GGT!*

*GGT: Go Get 'Em Tiger is not an endorsement of Mr. Tiger Woods, it is simply an expression for motivation.

That is a picture of some mall decorations for the Chinese New Year inside of the building where I will be spending my summer as a Fixed Income Summer Analyst with Morgan Stanley.

Island Hopping: Po Toi and Lamma Island

Poodle Appreciation

Couldn't resist. Coco, your friends are your size- it's the humans that are smaller. Just kidding. But adorable chocolate standards...

Red Panda also mimics the Cokester - Coco can we skype sometime soon?

Ocean Park!

It's hard to play hide-and-seek when you're a German giant.

WELCOME TO OCEAN PARK!

Although it was difficult to hear all the negativity towards the Mouse, I visited Ocean Park - Hong Kong's local theme park and met with the Head of Marketing. One of the most important decisions for them was to make the brand of Ocean Park refreshing enough to attract new and old visitors after the entrance of the Mouse in 2005. Adding Whiskers a happy seal to a collection of other aquatic mascots, Ocean Park was able to attract customers and maintain its status as a theme park. Reaching the market was key for the success of Ocean Park, although this tug-of-war seemed eerily similar to Sea World vs. Disney World, and we all know that Shamu is cool but far less profitable than the M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E.

Brian in a gondola over Ocean Park. The masses exiting the tram.

Soren hugs a panda.

Panda scratching.

Odd fish - we described these as orange-raspberry heads.

We're not in Germany anymore...

This is a priceless picture of Bastian and Soren, both of German loyalty, in awe of the skyline of Hong Kong Island.

Not your average Ina Garten...

Starved of the Food Network by Denmark, I find some foodie relief in this Strawberry Shortcake + Bobby Flay combo from Japan.

Only in Asia

A flight attendant pencils in her thin eyebrows on the bus ride to Narita/Tokyo airport. Reminds me of the mandatory four finger smile by the Singapore Air flight attendants.

Turning Japanese

Rarely do you find yourself:

a) On the second floor of an airplane
b) On the Mitsubishi conveyor belt, watching only Toyotas and Lexuses drive by
c) Watching CSI in Japanese
d) Watching Billy Mays commercials translated to Japanese
e) Drinking your nighttime green tea at 8pm
f) Drinking your wake-up green tea at 5am
g) Having udon noodles for the breakfast buffet
h) Walking around the 2nd floor of the hotel - a floor solely dedicated to Japanese traditional brideshows

Unless you are heading to Japan. I had a fantastic 28 hours in Japan, mostly spent my time adjusting to the time change and relaxing. Not much to do in Chiba, Japan.

Toilets with Remote Controls for Heating, Spraying, Cleaning, Stopping, and 10000 other settings
But remember to take a shower immediately after use! (Found this sign after my shower... oops!)

Green Tea Kit-Kats and Calorie-Mate (delicious sounding!) The beginning of Asian Food Invasion!

First Stop: Narita, Japan

Despite Coco not wanting me to leave (see pic of pathetic poodle), I was off to Japan after just having arrived in Florida 7 days ago.

Although I could have settled into the life of having deliciously healthy meals cooked for me, reality comes a knocking and I was beginning to miss my Globers believe it or not.

First stop was Atlanta then Narita then Hong Kong. Total travel time = January 2nd, 6pm EST to January 4th, midnight HKT - You figure out the math.


Lovely service on the flight over and barely anyone travelling.

My flight was a bit turbulent - in fact thought I was going to employ the paper bag. True being on the second floor of the plane may have had something to do with the extra motion in the plane, but I arrived in Narita safely and ready for my 28 hour adventure in Japan.

New Location, New Blog!

So despite the current event swith Google and China, I have moved to a Google supported blog page instead of wordpress. Nothing personal, it is just easier for photos. Hope you enjoy!

Hong Kong, Here I come!