Rainbow people and golden mountains

Do not disturb. Thank you.

Recently, the Tall Man and I visited my family for our first face-to-face meet up in nearly a year and a half, which is a long time for adults but a seeming eternity for kids. I planned to bring some books for my niece and nephew -- affectionately referred to in my head (and here) as Little Peep and Big Peep. I scanned my bookshelves to assess my old favorites. Some had made the long journey from my childhood home to college, then grad school, and now would be making the full circle back. Perhaps one of them would become a Peep favorite, too!

After making my selections, I packed a box and headed off. Once we gathered together, though, all was forgotten amid the flurry of hugs and dim sum. My brother's sheepdog remained at the Tall Man's side as he petted her with one hand and ate with the other -- the ultimate in multitasking. Then I felt a wet tongue lick me from elbow to shoulder, and I jumped in my chair. It was hard to tell whether the dog had fully accepted me as part of the family, or if she just wanted a bite of my fluffy char siu bao.

It was only later, after taking refuge from the scorching sun, that the box and its contents resurfaced. I was resting in the bedroom when Little Peep brought the parcel upstairs. "Goo-Goo,"* she said, plopping the box down on the bedspread beside me, "Uncle [Tall Man] told me to ask you which book I should read."

A birthday observed

The Tall Man and Grandpa in 2013, celebrating their birthdays and love for blue checkered shirts

I've always been a birthday person. Or maybe it's more accurate to say I am a birthday observer.

When I was younger, I kept mental track of my family and friends' special days and always had a card ready to hand deliver. As people dispersed -- moved away, went to college, grew up -- I started mailing them. Then life got busier, and I started sending texts and emails, or the occasional Facebook wall post if I didn't have time for a longer message. The messages shortened and became littered with emojis, but the content remained relatively the same.

For sure, birthdays are special occasions to celebrate a loved one's life. But they've also become an opportunity to acknowledge that person's significance to me, to catch a glimmer of their life. For those I don't see very often, this "hello - happy birthday - remember when? - how are you?" has become the very gateway to keeping in touch, even if our last encounter was in a distant phase of life.

Shifting horizons + sinking suns in Harvey Cedars

I can't believe it's already almost August.  Here's a little way of reliving a June sunset, as seen from the rooftop of the Abbott/Gibson vacation house in Harvey Cedars.  We watched the sunset, snapped photos, laughed down at the "adults" lounging on the deck below, and felt like freedom.

(Plus, this was a bit of Photoshop fun.  I didn't have a tripod when taking the pics, though, so pardon the drastic jumpiness.)

The Lo Clan in the Midwest

It was pretty funny to write that blog title.  The Lo family?  In the Midwest?  What?  But indeed, that's what has happened.  Now we no longer only bookend the United States, but we're slowly infiltrating the heartland.

In the past 2 weeks, 3 particular members celebrated getting one year older (and literally, just one year for one of them). Happy birthday to GG, Jenny, and Isaac!  Yes, all 3 in one family have birthdays from mid to the end of October.  (This was not planned.)

I snagged a few pictures from their blog, since I (sniff) won't be able to head out there in person in the near future :

 The daddy and son.

The mommy and son.

Alas, I won't be able to make it this weekend for Isaac's one year old birthday bash.  This occasion, called Tol, carries quite a bit of significance in Korean culture (and has the food to celebrate with as well!).  One of the main events is the Toljabee, in which the child's future is determined by which object he or she is attracted to from a pile set before him or her.  On the list of meanings that I found online :

• bow and arrow: the child will become a warrior 
• needle and thread: the child will live long 
• jujube: the child will have many descendants 
• book, pencil, or related items: the child will become a successful scholar 
• rice or rice cake (or money): the child will become rich
• ruler, needle, scissors: the child will be talented with his/her hands 
• knife: the child will be a good cook

Some of these items seem not so safe for a one year old to be grabbing (like...a needle?  or knife?).  Anyways, based on his parents, Isaac might go for the book/pencil or ruler/scissors (... dangerous for a one year old)...  although if he follows the Biblical footsteps of Abraham, then maybe the jujube?  (Do people even put that out as an option anymore?)

In any rate, we'll hear more on Saturday!  Hopefully I'll make it out there soon...

