A bottle of water battled it out with my Macbook Pro.
Unfortunately, it appears the water won.
My keyboard seems to be utterly fried- it works but each key on the keyboard seems to do something it is NOT supposed to do- i.e. if i press F an asterix will appear instead. I tried googling it...prospects don't seem great.
Life continues in Shanghai- Calista and are are going out clubbing with an old high-school friend of mine (Tony) tonight. He promises us a night to remember.......so I'm pretty excited.
All blog posts will have to be put on hold until I find time to visit an Apple store. (this will probably be when I get to Hong Kong at the end of next month.)
x0x
Friday, July 30, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Day 3 Shanghai with Calista
Yesterday was a pretty chilled day.
After breakfast, which consisted of a bag of soy bean milk + a sweet and spicy chicken sushi roll (for me) and a pack of mini sushi rolls (for Calista) courtesy of OUR (we call it ours because we pretty much live there) Family Mart, Calista and I caught the subway to the People's Square (人民广场).
On our way to the FenShine markets yesterday, we noticed that there was a massive underground mall adjoined to the People's Square Metro Station. It was massive and full of the sorts of shops you'd expect at Harujuku in Tokyo. So we spent our morning getting lost (many, many, many times) while wandering through the myriad alleys and backstreets of the underground mall. We admired/lusted after the pieces we couldn't afford, laughed at the stupid clothing/things for sale (we even found a hilarious sex shop) and tried on clothes that we could afford but didn't really want to spend the money on.
I ended up buying 2 different hairpieces (fringes) made out of real human hair. I got a blunt full fringe and also a side fringe. So coooool, I can't wait to wear them! Calista reckons I look like I'm about six years old with my bowl-cut fringe. I think its ad-or-a-bubble! haha
We also ended up getting out nails done. Calista got acrylics+ OPI nailpolish for $80RMB ($16AUD) while I just got a manicure + OPI nailpolish (matte white of course) for $40RMB ($8AUD). Gotta love the cheap labour in China!!
Our nails. (sorry for the bad lighting, this was taken in the dim lighting at the Bluefrog bar we went to last night)
I also got my eyelash extensions for the total sum of 150rmb (30AUD). There were also the option of cheaper ones for 100rmb but they were faker and made of plastic, while mine is real hair. I really do love them: it's so natural-looking but at the same time it gives you that extra "wow" factor. (Also no need for mascara everyday). I wish I could get them done for so cheap in Australia.
(Note: the process takes around 1 hour and it doesn't hurt or anything but if you are sensitive about your eyes you will need to really work hard to relax, I found that if i got too tense I would start blinking rapidly and it was hard for the poor girl to glue the eyelashes on.)
For dinner/drinks Calista and I decided we would go to the Bluefrog bar and restaurant because it had a lot of good reviews and also because it was mentioned in my travel book. Unfortunately however, after we go off the subway station we realised we forgot to look up what number it was on Maoming Rd. So we were at the middle of the road and had to decide to go either North or South with no idea how long the road went for and where the actual restaurant was. Add to that the fact that it had been raining previously and it looked like it would storm. Luckily we chose to go down the right direction first and found it JUST as it literally poured down (torrential rain-like). It really was one of those "moments"- like finding a gold nugget =p. Calista saw the restaurant first and exclaimed in delight, only to find me running off across the road towards it screaming at the top of my lungs as it started to rain. (I have to admit i squealed like the big girl that I am.)
Anyways, it was excellent because it was 2-for-1 drinks + 2-for-1 burgers as well. So I got a Peach Margarita (50RMB) and an Apple Margarita and Calista got 2 Apple Margaritas. (sooooooo delicious!!!!!!!!!) The burgers were also scarily massive.
Calista with her Apple Margarita.
Me with my Peach Margarita.
Calista with her Aussie Burger (typical).
Me with my Montana Burger- look at my shocked (edit: down syndrome) face! I only posted this so you could see how massive the onion rings were. The same size and thickness of the meat patties!
