Back to Sg...Thinking of Sunnyvale...

VS

Almost 2 years in Sunnyvale, and this will be the final entry. I have definitely enjoyed my stay in the US which is a totally different experience from the Singapore life of complaining. In that short 2 years, i am fortunate to have met several people who shaped my perspective and gave me enlightenment. They showed me a different kind of life, a unique way of living.

Life in US showed me that i control my own life - So quit complaining, and do something about it!

I learnt the meaning of being open. How to be kind and friendly to everyone, yet not naive. How opinions differ, and how opinions different from yours can make you wiser.

Living in Singapore for 25 years made me think that Singapore is my only home. Living 2 years in Sunnyvale made me think that living in Singapore for 25 years has provided me the foundation to call anyplace a home.

I have seen how fast can be slow, and slow may eventually be fast.

I will remember my boss's favorite phrase,"You can do anything."


With that, i close this final entry.

10 Reasons why i am coming back...

Last day in Sunnyvale, and my mind is racing, my emotions, raging. At this point, i feel that i have fallen so much in love with this place. This is such a nice place, why did i even choose to go?

10 reasons why i fell in love with Sunnyvale:

1) The Weather. Its my number 1 reason, obvious from day 1, made even more more obvious when i returned to Singapore for vacation.

2) The Culture. Definitely a very liveable place.

3) The Stories. Success stories of all high-tech startups.

4) The Nature. No weekend will be the same as the previous weekend!

5) The Accessibility. You can do ANYTHING in SV

6) The Space. Everyone has more space. No jostling for space, no frustrations.

7) The People. So many strangers have gone the extra mile for me.

8) The Microwavers. They are concentrated in the US & Europe.

9) The Fruit Garden. Its a dream to own a house with a backyard full of plums and oranges.

10) The Opportunities. Its still a land of opportunity. Singapore is micro, Malaysia is biased, China is too messy, and blah blah blah....

Last night in the Bay...Dinner with Jiabin..

JB is so kind to give me a lift despite staying in Fremont. An ex-colleague, and a trustworthy friend, it was fortunate we have other common interests out of work. Here is one of them

Picnic Lunch at Crissy Fields

A great picnic organized by Sam & Salizah! Filled with fun activities, and meaningful conversations. And playing tug-O-war by the golden gate bridge?...wow....



The adult version of tug-O-war....

and a smaller version!















Chris caught in the moment!

The Organizers of the Picnic....
....and the entire party of us.
It was certainly a memorable day for me. It is during such times, i wished i never made the decision to go home...

Lunch with Excelics COO

Yen & Roland brought me out for lunch today. Its a funny chinese restaurant with Korean signboards. Guess its because we are in Korean town. As always, Yen is a good conversationalist with anything to talk about under the sun. He has been a patient mentor to me all this while, and i respect his ability to organize people to work in a single direction. Although we do have disagreements, both of us know that we only have the company's interests at heart. Finally, we have a chance to talk about everything else, except work!

Lunch with Co-workers @ Black Angus

Many thanks to all my co-workers these 2 years for tolerating all my nonsense and blunders. I certainly would not be able to bring the products to customers' hands without their professionalism!

NewYork NewYork!---Manhattan...

Manhattan has certainly opened my eyes to another dimension. I admire her for her diversity. Being the home for many Chinese, Indians, Jewish, Italians, French,.... and of course, Americans.

It is happening! Pace of life is phenomenal. People here are constantly on the go, but yet helpful and thoughtful to one another.

The place where all the money moves...the NYSE



The original Phantom of the opera, at Broadway...

The beautiful Skyline of Manhattan...

And finally the Statue of Liberty...

Well, im not going to post pictures of my entire trip. But this post consolidates the 1st 4 days in New York-Manhattan.

Singapore's answer to Sex Education

This is soooo Manhattan! Diverse, Open and Bold!

Update overdue...

I have been losing a life here, especially after the huge loss of engineers. Have been working my heads off during this period. But my bosses were understanding enough to allow me to continue having my Sundays and Saturdays off.... well... most of the time.

In the meantime, i have been looking forward to our coming holiday... been spending weekends planning for a possibly final trip in the US. This time, its destination NY.

And the enabler for all this detailed planning?....Google.



http://www.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=117588134828436347636.00044c6d5d9ebd3f9d683&ll=40.747777,-73.954468&spn=0.091554,0.233459&z=12

The Hills are Alive....