3 years and counting

3 years sounds like a long time to spend with one person, but it boggled my mind recently to realize that my brother and sister in law recently celebrated their 3rd year wedding anniversary.  So short and yet so long - now, which one is it?

No, they don't have 2 kids: that's Jenny's niece.  All photos snagged from their blog.

In that time, they ...
... moved to England and back, finished the Operation World manuscript, acted in pageants for an all-girls grammar school as one of the few young male teachers, become part of a thriving church community, met our "long lost" cousins in England, devotedly kept up a blog of their adventures, started to spell words in the British manner but not speak in the English way, had Isaac (my nephew), entertained a slew of visiting family and friends (including the Lo fam), visited the States with a barely-3 month old baby in tow, and now are starting another life journey in the Midwest and PhD land... among too many other things to name.

 And we went to the zoo, where Isaac exercised his grip of iron on his dad's hair.

I also became a fob for the day.

What else happens in 3 years?

In the measure of my own life, I ...
... finished my first job at an architecture firm, completed 2 years of grad school, pulled the most all nighters in my life, built a couple brick vaults, jetsetted abroad for work/study (and play) purposes (England, El Salvador, Spain, Japan, China, Thailand), was a bridesmaid in 2 weddings, celebrated countless weddings/engagements/babies of friends and family, became part of a thriving grad Christian fellowship, started playing the flute again, honed my "bless you" reputation...  among others.

Is it useful to list such accomplishments?  If to boast, perhaps not, although as a reflection and a reminder to be thankful, likely so.  It also reminds me of how blessed I've been by what God's done in my brother and Jenny's lives.

One thing I've learned from their marriage is the fact that you're not simply becoming the wife/husband for another person, but you're also going to be the sister/brother to that person's siblings, daughter/son to their parents, a friend to their friends, etc.  Scary thought, eh?  (Good thing I like meeting new people...phew.)  I think I've mentioned this before, but I say again that it's been great having the gift of an older sister after my bro married Jenny, and I just hope that I can be as good of a sister to future Mr.'s siblings as well... if/when that becomes a relevant statement.

Until then, my next foreseeable milestone is graduation in a deceptively long but actually short 1.5 years.  What will happen in that time, I'm not sure, but at least there's a sense of great expectancy for both myself and God's work at MIT.

Baby proofing

My recent homecoming pales in comparison to the recent arrival of my brother, sister in law, and nephew, who have been away in England for the past 2 years (well, Isaac I guess only 9 months) and have just returned shortly before I arrived.  The last time I saw the little guy above (the top one, not the one below) was when he was 3 months old, so in that short period of time he's grown so big!  He's much more expressive now and also more energetic, so we get tired out from running after him as he crawls or struggles to squirm away during diaper changes.  I've also learned that I have to be a bit less vain about my wardrobe, since whatever I wear ends up getting covered in drool and mashed up food.

Ah well, best to be humble anyways.

Breaking down Bangkok

Lately I've been a bit shoddy with updating, which I guess is inversely correlated with my workload and travel plans.  Usually my brain gets pretty muddled by the end of the day from lack of energy, but thankfully my English hasn't (yet) left me, although sometimes I catch myself imitating my Hong Kong coworkers and friends, which is a bit frightening.  (Hopefully this habit won't stick once I get back...)

Anyways, this past weekend I took a bit of a hiatus from HK and flew to Bangkok to visit my cousin, Jennifer.  It was my first foray into Southeast Asia and quite an eye opening trip, with its fair share of adventure and ups and downs.  I'm very thankful that the cuz is decent w/ her Thai, or else there would have been much more arm waving and charade-like gestures to communicate.  (Well...we were still a bit ridiculous, but to be expected.)

How to summarize my lightning-fast barely-2.5 day trip to the City of Smiles?

