...am I really in Shanghai...

It's a beautiful morning. For those who know me well enough, you know it's cloudy and even better, raining heavily. Waking up to such harmonious pandemonium warms my heart. Sitting here right under the sunroof, listening to the intense patter of the rain on this third storey of the house makes me remember my days growing up in Singapore... where rainy days meant waking up even earlier and enjoying the day because it would be much cooler and somehow, romantic - yes even to an 8 year old girl. of course, I'm just remembering that I'd also just put out my laundry out in the backyard to dry yesterday evening... arrgh!!

It's been so fun spending time with Peggy, Johnny and Marcus. Marcus is slowly warming up to me and I, him - imagine that ha! Spending time with Marcus, I realize that motherly instincts just is not an inborn thing in me. It's probably funny to some of you and certainly more odd to the others, but I'm not complaining and I certainly haven't got a need for it hee hee.

On Friday, after a very un-Chinese breakfast of bacon, ham and toast (but adding Maggi Tomato Chilli to it certainly is hahaha) and getting the boys out to work and to school, Peggy and I spent a lazy morning grocery shopping at CarreFour then just catching up with news, gossip and more memories. Boy, do we laugh when we're together. It's so awesome that after so many years of not seeing each other, we definitely appreciate our days back in school and being able to spend time together now as married, mature (we try) women... we really haven't changed that much, we agreed.

We had lunch with Peggy's cousin, Wendy and a few of her colleagues from Singapore Airlines, at the very nice and modern Pudong Inter-Continental Hotel restaurant. Talk about a typical spread of wonderful seafood - yes, yummy fresh oysters that I love too - beef tenderloin, sushi, sashimi, trout, made-for-you-on-the-spot satay and a never-ending spread of very Asian dishes including the best Chinese sweet and sour pork I've had in my life (sorry ma :D). I certainly felt like I was back in Singapore with this stretch of familiar food.

We hung out for quite a few hours here. Yes, I know most of you are not surprised. But it was namely because we were engrossed with the flight stories we were told by these flight attendents and one pilot. Talk about the dirt that happens while you're asleep on a plane! I'm keeping my camera/video recorder out on my flights next time! Sex, violence (okay not that much violence) but certainly death and... "doo doo doo doo" (theme from Tales of the Crypt)... Ghosts! After that we took a drive out to who knows where 'coz the Singaporeans and Malaysian wanted to get dvds, pirated, of course! Yes, I'm definitely hanging out with the in-group hahaha! So we went to this unpaved street where Peggy very quickly realized after several missed turns that her prediction that her favorite dvd store is closed was wrong;, the store had been demolished. I suppose it's not just in Japan that stores just disappear hahaha! Fortunately, the same guy put out a small collection of his products outside a fishing store next to this very coarse woman selling china dishes of Mao and what she insists are antiques I should buy. While the crew checked out dvds, I bargained a brass opium pipe and a plate that I believe was thrown in sand and mud just to impress stupid tourists like us that it's old all for the price of four whole dollars. Yet, the highlight of this trip here was running into the public toilet with Peggy, giggling and trying SO hard not to laugh and breathe, and take pictures. All six little cubicles filled with traditional toilets ie, hole in the ground (which is no big deal really), but these cubicles had no doors!! And you can forget about toilet paper!!! Welcome to China. My advice is, find a really nice hotel if you really have to go.

That night, Peggy and I took a cab to Pu-Xi (pronouced Poo-See HAHAHAHA) and checked out Shanghai's night life. Much like a lot of the night life in Asia, it was filled with lots of wannabe locals, expats and women who wanted to be with them. We ended up at the bar at Sasha's... a rather big bungalow-like building that lacked any personality bar/restaurant and a new Mexican Cantina next to it (same pompous Australian owner, Ian) on the corner of Heng Shan Lu (the stretch of road where houses bars, restaurants and more bars). We stayed quite a few hours till almost 1am. After seeing a guy take a one hour nap on the bar followed by downing the ashtray right before he left, we knew it was pretty much time for us to leave... we then headed to Lan Kwai Fong. For season travellers and party-goers, you'd be familiar with this name I'm sure. Lan Kwai Fong is an area in Hong Kong where much like Singapore's Boat Quay or Collyer Quay, is the place to hit if you want some excitement. Our favourite bartender of the evening Joe, who spoke great English (he actually said "SHIT" when his fellow bartender messed up hahaha) hailed us a cab and directed the cab driver where to take us. Apparently, the community, I believe is all inside Parc 97 and houses quite a few bars/restaurants in here. From what little we saw amongst the crowd and big people, there was a sushi bar, an Italian restuarant and a very happening dance floor that there was no way two smart sobering 30-something year olds were going to join. We hopped on a cab past 2am, avoided a couple of fatal accidents (all part of being on the road here in Shanghai) and got home in one piece. PHEW!

Yesterday, the entire family spent a nice day out. We started the morning early with some touristy stuff; sight-seeing/picture taking, followed by a perfect brunch of magnificent dim sum at the Shang Palace in Pudong Shangri-La Hotel

We then headed to XiangYang market where the headquarters of fake merchandise is exchanged. It was jam-packed with foriegners and oddly, locals too. We decided that monday morning was a better time for Peggy and I to come without the boys who were bored stiff; we could tell one of them was losing his patience very quickly when he commented innocently that he did not fancy crowds :) We headed to Raffles City where I was again awed by the fact that I did not feel like I was in China. Where were the bikes on the streets, the beggars, the broken huts and unpaved streets. Sure, I saw this in parts of my travels but so far, Shanghai has been quite a rude awakening to my image of China!

At Raffles City/Raffles Square, where Singaporeans congregate, of course you'd find FOOD! At the basement, on the top floor, food galore! I managed to get some Mei Zhen Xiang bbq pork (how I'm going to go through US Customs, I have no idea) and full as we were, scoffed down yummy much-like-home mee rebus, black chai tow kway and Old Chang Kee style curry puff. For someone who lives in Tennessee and craves Singapore food constantly, this meal had already dissolved all pain and suffering from my flight here hahaha!

We'd had plans to spend all day and night out but by the time we'd all bought shoes, ate way too much (and I didn't even mention ice cream!) we were all ready to come home for a nap.

Last night, we babysat marcus (well, sort of... it was more like he babysat us hahaha) while Johnny tended to a business dinner. We engaged two masseuse to the house for two full hours of massage each. It was absolutely overwhelmingly amazing. We both got our massages on the same bed with Marcus between us watching Thomas the Train on dvd (if only he knew just how lucky he was hahaha) and between our giggles and yelping out in pain, we carelessly slipped into deep sleep only to be awaken by baby farts from Marcus - well the farts were from a baby, not necessarily baby in magnitude hahaha! Two long hour massage house calls for a total of less then $20 for both of us. The most beautiful part of it all, they declined being tipped! Where am I?!?

So here I am... the beautiful morning has now changed into what seems like slight drizzle and I'm sure intense humidity. Arggh! Time to go get dressed. Wow, these people can really sleep hahaha!