Thoughts on a new beginning

Good morning!

It is a beautiful Sunday, and I woke up to the sound of water droplets streaming outside of my window, as I opened my eyes to the serene light flowing through my curtain. Best part is – it’s only 10:30am! A sure sign that I am getting older since I can no longer sleep in… Or maybe I just need to invest in darker curtains, I bet that will do the trick!

Having had a crazy week, over-socializing after work since a Wednesday, I have had some amazing conversation with friends that sparked more inspiration! This week marked my first Couchsurfer – Stefania from Romania/Italy who was on her way, moving from Angola to Peru! She reminded me of why I love traveling so much, the excitement to encounter people during her journey, share their stories, to learn about new culture through an outsider’s eye, and how the very thought of traveling makes me feel alive! On Thursday, we had a braai with Matthew Blake from England, who is embarking on his final leg cycling Northbound in Africa, as he marks the 3^rd year he has been on the road, cycling around the world, rain or shine.

My experiences with these wonderful Couchsurfers reminded me of how fortunate I have been, so far in my life. To be granted the opportunity to travel with my family since a young age. I have seen some parts of the world, but barely any since I have come to be ME. Before I turned 19, every travel experienced I have had were “touristy.” Staying in hotels, visiting the most popular tourist spots, never really engaging in conversations, or exchange with the locals who lived there. In the summer of 2006, I volunteered in Huancayo, Peru, where I traveled with 23 other University of Michigan students on a trip that we had incepted, fundraised for, and ultimately executed after 7 months! The trip opened my eyes to what travel could be – how we are humbled by the beauty of humanity, kindness, and the need to share and contribute to a greater cause.

 

Family dinner in Tainan, Taiwan



As I sit in couch in Cape Town, tuning into my favorite songs by Kina Grannis, I had the realization from this past week that I need to use my time better. To identify what matters to me in life, and figure out how I can balance the need for personal growth, pursuit of my dreams, but also family!  As I grow up, my grandparents, parents, aunts/uncles, cousins, all grow older too.  For the first time in 6 years, I consider the potential to finally go back home… to live in Asia. To be closer to family so I can see them (at least) once a month, accompany my Grandparents on long walks to the parks at 5am, exercise and share stories over warm soy milk or porridges, to hear their stories and not lose any more precious time as is.  



Grandpa with 4 of the grandchildren :)





Summer 2010, sisters @ LGBT Parade, Chicago

So much going on in my head... I hope I am growing up.

Old Biscuit Mill + Observatory Festival: guaranteed food coma!

Waking up early has taken a toll on my Mom, dear me, she’s been waking up automatically at 6am daily which means, by default, I have to be up by 7:30am to welcome the day!  We’ve planned to go to Old Biscuit Mill for about two weeks now; it’s an old mill (flour?) with warehouse-like space that’s converted to a Saturday market, filled with yummy food, artisan bread/cheese/arts & crafts, and some very expensive furniture…

Starting our day of adventure, we stopped a taxi off the road to get into town. Note: there are 2 types of taxis in South Africa. A “taxi” is a mini-van, costs about R5 per ride, and is commonly used by locals to travel short distance.  The common misconception in South Africa: taxis are only used by “colored” people and that it is very, very dangerous to ride in one… of course, this is largely due to the legacy of apartheid in South Africa. Most of the “white” folks have a decent job, middle to upper class, and typically owns a car. Whereas the “colored” people were forcibly removed from Cape Town city during the apartheid, into surrounding suburbs in Cape Flat, and many lives in townships… Thus, these residents are much more reliant on public transportation.

This was actually our first time taking taxi in Cape Town, we took one last weekend at Simonstown as well, and both time have been very pleasant! Everyone in the taxi was friendly, and slightly surprised to see two Asian women jumping aboard ;)  We were trying to make it to Old Biscuit Mill, and were told that we had to transfer to a larger city bus near the bus terminal. One of the ladies was incredible and offered to show us where/ which bus to take! So we made it to the market within 30mins… on our very first bus adventure!

Once we arrived at Old Biscuit Mill, we were surprised by how Ëuropean the market was! You rarely saw anyone with different skin color, unless they worked one of the stores… After walking around, it was easy to see why. This Saturday market featured mostly artisan, organic stalls with international flavors such as Spanish paella, Dutch poffertjes, smoked snoek and more. The dishes used fresh ingredients and tasted amazing, we even found a booth selling roasted mushrooms!

After shopping & eating, we resolved happily to our food coma. My mom appeared to have enjoyed her first sangria, and we were two happy bunnies. Having the Observatory Festival this weekend, I hear it officially marks the beginning of Cape Town summer! We took a cab (metered private taxi) and headed to Obs with our full bellies. 

Here, we found a really cool car covered in graffiti arts, tassels on the bottom, wire ninjas on the hood… you name it! The artist was superb and pulled out an entire costume when my mom requested to take a photo together, he’s an ex-magician! We then found Lee working the currywors booth across the road! It’s great to bump into more and more Couchsurfers all over the city now~ Patrick was rocking his Observatory Neighborhood Watch vest too!

 

Chilling out on the grass, there was an A cappella choir singing on stage. With the sun burning down and the smoked snoek in our bag, we decided to call it a day and head home~ This was just what I needed, to wind down from a crazy week… Can’t believe my mom’s actually leaving in two weeks, it’s gonna be weird cooking my own food again…