_ r u l e s

I laughed when I saw this sign in our hotel room, and took this picture especially for the brothers of 10B.  (Well...at least 2 of them I know are fond of this smelly fruit.)  I didn't actually get to eat durian while there, but it's ok - HK also has a lot :)  Some of these rules I can understand, but some others can be challenged :

_ m a r k e t

Instead of heading to one of the massive and most-touristed markets like Chaktuchak or Damnoen Sanduak, Cuz and I went to Amphawa Floating Market, a bumpy and cramped 2 hr. van ride out of Bangkok.  Our earlier tuk-tuk driver tried to dissuade us from going, but off we went anyways after a recommendation from friends of ours.  And it was an adventure - first to find out where to catch the bus (after asking around in Thai), the crazy bus ride, and then off to follow the sights (but mostly the smells) towards the klong (= canal).  The place had loads of Thai tourists but very few foreign ones - possibly due to the Buddhist Lent holiday, but maybe also a leftover from slow tourism post-riots.  After walking around and eating yummy foods, we also went on an evening boat trip to see the area's well known fireflies.  (They almost seem fake, the way they blink so rapidly and evenly - but are real!  What a statement.)


_ f o o d

... at the market and on the street side are great experiences.  At Amphawa, we had front row seats in the canal-side "kitchen stadium" and had first dibs on fresh grilled prawns, spicy papaya salad, thai tea, and other delicious treats.  We also got hit on by the eatery's "maitre'd/head waiter," although we had no intent on gaining a Thai boyfriend.

Prawns - so close!  The downside: having the smoke and heat from the grill wafting into our faces, and the not-so-clean canal water sloshing near our feet.  Oh well, can't be too picky about such things.


_ t r a n s p o r t

Bangkok takes the cake for having so many different types of public transportation: subway (MRT), skytrain (BTS), taxi, bus, mini bus, river taxi along the klongs, tuk-tuk, motorcycle taxi...  and there are probably even more that I didn't encounter.  We went on 6 of those modes of transport within the weekend, but my favorite was the tuk-tuk: decidedly touristy, but way fun to be zooming around in the open air, flanked within arm's reach of veering motorbikes and street food carts.  Admittedly, the pollution is not so great, but Cuz had the foresight of bringing a mask for each of us.  True fashion statement, no?


_ w o r s h i p

Many a cab and bus had this hand-drawn right above the windshield.  Everywhere you go, there are wats (= Buddhist temples) and mini shrines, almost on every street corner.  Because of the Buddhist holiday, many people also had woven flower bracelets around their wrists.  (Not exactly sure of their meaning.)  I guess I hadn't realized beforehand, but Thailand is quite a religious country.  Children are brought to wats and taught early, like these cuties:

I must admire their widespread faith, which could teach the States a thing or two, although the focus of it remains another question.


_ s h a d o w

Every country also has its darker side.  I had heard much about the sex trafficking in Bangkok from my cousin and others who have done ministry there, but part of me wanted to see it for myself - not as a hedonistic voyeurist, but out of curiosity and to see what the real needs of the city are.  (This is, after all, the birthplace of the Bluetree song "God of This City.")  Cuz had done outreach in Nana, one of two red light districts in Bangkok, so after wandering around the night market there, we finally came to the "entertainment center."

I'm not going to put up pictures of what it's like inside because frankly...  it was heartbreaking and made me really sad.  And a bit disturbed, especially after noticing that the place - a compound-like enclosed area with 3 stories of bars (more like strip clubs), go-go clubs, and the like - had only young Thai women, white men, and a handful of Thai men as bouncers.  As two Chinese (fully clad) women, I felt extremely conspicuous and occasionally followed, but we just walked around, sat down and chatted a bit about our observations, and then left, feeling the tugging need to pray.  There's more to be said about this encounter, but that will have to wait for a conversation with me in case you're interested.  It was definitely eye-opening, though, and made me even more aware of the need for redemption and Jesus.

I had also wanted to see one of the slum communities around the city, since I've started to do a bit of research into them but have never encountered one myself... but that will have to wait for another trip.

I'll be back.

I miss...

... this guy.  He's getting so big!  The last time I saw Isaac, he had only gums and was just beginning to push himself up.  I hear he's now getting to be a bit rascally and is already 8 months old.  (I wish I could make that much progress in 5 months... and people still think I'm 18.)

Can't wait until August when I get to see him... and his parents, of course :) 

[HK 24] : "Home" away from home

I haven't gotten to the point, yet, when I can call Hong Kong "home," but the feeling of it sometimes wells up, mostly because my mom has been here with me for the past three weeks.  She's been doing a bit of business while here so has had her own agenda, but it's been nice spending time together after work and together for weekend trips.

