knight bridge was on our right side. That was a beautiful summer sunset, the whole sky was rendered by the color of orange, like a piece of work from Claude Monet, my favorite artist de le Impressionnisme.
Do you believe the charm of "love at first sight"? Do you believe it's all written in the stars? The first time I came to visit, you abandoned your usual " 15 degrees and gloomy ", and welcomed me with sunshine and flowers. It's my first time landed on the island physically, but I felt I've known you from long ago already.
"与君初相识， 犹如故人归。"
( I can't and don't want this poem to be translated. If you know, you know.)
All photos my own shot in London, United Kingdom.
Balibaba | In the Jungle, the Mighty Jungle
I tend to write about every trip in just three posts and trust me, it's not an easy job! I have to skip a lot of things that I wanted to talk about. But if you do understand a simple language that is called Mandarin, then, by all means, go to the Chinese version of it, you will know that I like to yada yada a lot.
It was one typical hot Bali afternoon, we were hiking to a spa that we reserved a month ago. The whole hike is about 30 minutes, but my weak city legs stretched it into one hour. And every single time when this happens, I would immediately sign up a gym class back home and end up not going. (can't deal with gym, really. )
Apart from my weak city legs that caused the delay, I was also just taking a moment and soaking in the beautiful scenery along the way. It's simply breathtaking.
Ah Jungle!
In the house where I spent most of my summers as a little girl, we had this small forest in the backyard. According to my grandpa (may he rest in peace), years ago, it was a grand river, and it went dry up and trees and other things started to grow in it. And half a century later, it became what it is today. A lot of the nap time, or so my grandparents believed that I did nap, I would escape the house with bare feet and go down to the little "jungle" with my other fellow "nap-skippers". We'd climb up to the mulberry trees, or lie down on the grass, it's so quite, and only the cicadas sang along, strangely I found it's very soothing.
So walking around besides the real jungle just bring back those sweet memories! I also saw houses among those trees and could not help but wonder what their lives look like? How does it feel to live in such a luxury oxygen factory? Would they want to trade life with me? Even just for a short brief moment?
The Massage in Karsa Spa is so good that I slept the entire time! Honest writing about it just put me into that mood again and I almost fall asleep! The room is quite private but not completely closed, they have the sarong instead of the door so that the hot breeze went through the entire room and it just felt so relaxed. They also have an outdoor shower in the garden which is just incredible. The last time I had an outdoor shower was in a Tibetan tribe family house facing Qinghai lake. There is something about outdoor showers. They are of course private and honestly, no one else will see you, but you still kind of feel bold and fun and has the thrill that someone might just pass through. Does that sound pervy? No?
I mean the massage was that good that we decided to stay a little longer and have a drink, and a drink led to a long lunch. We talked about everything and nothing, and time just went by like that. I stared at these rice fields and thought about one article of Shanghainese writer Chen Danyan. It was published in Traveller Magazine I believe. I read about it when I was in high school. (wondering if that magazine still exits?) She and her daughter were traveling in Bali. And One afternoon in a ventilated gazebo, everything seemed so quiet and peaceful. She felt a little tipsy, not sure if it's the gin tonic or the gorgeous view. She fell asleep, without the help of the Balinese massage. And that was her best memory of that trip.
I didn't know if I was just mumbling or actually telling the story out loud. But that day, I got to experience what Chen Danyan has experienced and I know the young girl in the school library would be happy to know that too.
Isn't life just beautiful?
All photos my own shot in Bali, Indonesia.
Balibaba | Live under a Volcano
We designed a perfect route up north to chase the world famous waterfalls, little did we know that the weather would be a bitch in the mix. It almost never rained during my stay, but after our first beautiful Nung Nung waterfall, we were driving in the rain on the top of the mountains the whole afternoon. It was cats and dogs, and we couldn't open our eyes. When the rain finally stopped, we found ourselves arrived in a quiet town called Lovina. Hot shower and ice cream later, we went to bed early, with a dream of a sunny tomorrow.
Oh boy was it a good dream!
The next day we got up together with the sunrise. We were at a boat when the sun shines all over. It's so rare to catch a sunrise in the city, so this moment seemed particularly precious to us. Morning breeze went through my oversize white blouse, I was having my coffee inside the boat, and thinking how wonderful life is.
With a lot agenda in our plate, we thanked the host for his hospitality and headed to the volcano.
Through the weekend temple traffic, we came to a lookout where the volcano is right in front of us. And under the volcano, there's houses and homes. I thought of Pompei, the ancient city that got ruined by the volcano. It was just like that, kids were playing, couples were eating, farmers in the field and fish man in the sea, in the blink of time, all gone.
The two things in life I revere the most are the mysterious nature, and the invisible time.
We headed down to the famous spring, my body floats in the warm water, I thought of Aristotle. “In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.” I thought of this famous line by him one afternoon at the top of Zurich, and once again, well put my great thinker, well put.