Us exploring the streets after dinner:
(Calista has a slight obsession with Haribo the World Expo Mascot *sigh*)
(Me infront of the Bluefrog Bar, unfortunately you can't see it properly)
The cutest dog eveer (I can't wait til i get back home and buy my own ^^). I found him and his owner sitting outside a department store enjoying the night. Calista was embarrassed by the way I was gushing over it. This was the best photo I could take coz it didn't like the flash :(.
On the corner of some street infront of the Cathay Theatre. We plan on going there for a matinee one day.
Calista loves the fairy lights on the trees on either side of every street.
Me with my old-school phone in our hotel room. Lol
Calista on our way to dinner, about to enter the subway and brave the peak hour rush. We were literally doing the stereotypical subway ride that you see in the Asian/Indian films. If my hands weren't nailed to my sides by the thousands of people surrounding me and totally invading my personal space I would have attempted to get my camera out and taken a snapshot.
xox
After breakfast, which consisted of a bag of soy bean milk + a sweet and spicy chicken sushi roll (for me) and a pack of mini sushi rolls (for Calista) courtesy of OUR (we call it ours because we pretty much live there) Family Mart, Calista and I caught the subway to the People's Square (人民广场).
On our way to the FenShine markets yesterday, we noticed that there was a massive underground mall adjoined to the People's Square Metro Station. It was massive and full of the sorts of shops you'd expect at Harujuku in Tokyo. So we spent our morning getting lost (many, many, many times) while wandering through the myriad alleys and backstreets of the underground mall. We admired/lusted after the pieces we couldn't afford, laughed at the stupid clothing/things for sale (we even found a hilarious sex shop) and tried on clothes that we could afford but didn't really want to spend the money on.
I ended up buying 2 different hairpieces (fringes) made out of real human hair. I got a blunt full fringe and also a side fringe. So coooool, I can't wait to wear them! Calista reckons I look like I'm about six years old with my bowl-cut fringe. I think its ad-or-a-bubble! haha
We also ended up getting out nails done. Calista got acrylics+ OPI nailpolish for $80RMB ($16AUD) while I just got a manicure + OPI nailpolish (matte white of course) for $40RMB ($8AUD). Gotta love the cheap labour in China!!
Our nails. (sorry for the bad lighting, this was taken in the dim lighting at the Bluefrog bar we went to last night)
I also got my eyelash extensions for the total sum of 150rmb (30AUD). There were also the option of cheaper ones for 100rmb but they were faker and made of plastic, while mine is real hair. I really do love them: it's so natural-looking but at the same time it gives you that extra "wow" factor. (Also no need for mascara everyday). I wish I could get them done for so cheap in Australia.
(Note: the process takes around 1 hour and it doesn't hurt or anything but if you are sensitive about your eyes you will need to really work hard to relax, I found that if i got too tense I would start blinking rapidly and it was hard for the poor girl to glue the eyelashes on.)
For dinner/drinks Calista and I decided we would go to the Bluefrog bar and restaurant because it had a lot of good reviews and also because it was mentioned in my travel book. Unfortunately however, after we go off the subway station we realised we forgot to look up what number it was on Maoming Rd. So we were at the middle of the road and had to decide to go either North or South with no idea how long the road went for and where the actual restaurant was. Add to that the fact that it had been raining previously and it looked like it would storm. Luckily we chose to go down the right direction first and found it JUST as it literally poured down (torrential rain-like). It really was one of those "moments"- like finding a gold nugget =p. Calista saw the restaurant first and exclaimed in delight, only to find me running off across the road towards it screaming at the top of my lungs as it started to rain. (I have to admit i squealed like the big girl that I am.)
Anyways, it was excellent because it was 2-for-1 drinks + 2-for-1 burgers as well. So I got a Peach Margarita (50RMB) and an Apple Margarita and Calista got 2 Apple Margaritas. (sooooooo delicious!!!!!!!!!) The burgers were also scarily massive.