One of my younger coworkers, about to head to uni, asked me whether it's been weird living with a parent again.  My first thought was, "I guess I'm old enough now that it doesn't bother me."  What I meant was, I've gotten to a point when my mom is more my friend than an overbearing authority figure.  (Which...still sometimes happens, but less often.)  We have similar tastes and both enjoy quality food, discovering interesting places, and looking at old stuff like ruins and traditional housing.  Our tastes diverge elsewhere (i.e. I don't mind trekking around decrepit places and walking as exploration, while my mom prefers observing luxury and taking cabs), but it's just a different style of traveling and I take it as it is.

Since she's leaving tomorrow, she's had this urgency to let me experience some of her favorites around Hong Kong.  Yesterday after a tasty dinner at Shanghai Garden with family friends (which I found out later has 1 Michelin star...HK is turning me high class), we went up to the Peak to see the city at night.  The Peak, the tallest mountain on Hong Kong Island, is extremely touristy, but I have to admit that the views from above were pretty spectacular despite the hoards of Korean and Beijingers swarming about.  Too bad my camera isn't up to par, especially with low-to-no lighting, but here's an attempt at capturing the expansive scene:

Tonight we grabbed a table at another crowded venue, Tsui Wah restaurant right off of Lan Kwai Fung in Central.  Her favorite s their well known condensed milk buns, generously toasted and slathered with butter.  Even at 10:30pm, the 2 story restaurant - self proclaimed "cafe" but too boisterous to be a real one - was full of locals and the occasional foreign partier.  Fish ball noodle soup rounded off our "ngai yew zhu tsai bao."

Tomorrow morning I send my mom off to the airport... and there goes my taste of home until I find it for real in the growing familiarity of this island.

[HK 15] : Homecoming, of sorts

On the way to Toisan, nature meets industrialization

Today my mom and I, along with a family friend, took a day trip to Toisan (台 山, Taishan in Mandarin) to visit her hometown.  My mom was born in a small village in the southern part of the county, but she and my grandmother left when she was 2 years old and she hasn't been back since.

Until now.

It was a homecoming for her and for me, a window into my family background.  My mom's mom had lived with us while growing up, so I actually spoke Cantonese, English, and Toisanese fluently up until the age of 6.  Although I completely lost my Toisanese speaking skills (and much of my Canto as well), I've been used to hearing its slurpy sound when my mom calls my relatives.  It's closely related to Cantonese, mixed with Vietnamese and other somewhat guttural sounds swirled in.

We visited a relative who ends up being my cousin, although she's about my mom's age and her daughter around mine.  The temperature was 90 F but felt like 110 F ... and despite our dripping sweat, we trekked around to see the area in our brief 4 hours there.  Our relatives brought us to my mom's old house, which she remarkably somehow remembers:

It's about 100 years old with the original wood and clay tiled roof.  Much of it is falling apart now, though, so it's used mostly for storage nowadays.  The top level is actually supposed to be used for storage and is accessible only by ladder, although some houses converted that space into bedrooms.

It was amazing to see these older types of houses still standing, others being lived in day to day.  Many others, though, are being torn down and replaced with more modern-looking houses with flat roofs and balconies:

My mom's cousin lives in the more modern house on the left.  

A traditional house stands sandwiched between his and its equally modern neighbor.

Here, the collision between tradition and contemporary, brought on by industrialization, is so apparent.  As we were driving, we saw rice paddy fields and fish farms right next to new mid-rise apartment complexes.  This village area is only a 15 minute drive from the nearby downtown area, which is a smaller version of the typical Chinese city.  Highways are being built as we speak, next to fields where water buffalo graze.

The water in the area varies in shades of brown, tan, and orange, reflecting the color of the dug up soil.

(Cue song : "Everybody's got a water buffalo ...")

The life here stands in such stark contrast with our life back in the States.  My mom and my cousin were talking about fixing up the old house, so I briefly imagined my mom living back here again.  This is where she came from, after all...  but now that she had a childhood in Hong Kong, then went to university, got married, and has worked in the States, could she go back again?

- - -
currently :

• feeling : glad to be showered at the end of the day
• weather : 110 and densely humid

[HK 12] : Childhood luxuries

 The lobby of the Peninsula Hotel

Although we had planned on going down to Stanley for the dragon boat races, my mom and I ended up napping after this morning's Exec meeting and then going to eat good food.  Oh well - hopefully I'll get to see it another time.  When talking with some locals, it seemed like most Hong Kong people don't end up going to see the races in person anyways, so I suppose we engaged in a more "national" activity.