A rather long relaxed hot spring later, we set off on the road again. The sun started to move toward the west, so did we. We need to catch the dinner reservation back in Ubud.
There's something special about passing through a volcano. Weeds grow out on the bare rocks after the years. Unnamed yellow flowers sparsely scattered in between. I thought of Route 66, Thema & Louise, and every single western movie with Ennio Morricone's soundtrack.
I don't know where I will be many years from now, maybe also on an island, maybe another earth. But in my twenties, I have journeyed in a wonderful wild land, with my favorite person. This and the yellow flower at the foot of the mountain will remind me of the ever so bright youth. And I know in one of these cold nights when I can't sleep, I will journey back to the sunny and forever youthful days, and feeling absolutely lucky.
“...And fare thee weel a while;
And I will come again, my luve,
Tho’s it were ten thousand mile!"
All photos my own shot in Bali, Indonesia.
Balibaba | Hi Canggu is that you?
Even though “never say never,” I’m almost sure I will never return to the magical island that is called Bali.
It’s not because it’s bad that I don’t want to go again, on the complete contrary, It was too good, it was surreal, it was once in a lifetime adventure. I want to hold on to this feeling of warmth and happiness. I’m afraid returning back will ruin it, and it would be an insult to the memory we shared.
I’m always longing for something “long ago," and “far away”. So because Bali is right there, I never thought of going until early this spring when opportunity offered itself.
I have just finished a week of work in Hong Kong, flew back to Shanghai, immediately changed the Art week business attire to tropical island dresses in my carryon and next thing I know, I’m already in the plane again, heading to summer.
Hi Canggu is that you?
I always wonder what is it that people just seem much happier under the sun and by the water? Quite literally from the concrete jungle to jungle, we drove from Ubud to Canggu in the afternoon sun, I could not wait any longer to see the sea. After all, we are on an island right?
I will spare you with the thousand pics I had snapped on my phone, but a couple of them. I remember posting a Chinese journal that night using the photos fresh out of the oven, no filter, not even any light fixing. What you see here is exactly what I saw. There are boys playing soccer on the beach, and there are girls surfing in the sea. The dogs they run, in the golden sun.
Hours later the sun started to set and here returns the surfer. My nose started to peel and I turned my head to the person sat by my side. I wanted to tell him " thank you", I had a thousand words at the tip of my tongue. But instead, I hold his hands and said nothing at all.
When the sky largely turned into pink, we hit the road again and headed back to where there's the jungle, the deities and spirits, and the endless adventures.
All photos my own shot in Canggu, Bali.
The "No Makeup" Makeup
No, I’m not talking about my daily makeup routine.
I don't wear makeup to work most of the time. Only when we have openings or other events that require me to be a decent human being in a public place. I then will apply my 5 mins makeup routine that my cousin told me over the phone 7 years ago.
Don’t get me wrong, I have so much respect for the ladies out there who get up an hour earlier just to get their makeup done. They seem so “put together”. I wish I can be one of them (when I grow up)? So far I’m just a girl who eats a banana in the car whilst put some tinted moisture on and calls it a day.
So when China born, Canada raised Makeup artist Tina Cai reached out and asked if I can be her model, I was sold in a heartbeat.
Just like I get my nails done by professionals because I’m so bad at doing it myself, I love the touch of a makeup artist’s hand and the brushes swipe over my face. When you do your own makeup, you look at yourself in the mirror all the time, when someone else is doing, I usually only check when it’s all done to see the final result.
Tina studied my face and said she would give me a very light look, a look that is still very me.
Wait, I thought my look is “just add the red lipstick”?
The truth is, “No Makeup” Makeup is definitely Not " No Makeup." Tina spent about an hour to finish the entire look, and I love it very much. It's refreshing, light, yet delicate. Using my friend Liya’s words, “It looks like it’s there, but it’s not at the same time.” when I do my own makeup. I thought because I don't wear anything on my face I need a bold lip color to wake me up. And red lipstick is my security blanket, if I don't wear it I feel like I'm naked... but Tina believes that nude lipstick is my new best friend and I am willing to give it a go.
“Why can’t you be like this every day?” Liya asked me.
Well, I wish I could, can we talk about it, Tina?
Makeup by Tina Cai, photo by Xiaoyu shot in Art+ Shanghai Gallery.
Saturday at Home
Shanghai is a great city to meet people.
You never know who you gonna run into at the corner dumpling shop ( insert name: Moritz, Oliver), who’s gonna open your taxi door outside of your compound on a Tuesday night ( insert name: Diego). Pain Chaud is where I met my favorite Arabian Habibi ( insert name: Ahmed ), and I found my “ best hello ” one summer afternoon in an art gallery event ( insert name: anonymity ).