The Hills are alive....with the Sound of Music....

Yep, coming to Mission Peak reminds me so much of this musical which i had watched ever so often with my darling sis when i was a young boy. So serene, so green. I can almost see the musical notes floating in the air.

I haven been to anywhere interesting this 2 months, due to the sickening (yes, i mean really really sickening) winter. My 1st winter was cold, but surprisingly dry. This winter... was really really wet. It just made everyone feel so cold and miserable. While many girls that i know really dig winter, its juz not me. Im a summer guy!

Jackie and i have been talking about going to Mission Peak in Fremont all winter. At the 1st sign of weekend sunshine, we went. No procrastinating, no shit. While i have had enough of moping at home, he had enough of cutting wet grass in a raincoat. Enough is enough.

A 25min drive to fremont, and you really get in touch with nature. Thats one big reason why i fell in love with this place. I can drive all i want back home, and not get anywhere near nature.


After an hour's of walking, we reached the peak. Some views from the top of mission peak:

No crew this time...just the 2 of us!A good break from winter...i can see myself appreciating the weather back home next time. Sometimes, i wonder, how do people survive in New York?

Rejuvenation...by Highway 1

My blog has been under neglect again. This always happens when im fighting internal battles with myself, and feeling lost. Re-alignment of direction is always so tiring when corporate changes occurs year after year. Rejuvenation is always very much needed during such times....and luckily, there are always people here to drag me out to enjoy this beautiful country(“美国”）.

Pescadero State Beach



Pigeon Point Lighthouse




The Four of us...

Relief to be back!

Its one week back to Sunnyvale, and it is such a relief to be back! Feels terrific to be home!(err...home?!)

I realized how much i missed this place after the 'hardship' in Shanghai. Don't be mistaken. My hosts treated me extremely well, and brought me out for many lavish meals. Far more hospitable than my US counterparts.

However, the entire environment in the valley juz beats it hands-down. Why?


1) The fresh air! Nowhere beats the air in California!

2) The weather. Not too hot in summer, not too cold in winter.

3) The traffic. No ridiculous amount of horning, no unnecessary cutting into lanes, respect for pedestrians, courteous drivers etc etc.

4) Smoke-free clothes.

5) Able to walk freely without fear of phlegm "bullets"

6) 100Mbps Cable access, VS 512K DSL(the most common in China)

7) Free access to any, and every website

8) No more vulgarities.

9) Open, friendly society. No more alienation just because i can't speak a word of Shanghainese.

10) Finally, PEACE of mind.

Will i miss Shanghai?

I am finally back to Sunnyvale. On my final few days in Shanghai, I admit, i have been too harsh musing about this rapidly developing city. I was wondering what do i really like about this unique city.

1) You can live cheaply if you choose to. (ie. RMB$3 for a bowl of noodles by the streets VS RMB$50 for one at DinTaiFung) Besides, where can you find "Tao Sar Pao" for RMB$0.8(currently S$0.16)

2) I have been taking cab for the entire month, and not a single cab driver has refused me.

3) The poor along the streets is a constant reminder of how fortunate i am.

4) The night lights of the city

5) The hospitality of the Chinese

6) The beauty of the ancient towns

7) Piracy of books!

8) How this 1month helped me put on 1kg of fat.....


I dun think i have much to miss about Shanghai afterall. Its nice for a vacation, especially in autumn-winter(25 degC to 0 degC). Beware of Summer though. I heard it can shoot to a temp of 38degC.... plus humidity level equivalent to Singapore....

Being back in Sunnyvale feels so good. The air is fresh, and my clothes are smoke-free. Being there made me realize how much i detest smokers.

"Blur" Camera...or...?

Just an idea of what i had been breathing for the past month......

Musings on Shanghai..

Its one more week before i leave for Sunnyvale. I have been musing about Shanghai for 3 weeks now. Thanks to all my colleagues who have been patiently listening to me.

1) Terrible terrible service. Pleasant smile + warm service = Sunnyvale, Straight faced + warm service = Singapore, Grouchy look + cold service + heck-care attitude = Shanghai.

2) Blaring horns start at 6.30am, ends at 10pm. No tea break, no lunch break.

3) For the 1st time in my life, i see cracks on almost every taxi driver's steering wheel(where the horn is). It just goes to show how often they use their horn.

4) Ever experienced the feeling of biting sand between your teeth after you take a small breath through your mouth?