We had afternoon tea at the Peninsula Hotel (香港半島酒店), located on the Kowloon side in Tsim Sha Tsui.  When my brother and I were younger, my parents took us here for the special treat of "ha mm cha."  The hotel is the oldest surviving one in HK, built in 1928, and I'm thankful that the city has retained it considering its habit of giving itself a perpetual face lift.  The tea is English style, which reminds me of the city's past...  and my love for a good cream tea.  Their Earl Grey is quite nice, with a strong taste of bergamot.

Having this experience while we were young was a blessing that I didn't grasp until I got older, and this time around my mom mentioned the cost of luxury.  She considers the ideal lifestyle one in which money is not an issue: you have enough to have the freedom to do what you'd like.  Although it's true that being well off probably means fewer worries, I'm not sure if I would necessarily hold that as a personal life criteria.  Lately I've been thinking about what is "enough" to live on.  Would I be upset if I couldn't have afternoon tea and dress up to check out the latest restaurant?  Life of luxury, life of simplicity...

After a pensive tea, we climbed on the Star Ferry to cross Victoria Harbour.  Before last week, it had been at least 10 years since I had taken one of these, when I had been barely tall enough to look out the upper deck window.  The ferries, which first started crossing the waters between Kowloon and Hong Kong Island in 1880, are still their signature worn white and green.  The waters were a bit bumpy and the sky was thick with pending rain, but we still got a good view of the skyline.

- - -
currently :

• feeling : somehow still sleepy
• weather : 31 C, 80% humidity...  eeech

NGO-weary Haiti

 via NYTimes / Photo credit: James Estrin

I just read this article in the NYTimes about the stagnation of Haiti's rebuilding efforts, referenced by this international development blog I just started scanning.  It's sad to read about how so many people's well meaning efforts, with the best intentions (because hey, who starts an NGO with overtly selfish goals?), are actually not meeting the people's needs, or are too fragmented to make a cohesive difference.  Are for-profit businesses the solution?  Regardless of the initiative, I would like to see more Haiti-based organizations (for-profit, non-profit, or whatnot), since hundreds of outside aid agencies are currently doing work in the capital but so few are homegrown.  Maybe this accounts for the people's sense that they are being "occupied" (with unfortunate parallels with war situations like Iraq).  What will happen, then, when they leave?

Although I still am interested in doing further work on the rubble project Diana and I were working on for the IDEAS competition, I'm hoping it can actually be of actual use rather than a student's project being implemented for academic credentials...which sometimes ends up being the unfortunate case for these types of projects.  I'm still not sure how I should move forward with it, but hopefully will get some insight soon.

My cousin David (or "cuz") was recently in Port-au-Prince and Leogane, building temporary housing with the Christian missions organization, Samaritan's Purse.  So even though the city may be NGO-weary, at least there is still good to come from the efforts, even on a small scale for individuals.

 - - -

Note : Just came across this particular post about local Haitians' skeptical interactions with NGOs, with a reference to a recent This American Life episode.  I agree that NPR has a great way of tackling large issues like foreign aid with bottom-up stories of individual lives.  If I ever go into journalism, I would definitely use them and the deadpan Ira Glass as a model.

Jolly Christmas

Celebrating the birth of our saviour* with the Lo's, coming from near (Ambler, PA), far (Gerrard's Cross, UK), and in between (Cambridge, MA)! Somehow it seems fitting that this day started long ago with the birth of a holy infant, especially now as another infant is in our midst as well - albeit a hiccuping, wholly human one who gurgles in our laps and needs nappy changes.

So many gifts that cannot be wrapped or packaged.

Jolly, merry Christmas, remembering Emmanuel. Although it's far from a silent night with family and friends running in and out, it's still a holy one.


