I went to Cal for my baby cousin’s graduation. I can’t believe I graduated 3-years ago! Made me SUPER nostalgic and sad… He’s the last one in the family to graduate, so everyone was super excited! For someone who appears to be lazy on the outside (like all guys, obviously), he’s made me so proud <3 Out of his several offers, he decided to join Deloitte (which coincidentally happens to be in my building). We’ve never been too close… probably because he’s the only guy in the family here and doesn’t share any similar interest, but hopefully that’ll change! I’m so proud of him! 

Nothing beats home cooked steak & hot links! NOM NOM NOM

I’m glad I survived this past weekend. Between celebrating my roommate’s birthday back to back Friday & Saturday, followed by bright and early B2B celebration on Sunday, I wasn’t sure if I would make it! But figured this would be a good “pre-trial” to surviving EDC weekend in just TWO weeks. 

Friday - @ Grand

Friday night, we went to the Grand (again) for Ng’s birthday. So many familiar faces that I haven’t seen in a while - loved it! I hate to jump on the bandwagon, but Grand has been having awesome DJing / music / LIGHTS + confetti!!! <3 I’ve been pretty bad at taking photos recently since I don’t take out my camera much, unfortunately.

Saturday - Cosmic Bowling @ Lucky Strike’s

I’ve never gone to cosmic bowling (aka. bowling + drinking) before.. it was really fun! There were about 20 of us.. and for ~$65/person, it was unlimited beer + wine, finger food and bowling for 2 hours. None of us were bowlers by any means, but it was great company and booze.. what more could you ask for? 

Sunday - B2B (my first time!)

Note - this is around 9AM in the morning.. yes, taking shots for breakfast

My batman (girls)! <3 I’m glad it was such a success. We bought those kid-costume cape for $6/piece! 

Shot gunning beers at 9AM… no big deal ;)

Yes, we’re popping champagne in the street..

SO CRAZY! I can’t believe this is what I’ve been missing out on the past 2 years..! I was always so lazy to get up in the morning (and couldn’t understand drinking at 8AM), but I TOTALLY GET IT NOW! 

Nothing better than a weekend full of girlfriend festivities! :D

This past weekend was absolutely WONDERFUL. GORGEOUS weather in SF which we know doesn’t come around very often. It’s funny how weather alone can put me in a better mood…

Friday night - the Deltasig happy hour @ Cigar Bar. It’s been awhile since I’ve been to one.. but it was so good to see / re-connect with everyone! Makes me realize how “old” I feel.. and how much I miss school and taking everything (freedom, time, friends) for granted.

Bdub loving <3 since fall 2006… 5/13 Can’t believe it’s been SIX years.

With couple UCLA deltasigs :)

Afterwards, went to watch long-waited Avengers with Danni. I can’t remember the last time I watched a movie on opening night, but I’ve been patiently waiting for this movie for over a year! I heard that it hit a record $200M+ during this opening weekend. UNBELIEVABLE. Captain America <3 is my favorite!

Saturday - woke up early since we had a full day ahead of us (with Danni & Tran). After a quick stop at Philz Coffee for our morning fuel (love!), I drove us to Napa. First stop - Domaine Carneros for sparkling wine & cheese tasting. Gorgeous weather.. wine + cheese + great company = happiness! 

Afterwards, drove over to our fabulous Travelzoo spa treatment! It was exactly what we needed <3 1 hour full-body massage, 1 hour pedicure / foot massage & 1 hour facial. We stuck around for a bit and hung out at the steam room & relax.. perfect way to end a spa session! Really should do this more often…

Yay for pretty toes..!!! Been awhile since I’ve gotten a pedicure!

On our way to Ad-Hoc for dinner, we also stopped by Bouchon Bakery which is just down the street. Unfortunately, I was too excited about my macaroons and forgot to take photos :( Dinner was also good - but not AS GOOD as I had anticipated. They’re known for their fried chicken (which I was hoping for), but given their daily pre-fix dinner.. it was T-bone lamb night. WOMP WOMP. Lamb is okay, but it’s not my personal favorite so I don’t think I liked it as much as I’d hoped…

Overall though, it was one of the best (and relaxing) Saturdays I’ve had in awhile.