5) Every taxi driver swears at least 50 times a day.

6) Everyone is trying to snatch a piece of the road. As if there is not enough road for use!

7) "hhaaaarrrrgggghhhhh Puuuiiiiii!" - Red alert! Dart your eyes to watch out for phlegm bullets!

8) I think my lungs have accumulated a layer of 2nd hand cigarette smoke juz after this assignment.

9) Unfriendly - people look at me like an alien when i try to ask for directions.

10) Finally, how i wish i was more diligent during secondary school chinese lessons!

Waterways of ZhouZhuang(周庄）

I decided i had enough of city life, and i decided to pay a neighbouring town a visit.
Took a cab down to 旅游集散中心 where i paid an exhorbitant RMB140 to 周庄。 $40 for the bus ride, and $100 for the entrance fees. Ridiculous.
The ride took almost 2 hours, with plenty of honking and cursing from the bus driver. So much that i almost thought we would never make it.



1st impression: Very very tourist-ty.
You recognize a very touristy place in China by all the peddlers who sell tiny trinkets and snacks at exhorbitant prices. Prices are always brought down by the following steps:

1) Look like you really like the item of interest
2) Offer 1/2 to 3/4 of their asking price(which they will try to compromise)
3) Decline their offer.....
4) ...and start to walk away..


周庄is considered one of the ancient towns(古镇） of China. Having maintained their buildings for over 900 years, it has become a tourist attraction. She is largely well-known for her waterways, and is known as the number 1 water town in China.


Some interesting shops occupy the area too. There is a beancurd shop that makes soyabean milk from the "old-school", huge, stone grinder. They also have old women making clothes by spinning cotton threads.

Finally, its time to go back to Shanghai. But i managed to snap a sunset of 周庄 before i leave. Overall, i think the place is nice, albeit abit too touristy for my liking. No doubt the buildings are still in place, but the town have lost much of its ancient flavour.

Too much, in fact.

Coincidence!!

Never met a single time for the last 7 years despite being in Singapore all the time.

Its funny how being in Shanghai for barely a week help old friends meet.


城隍庙will hold a special place in our hearts.

If i was not greedy enough to queue for the famous Nanxiang 小笼包，and he was not choosy enough to shop further....we would not have met.

Brother scouts reminisce old times together reading maps. But this time, Darren & i, are reading the map of Shanghai. Worst still, its all in Mandarin!! Somehow, it helped us remember how we always got scolded by Tan Boon Heng and the rest of our chinese teachers....

Ahhh.... the good 'ol days...

20 Million People spending a weekend...

With 4.5million people in Singapore, most of us already feel the G.S.S(Great Singapore Squeeze)

Just check out 20million people in Shanghai.....




Transfer this amount of people onto Orchard Road....Unimaginable.

263m up on the Pearl Tower(东方明珠塔）

I was so busy with the videos that i had forgotten about a brief intro regarding the Geographical aspects of Shanghai..


Shanghai is mainly divided into 2 parts, Pudong(浦东) and Puxi(浦西) and are separated by the HuangPu river(黄浦江）. Amazing thing is, they actually managed to construct a tunnel beneath the river from Pudong to Puxi for vehicles, and the light rail.

As shown in the map, 外滩 is actually located in 浦西, and 东方明珠塔 is located just across 黄浦江 in 浦东。

Of course there is more to that. But i am too ignorant to explain further. I only know that Shanghai is further broken down into districts.

I prefer to feign ignorance and enjoy the view from above.....

In this video, you can see 浦西 on the left, and 浦东on the right. I have noticed that the structure of the buildings in 浦西 is a little more scattered and disorganized. 浦东, on the other hand, is more organized and orderly. Somewhat like dominoes. Probably because 浦东 is newer in development, and the government has learnt from previous lessons that a messy infrastructure can create tonnes of problems.

The Bund(外滩） & Pearl Tower(东方明珠塔）..

After going to Cheng Huang temple, we proceeded to 外滩. While the vids a few days ago shows the night scene, these vids are taken in the day. Here, we can really see what is so magnificent about the Pearl Tower(东方明珠塔）.




东方明珠塔 , as i was told, is actually owned by the TV station. Reason why it is built to such a great height, towering over most buildings in Shanghai, is because it is the source of TV signals throughout the whole of Shanghai. The top of the tower probably carries the signal boosters that emits all the TV signals. Video below shows a close-up of the Pearl Tower.