Eat. Travel. Eat!

After disembarking from the Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 , it was time for the next step in my journey: a seven hour layover in Seoul Incheon International Airport! Prior to beginning the trip, I had read about how Seoul Incheon International Airport fuses culture for all passengers through various tours and programs . As I disembarked the plane, this became quickly evident, with large poster boards displaying delicious Korean cuisine and picturesque landscapes. Walking down the walkway, a transfer sign then directed me to the next step in the transfer process: a quick security screening. Given that the Asiana flight arrived so early in the morning (around 5 AM), there were barely any passengers other than those on my flight, and as I was one of the last to disembark, I barely even had to wait! A looser screening took place-- no need to remove belts and shoes, and no full x-ray scan-- and I was off to explore the airport. *Note: If you wanted to go on one of the ma...

An advantage of staying at any hotel at Pacific Place (especially the Island Shangri-La and Conrad) is the proximity to Hong Kong Park. Hong Kong is a bustling city, and Hong Kong Park offers a calm environment in an area bustling with business activity. Like the Expo Promenande , Hong Kong Park has its own host of various monuments. This monument commemorates the opening of Hong Kong Park, which opened in May 1991. With the holiday season, Hong Kong businesses seem to decorate profusely. One restaurant put out these nutcrackers along the stairs to the restaurant. Besides the lush greenery, random art exhibits are placed in open spots. I don't really understand this particular one though; is this supposed to represent a community? Other monuments, like this one dedicated to WO 2 John Robert Osborn VC, are also in the park. Like most monuments, these reveal many details when one walks closer to glance and enjoy them. Hong Kong Park also offers some great views of the...

With the holidays comes a plethora of various expos in Hong Kong, and so after breakfast we decided to head towards the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) to visit the game expo. There, we found out there was not only just the game expo, but also lots of other festivals/expos like the Hong Kong Food Festvial. The expos however were already quite full; there were plenty of attendees-- a wide variety of cosplay donned on some people, and cameras on other people like yours truly. Instead of attending an expo like we had planned, we instead decided to walk around and explore the area. Right outside HKCEC is Golden Bahunia Square/Expo Promenade, where the Golden Bahunia is located. This sculpture commemorates the return of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China and the formation of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; but other than that, it's a beautiful piece of architecture to look at and to take pictures of! Seemingly popular these days, the...

These past weeks, or perhaps I should say this past school year, has soared right past me; and suddenly, the business that I have attended to for now has abruptly closed, and half of 2011 has passed by! The time of year where the senior class for high schools and higher level institutions has arrived, and right now for them is a time to think not only about their present day situation, but to also think about their future. Graduation for Arcadia High's class of 2011 was just yesterday, and provided plenty of inspiration towards the graduating class as well as the audience through the speeches. Like the speeches at any commencement ceremony, colleges and universities are also quite inspirational. My visit to Stanford University was likewise very much so; and with this special time of year, I am starting yet another trip series but this time, not from the beginning. It was a brilliant day to head outside on our second day of the trip; the temperature was cool and...