Sunday - lunch with Helen to catch up… her Coachella trip, my HK/TW trip, jobs, boys & life. Shame that she’s been getting completely crushed, so it’s hard to see each other more often (and also given my grandma status). But it’s times that I catch up with friends currently in banking that keeps me in check & reminds me of why I needed to get out <3 It’s been 1 year and 2 months into my job, and I’ve been such a happier person… and I’m glad that I’m trying to make the most out of my free-time / weekends (although it’s turning out to be so expensive!) :) 

Dinner - we had going away dinner for Jen @ Izakaya Sozai (which we’ve been meaning to try for so long!). Given that there were so many of us and minimum $25/per person spending, we practically got to try everything on the menu including dessert.

I’m definitely sad to see her go - it really is the closing of (yet) another chapter. Although she practically moved out several months ago, it’s still different not being able to see each other as often. Post school, we’ve now lived together for almost 3-years… 3 very important years in our 20s. She’s been there through so many of my “up and down” moments including bf troubles, job-related troubles, etc. I guess this is part of growing up & people move on. <3 Good luck to your NEXT chapter fen fen ;) 

———————

It was a busy couple weeks - HK/TW, OC/LA, Napa… :) I’m done with my travels (for awhile) until EDC weekend 6/8. SO STOKED. 

I booked my trip to go to Korea on 8/25 with my sister to visit our parents and grandma <3 I’m very excited! 

I can’t believe it’s been almost 6 years since my parents left. I still remember driving them to SFO, and crying profusely by myself on my drive back to Berkeley. 

… how time flies! Why is it that I feel like I’M the only one who refuses to grow up? :(

So simple, yet so fun <3 

Last Tuesday (before I left for the conference), I got a nice surprise in the office from the bf - white peonies <3 I’ve never gotten peonies before, and it was for no occasion - so I was very very excited :) Unfortunately, it was my last day in the office for the week which was a bummer… because when I came back, it wasn’t so lively anymore :(

I definitely appreciate the small random (no reason) gifts. Despite 6000+ miles away, it’s his way of always reminding me that he’s thinking of me.

I spent this past week / weekend in Orange County and LA. I was there for our annual healthcare conference at the Ritz Carlton resort in Dana Point. SO GORGEOUS. Such a small little beach town filled with million/billionaires… <3 SOMEDAY. 

Seriously… so breath-taking <3 

Friday afternoon, my co-worker and I drove down to LA since we were already in OC. I wanted to visit my sister and had made plans with Danni to go to Disneyland!

This girl & I have been besties since 5th grade :) We’ve now known each other for more than half our lives. So crazy how quickly time flies.. because I can STILL remember when we met… and (useless) hours spent on the phone gossiping and talking in middle school. 

We went bright and early since we had to leave by 4PM. Between fast passes and our CAREFUL & STRATEGIC planning, we were successfully able to go on all the major rides that we had anticipated. Also, we were lucky that it wasn’t a holiday or long weekend and did not end up waiting in line for more than 30 minutes for anything EVER. 

At night, I drove us to Holllywood Bowl to attend the 10th annual Korean Music Festival! Thanks to Danni & her lucky karma for winning us 2 free tickets via radio! Unfortunately the line-up was not as good as previous years, but I thought it was still so much fun being in such a large stadium cheering :) It was for all ages and we saw a lot of folks who came in families - actually made me miss my parents because this is something that they would have really enjoyed. 

I didn’t recognize a lot of the musicians, except for Brown Eyed Girls:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yH-BaKdhRvE

On Sunday, given our hectic Saturday, we decided to sleep in and take it easy. My sis took us out for Sunday dim-sum lunch… then Danni & I made our way over to Bottega Louie for AMAZING desserts - tiramiu & strawberry shortcake with coffee.

By this point, we were BEYOND stuffed.. but honestly, those were some of the BEST desserts EVER!! Such unique tart-y taste for the strawberry shortcake with a hint of.. lime? I don’t know, but it was DAMN good. 

I got back to SF around 10PM Sunday evening and called it a night. 

I love fun-action-filled weekend! 

Next-up: Girls wine & cheese night tonight at my pad, Napa with Danni & Tran on Saturday for some pampering and dinner @ Ad-Hoc, my baby cousin’s graduation at Cal next Saturday. Stay tuned!

It’s been awhile since I’ve had a night out in SF with the girls. With Jen & Jen both being in serious relationships, and with me traveling all the time and out of town, and with conflicting schedules with the girls, it’s been hard to set up a girls day post Vegas for Steph’s birthday in early March. 