Calista with her Apple Margarita.
Me with my Peach Margarita.
Calista with her Aussie Burger (typical).
Me with my Montana Burger- look at my shocked (edit: down syndrome) face! I only posted this so you could see how massive the onion rings were. The same size and thickness of the meat patties!
Us exploring the streets after dinner:
(Calista has a slight obsession with Haribo the World Expo Mascot *sigh*)
(Me infront of the Bluefrog Bar, unfortunately you can't see it properly)
The cutest dog eveer (I can't wait til i get back home and buy my own ^^). I found him and his owner sitting outside a department store enjoying the night. Calista was embarrassed by the way I was gushing over it. This was the best photo I could take coz it didn't like the flash :(.
On the corner of some street infront of the Cathay Theatre. We plan on going there for a matinee one day.
Calista loves the fairy lights on the trees on either side of every street.
Me with my old-school phone in our hotel room. Lol
Calista on our way to dinner, about to enter the subway and brave the peak hour rush. We were literally doing the stereotypical subway ride that you see in the Asian/Indian films. If my hands weren't nailed to my sides by the thousands of people surrounding me and totally invading my personal space I would have attempted to get my camera out and taken a snapshot.
xox
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Day 1 and 2 of Shanghai Adventures with Calista
So its been 2 days since I met up with Calista in Shanghai and so far it has just been a whirlwind of fun: shopping, cocktails, food, soaking up the sights and of course more shopping.
We have just come back from a massive binge at the Feng Xiang Markets（also known as Fenshine Markets or 风翔服饰礼品广场). [btw it has now changed its name to like Hancity (korean city) or something. So despite what all your guidebooks say, and note mine was updated in January 2010, there is no FenShine markets now. There is just a "Hancity markets" which is the same thing, same place, different name. This caused Calista and I some grief as we searched high and low for a Feng Xiang Market.
So quick re-cap:
Day 1: Saturday 25th July.
I met up with Calista in the afternoon and checked into our hotel: The Manhattan Bund Business Hotel (曼哈顿外滩商业酒店)。 It's in the best location, right off East Nanjing Road (where all the action is at). The hotel itself is pretty okay as well. The rooms are small, but adequate. It has everything we need. The design is quite cute- a mixture between old-school oriental and old-school European. The front desk can speak English but obviously prefer Chinese. They were also quite helpful and eager to please.
We decided that since Calista just recently broke her phone at the Hong Kong Airport (shattered her touch screen) we would go get a replacement. We asked the front desk and they told us the best place to go was Bu Ye Cheng (不夜城). They weren't joking! The whole building was just levels and levels of little shops selling mobiles. On each level there were easily 100 stores/stalls. We were totally inundated by the sheer capacity of it all. In the end we ended up getting her touch screen fixed for 200RMB (like less than $40AUD). I just bought myself a sim card to use in China.
After that we went home because it was dinner time and we wanted to shower and pretty ourselves up to go to XinTianDi (新天地). By the time we got there it was like 9pm and everywhere was hustling and bustling. Calista was amazed at how many white people there were there (kind of like how many asians there are in Sunnybank, Brisbane). We were amazed at all the cool looking restaurants, bars and pubs. So we walked around to suss out the places we wanted to go first. Alot of the bars and restaurants had like a minimum spend i.e. a bar stool was 300RMB (50AUD), a small table in a bad area was 500RMB (100AUD), a decent-sized table was 800RMB (160AUD) and a lounge with a table was 3000RMB (500AUD). We ended up going to Luna. It was really nice but the price was what you would have ended up paying in Australia. We shared a Tapas Combination Platter for 2 (fresh salmon, hummus, spicy tomato dip, tzatziki dip, mushroom epamanades, morrocan lamb skewers, grilled tomato, meatballs...yuum).