Fast forward to four years later, while Shanghai still is as exciting, I found myself more and more staying in and having quality time with myself. Be it an age thing, the weather factor, or whatever it is that makes it harder and harder for me to put on a dress and go for a 3 hour long, 6 people above social event.
As much as I want to be like Olivia Palermo, tres chic even when walks her dog, I can often be found in PJs and an overcoat while walking my two monsters in downtown Jing’an. Since I had the magic power to keep all the exes out of the country, there’s nothing left to worry about, I figured.
That being said, when I do want to spend a day at home, I would still get up ( sometimes even earlier than weekdays ) and get showered. Strangely it’s much easier for me to put on a silk dress when I know I don’t have to go places. This Realisation Par dress is called “The Juliet," so naturally I have to have it.
Play my forever favorite Sade album, sit in the home office for some emails or return to bed for some classic reading. I will be in my happiest habitat. Even my two little monsters would get the memo and quietly sleep on my slippers (nope, not in any of the three beds that belong to them).
Time alone becomes much needed and necessary this time of the year when your daily routine involves a lot of events and cocktails already. You will have to take yourself to the sidewalk, hit pause, and reflect. Tell me, through the martini glass, are you really happy?
With just 14 days left to its grand finale, I’m slowly making peace with 2018. I emotionally invested so much in this year that in some level I can’t wait for it to be over already, but I know it will be “ a year to remember," a year that I will look back to again and again when it’s actually gone.
Here is to Saturdays at home, the quality time with yourself. No matter how great that club looked like in your friend’s Instagram story, you are still truly happy with staying in.
What is that word again?
Oh, JOMO.
Photo by Xiaoyu shot in my casa.
Note on Culture
Many years ago when I was living abroad. One night my friend had an emergency and I took her to the hospital. Instead of checking the patient’s broken finger, the doctor turned to me and said, "So Chinese people are tall now? " I sensed the tone and couldn’t just ignore, I knew my mother would say: " be the bigger person and let it go " but I replied: " Well doctor, aren’t there tall and short people everywhere? We are all different. ” He continued:” I just didn’t know they are producing tall people in China too. ” I was this close to snap but then he turned to my friend and actually started his duty as a doctor.
Funny enough, It was my friend’s middle finger that got caught by the door and during the whole check-up, she was giving him the finger that I would give.
I’m sure he meant no harm, but it occurred to me just how people still have that stereotype of China?
You would be amazed how many times I heard people say, “ But you are not a typical Chinese, you can’t represent the majority.”
But darling, if I am an authentic Chinese, what I do, what I say should represent my generation, my people. You can’t ignore me because I don’t fit in that image in your head. What you should do, is maybe get your facts right and more importantly, up to date, and embrace who we really are, because like it or not, We are coming.
At least I am. At full force.
In the hope of helping people to understand better my country and my people, people who actually live in this century, I created this culture category, one post at a time, use my own voice, to present my generation to the rest of the world so that next time when you think of me, you won’t have that picture of a girl, dressing in Qipao and trying to eat pizza with her chopsticks anymore.
Please D&G, we all use hands.
Photo by my favorite Paul Claussen shot in an old historical building on East Beijing Rd, Shanghai, China.
* Editor's note: this location is no longer available to the public, the building is under construction.
Note on Travel
My love for travel came early and it was influenced by two people: My father and Echo.
We have a globe in the house and that’s both me and my dad’s favorite thing. We’d turn the globe and I would point my finger on it when it stops, and my dad would tell me everything about that place, history, politics, and the people. It was such a wonderful thing to know there are so many fascinating places in the world and I promised myself that I would go and see with my eyes one day. Also, thanks to my dad, I never come in second place in geography exams!
And then there’s Echo. I read her book at a very young age, they are everywhere in my house too, her books belong to my mother, I could not stop reading them through once I discovered her. I used to introduce her to my foreign friends as “the first travel blogger and influencer in the 70s.” she traveled everywhere in the world, spoke Chinese, Spanish, German, and English.
Her life with her Spanish husband in the Sahara desert that she documented in her first book《Sahara stories》 made her famous. Through her writing, People back in the East got to know the rest of the world. Her book《Gentle nights》documented her life in the Canary Islands, oh that island life! I was devastated when I read about her husband’s accident and learned later that she committed suicide. It was a beautifully sad story.
I read all her books, but I chose to keep always the first two, the ones that she wrote before the accident, the happy Echo, I intentionally chose to live a happy life. I know it’s not what life is all about, but it reminds me of the beauty of travel and love and life itself. No matter how many times I moved, these two books will forever be found dogeared in my shelves.
So thanks, Dad and Echo, thank you for showing me the world at an early age and teaching me to appreciate the diversity of different cultures. You planted the seeds in my heart, and everywhere I go, it feels like coming home.
Photo shot in Chaka Salt Lake, Qinghai, China.