Friday - with the weather FINALLY being somewhat decent without rain, Steph & Carolyn & I decided to have a “chill” night out at 620 Jones for Jen Lu’s birthday:

(With the birthday girl) 

Little did we know.. that having a “chill” night out would end up with all 3 of us getting massively hammered, and with hangovers that lasted throughout the day on Sunday! Note to self - it’s a bad idea to pre-party with back to back shots, then decide to END the night with a shot as well.. <3 being enabler. 

Saturday - we had plans for afternoon brunch at Bisou (which turned out to be a bit disappointing) and hiking at Twin Peaks. I’ve previously been to Bisou for Yang’s dinner couple years ago http://www.yelp.com/biz/bisou-san-francisco which was really delicious, but the brunch was very disappointing this time around. First, the service was terrible - they completely forgot 2 of the 7 orders, delayed / SLOW service throughout… and to make it worse, food portions were small and very mediocre. 

We ended up not hiking the entire way as planned, but it was still really fun nonetheless. To top it off, Yang brought Hercules so it was an added bonus :) Afterwards, we took a detour to Four Barrels Coffee in Castro to grab coffee and hang out. I totally forgot that there are so many interesting stores / places in Castro area! I really should explore different neighborhoods in SF much more often. We’re planning to go to Berkeley soon to do the firetrail hike, eat some delicious Berkeley foods <3 

Despite my massive hangover, it was a very productive Saturday! Unfortunately, today (Sunday), was spent mostly at home watching TV and working for couple hours in the office. Tomorrow, I’m off to Dallas for one night for work! Then next week, I’m in OC and LA…! Lots of travel. Toodles~

Just got back from my long-waited Hong Kong / Taiwan trip. This trip (like others) was filled with SO MUCH food.. non-stop! I know I say this every time, but I really had the best time this weekend… and it’s crazy how each trip always seems to get a little better than last ;) 

Friday 4/6 - Happy birthday to my booski

I landed in HK local time around 6:30AM.. Andy picked me up from the airport and we went to get my pork bun & shrimp wonton noodle soup. YUM. I can never get sick of pork buns…

(I love this shrimp wonton noodle! Only like $3)

(at HK airport on our way)

We had a 230PM flight to Taiwan, so headed back out to airport around noon.. hectic day, filled with airports! In 24 hours, I managed to be at 3 different airports! Craziness. Andy booked first class (LOL) to Taiwan… so we got to hang out at the lounge! (<- country girl). It wasn’t as awesome as I had anticipated.. (food wise). After a quick 1.5 hour flight to Taiwan, we finally arrived around 5PM. We checked into the W Hotel near 101 Taipei, with an AWESOME view! I really liked this particular W a lot!!! It would be super great for NYE… awesome view of fireworks from the hotel room. 

(view from the living room… Taipei 101!)

(I can take a bath and look at 101! haha)

Andy & I went to dinner at Orange Shabu (recommended by Casey) for his birthday dinner :) I really liked this place a lot! Good for intimate dates, but also great for groups of friends because all the seats are booth-like. We were both pretty stuffed! 

We met up at Casey’s new apartment complex (which was super nice!) then headed over to her friend’s pad to pre-party before Avicii. There were 10+ of us going glow-stick crazy which turned out to be such a SMART move in a huge auditorium! Despite being tired and jetlagged, we managed to party til 3AM, followed by chinese breakfast donuts & soymilk! <3 What a perfect way to end the night. 

(stuffing ourselves…)

Saturday 4/7 

We met up with Frank to visit my beloved - din tai fung! <3 But of course, while Andy & I were waiting for Frank to show up… we decided to get beef noodle soup for ourselves (as an appetizer, of course). People have been raving about this place for so long about their xia long bao that I was absolutely dying to try this place. We got the original XLB and some truffle ones (which was OKAY, but definitely more for show in my opinion and overly pricey).

(I love din tai fung and xia long bao!!!)

(… so much that Andy got me a xia long bao KEYCHAIN. so cute!!!)

We walked around downtown Taipei, ate tons, drank lots of fresh squeeze juice & milk tea for couple hours and rested before heading up to Xinbeitou. 

At night, Andy booked a room for us at Villa 32 in Xinbeitou which is known for their hot spring areas. Perfect cozy little spot up in the hills in beitou for private hot springs :) what more can you ask for… private hot spring & tea & fresh fruit (oh, and of course, your bf too)! 