* added the extra "u" as a tribute to our pseudo-British folks

Introducing Isaac

Once upon a time, only a few months ago, the baby looked like this:



Now, he's no longer an "it" residing in Jenny's belly, but his name is Isaac Yun-Lok Lo, below in full technicolor:

Today I finally got to skype with my brother and see Isaac for the first time "live." He's SO cute, and his eyes were sort of open, too! (Most photos on their blog and on Facebook show him with his eyes closed. I can't imagine being alive for one week is enough to get him really used to the blinding lights of this world.) The song "Father Abraham" kept coming to mind during our conversation. So cute. I can't wait until December when we finally get to meet in 3 dimensions! One of my friends commented that he didn't know having a nephew would be so exciting - well, in fact I wasn't sure what to expect, but he's now here and sometimes I find it hard to contain my happiness (sorry, for those who've had to hear it repeatedly). It's just surreal having a new member of the family who's so closely related to you. And kids are cute - the best thing about being an aunt is enjoying children without having them myself :P

Anyways, life is an intrigue and still amazes me.

birthday but not yet birth date

I stole this photo from my brother and sister (in law)'s blog because it's just too cute. It was Jenny's birthday yesterday and the soon-to-be born nephew's due date was the day before, so now there's a lot of anticipation in the air. When will he arrive? Who will he look like? How chubby will his cheeks be?

But in the meantime while we wait (and why are boy babies always late?), I just showcase the happy parents-to-be, whom I love and miss very much. One of my friends thought I was crazy NOT to be over in London right now to see my nephew being born, and actually that was a sad reminder that my siblings are pretty far away and that I wouldn't be able to witness this momentous occasion for the Lo's. Then again, I guess I'll have to learn to package up love and send it overseas.

Anyways, happy birthday Jenny! I think back in my brother's bachelor years and how I really wondered what sort of woman he'd end up with. And...well, now they've celebrated their 2 year anniversary and will soon be welcoming their first child into the world. I've told this to many people, but I've always thought that an older brother is one of the best siblings to have, and now the family's become even more complete when I got an older sister :] Hopefully I'll end up being as good of a sister to whoever's siblings or family I end up eventually getting introduced to.

a doting aunt

today it was official: IT'S A BOY!!!
(in case that gives you the wrong idea, i'm going to have a NEPHEW!!!)

i was at work when i got the news and couldn't keep from yelping. then i had to run over and tell my fellow intern the news :D

can't wait to be a doting aunt!! too bad my nephew will be born oversees...but hopefully a trip over there sometime this year will remedy that.

skimming of summer: the start!

yushiro's also exuberant about summer!
(look at that air!)

such music to my ears!

i'm currently at home for a short week - such a lovely oasis and a good buffer between the hectic runaround of the semester and the beginning of working world next week. being back in good ol' ambler brings a wash of various memories and emotions, some nostalgic, mostly comforting. this is my parents' opportunity to treat me like a kid again, and although the proud part of me still says "hey, i'm an adult!" deep down...i know you all think this...it's actually reeeally nice being pampered. what can i say? i like being at home :]

i've also really missed my (goofy) friends and the philly area at large. it's mostly the fellowship that i've found is somewhat missing up at school - not that i haven't made good friends there, too, but it's a bit different. it takes time, obviously, to build deeper relationships, so i need to be patient. but still, there's something about the candidness and heartwhelmingness (not a word...but i take license to make it up) of these goofballs that make me smile - and feel not a bit guilty when slapping them upside the head if needed (mostly the guys...and those who offend their wives...):

(L) the wife hushes the husband, (C) only allen seems to look good in this shot, and (R) sheila is actually taking a photo of the guy w/ a fro in the background, which is why the two of us in the foreground look so awkward

now we look normal! part of the old family group, kop koinonia, aka the king of blue chester group


fresh scones and happiness tea (a blend of green tea, green rooibos, and other flowery things like hibiscus) - great combo!


dianna, my tea connoisseur, taught me the right temperature and steep time for green and black tea.
i'm indebted!

ok, and not to make my cool communities in cambridge feel jealous, here's a sampling of those partners-in-crime:

hello architecture bible study @ the king and i - we made it! (minus 2 people)
too bad you can't see our lovely feast, but it was good!


me and the boys, relaxed and listening to live musica on newbury


then, over sangria, we decided to all be rockstars like kathy (the original owner of the shades)

oh fun times :D here's to more to come!
come visit me in boston!
and...so excited to find out the gender of my coming nephew/niece!!!

>> currently: listening to npr in the car (how i've missed!), driving with the windows down, still reading "a cook's tour" - a.bourdain, trying to go to bed early...earlier...., writing extraordinarily long emails