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g293913-d612675-Reviews-Villa_32-Taipei.html

Unfortunately, I started feeling really sick before xinbeitou, and the hot springs definitely did not help the headache. By the end of the hour, I was feeling really light headed & dizzy! I really thought I was going to pass out! But we made plans to meet up with others at Shilin night market so I wanted to truck it out.. at least for a bit. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shilin_Night_Market) 

Looking back, I’m SO SAD about not feeling well because I didn’t get to eat as much as I wanted to.. but at least got a bite of everything :) we had these awesome grilled mushrooms with sauce, battered/fried chicken with spicy sauce, fried rice, SHAVED ICE (awesome!), etc. Originally we were planning to go out clubbing again, but I was so pooped that we called it a night early. 

Sunday 4/8

Andy & I woke up early and headed to din tai fung again per my request. We spent rest of the morning eating.. more xia long bao, Iron Potato Fries, fresh pineapple juice, boba, more boba at the original boba place, more noodles… I seriously feel like I gained a good couple pounds from my trip. 

We had a 5PM flight back to HK.. first class again ;) we got the sleeper so you can sleep lying down completely! The 1.5 hour flight felt like forever… oh man. Someday, my goal is to fly to/from Asia first class.. *baller status* 

Monday 4/9

We took Diesel on an adventure and decided to go hiking at Lamma Island. It honestly was one of the most fun “hiking” experiences that I’ve ever had.. of course, I’ve only gone hiking just a handful of times. Besides a minor mishap of being ripped off completely by locals (which I don’t want to recall), it was the best adventure ever with Diesel (and Andy). 

(almost there!)

(look at puppy’s eyes! he got so tired half way, he needed to be picked up! SPOILED!)

(we made it!)

(happy puppy in the sand!)

At night, met up with couple of Andy’s friends & Cal deltasigs! <3 Everyone came back from their respective trips this evening, so we met up for dinner & drinks. Went to Yardbird for dinner with Jon & Andy per friends’ recommendations - the food was unique and yummy… but nonetheless kind of overly priced and very small portions.

(Candice, Eunky & Jon)

(me & my little!)

Tuesday 4/10

My last day in HK.. decided to take it relatively easy. We woke up, ate AMAZING egg salad sandwich for breakfast and headed over for our photo-shoot session <3 haha. I’ve never done this before but Andy found a groupon and thought that it would be fun (which it was, and very tiring).

(me.. doing who knows what)

(Andy.. caught red handed)

(Andy showing me that he can juggle)

———————————————————————————————————

That’s all folks. Twas the bestest <3 Peace in the middle east, friends.

In an effort to keep my tumblr alive (mostly for my sake), I’m going to try to post about things that I’m thankful for.. (no matter how small or big). Today, I’m thankful for all my travels - specifically my travels with my loved ones: including family / friends & bf who really make it all worthwhile. 

I’m FINALLY leaving for Hong Kong / Taiwan tonight! T-12 hours!!!!! I feel like I’ve been waiting FOREVER.

4/6-11: Taiwan & Hong Kong to visit Andy. Super stoked to try original din tai fung (in Taipei), see Avicii… and eat lots of dim sum, pork buns, wonton noodle soup in Hong Kong.

4/25-27: Laguna Niguel for HC conference - LOVE this resort. So gorgeous! Some day, I’d love to own / live at a beach-house… *dream

4/27-29: LA to visit my sister… and Disneyland with Danni! Quality S&D time <3

5/5: Napa outing / pampering day with the Ngo sisters - full body massage, facial, pedicure, spa facility! 

6/8-11: Las Vegas & EDC with my girlies & Andy

So many events / trips to look forward to :) This is what keeps me going. This is my daily fuel! 

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/mega-millions-strategies-chance-leading-jackpot/story?id=16020106

The Mega Millions jackpot, the biggest lottery award in the game’s history at an estimated $500 million, has millions of people dreaming, however ridiculous the odds may be.

The odds of getting struck by lightning are about one in 280,000, according to the National Lightning Safety Institute. The odds of winning the Mega Millions jackpot for the next drawing on Friday are estimated at about one in 176 million, according to lottery officials. Though that bolt from the sky may strike you more than 500 times before you hit that jackpot, it’s still fun to dream.

The $500 million prize has a cash option of $359 million, the estimated jackpot based on national sales up to the time of the drawing, according to the official Mega Millions website. Mega Millions drawings are held Tuesdays and Fridays at 11 p.m. EDT.