Calista with her Berry Caprioska
Me with my Luna Legacy- [Wearing- YSL Rouge Volupte No 19 Lipstick + Dior Kiss clear Lipgloss (gift from Annie) + a totally cute Japanese fashion-y dress I got from the markets for 50rmb).
We also visited the Davidoff Bar and Godiva Chocolates :).
Day 2:
We woke up refreshed and ready for a big day. The plan was to conquer the Feng Xiang Fake Markets. And conquer it we did!!
I ended up buying an genuine leather, high-grade, black, Balenciaga City Bag (I have loved these since i was in Grade 10, six years ago- Weekender, City, Motorcyle, I love them all ).
A black Thomas Wylde Clutch/Bag. (another item that has been on my lust list for liike eeeeeever). In case you don't know me, I have a morbid fascination with Skulls.
and a SEVEN cap
Calista bought a lot of stuff (with my help at haggling of course =P) and ended up walking away with a pair of Christian Loubautin Heels for 380RMB- the original asking price was 800RMB. I am so jeaaaaaalous. Totally thinking about getting myself some shoes ;).
NOTE: I try and be an advocate for buying genuine goods but I find it's just way too easy to be sucked in by the fake markets in Asia (good/decent fake market that is =p). Maybe one day I'll be able to afford the real luxury of having everything, completely genuine, but until then, while I'm still a poor uni student I guess I'm happy to mix real things with fake things. I really could go on for ages about the real vs fake debate, as there is a constant war waging inside my head+heart over it. I definitely have mixed feelings.
Anyways, we are just resting up before heading out for another night and who knows where we will end up. (P.S Calista is passed out fast asleep in bed next to me at the moment because she is weak and unused to the "9am to close + with no lunch" shopping that I tend to do in Asia.)
It's Shanghai, there's a Cartier on every street (we found 2 massive stores opposite each other on one particular street), THIS is the REAL city that never sleeps. I love it dearly.
xox
Oh I also obtained some make-up on the way back:
Benefit Moonbeam and Benefit High Beam- I just cant help myself when I am on holidays.
And three MAC Lipsticks
Blankety: Nude-Pink is love
Lovelorn: yet another pink lipstick....lol
Vegas Volt: coral is soooo good for summer. I can't wait to wear this tonight
We have just come back from a massive binge at the Feng Xiang Markets（also known as Fenshine Markets or 风翔服饰礼品广场). [btw it has now changed its name to like Hancity (korean city) or something. So despite what all your guidebooks say, and note mine was updated in January 2010, there is no FenShine markets now. There is just a "Hancity markets" which is the same thing, same place, different name. This caused Calista and I some grief as we searched high and low for a Feng Xiang Market.
So quick re-cap:
Day 1: Saturday 25th July.
I met up with Calista in the afternoon and checked into our hotel: The Manhattan Bund Business Hotel (曼哈顿外滩商业酒店)。 It's in the best location, right off East Nanjing Road (where all the action is at). The hotel itself is pretty okay as well. The rooms are small, but adequate. It has everything we need. The design is quite cute- a mixture between old-school oriental and old-school European. The front desk can speak English but obviously prefer Chinese. They were also quite helpful and eager to please.
We decided that since Calista just recently broke her phone at the Hong Kong Airport (shattered her touch screen) we would go get a replacement. We asked the front desk and they told us the best place to go was Bu Ye Cheng (不夜城). They weren't joking! The whole building was just levels and levels of little shops selling mobiles. On each level there were easily 100 stores/stalls. We were totally inundated by the sheer capacity of it all. In the end we ended up getting her touch screen fixed for 200RMB (like less than $40AUD). I just bought myself a sim card to use in China.
After that we went home because it was dinner time and we wanted to shower and pretty ourselves up to go to XinTianDi (新天地). By the time we got there it was like 9pm and everywhere was hustling and bustling. Calista was amazed at how many white people there were there (kind of like how many asians there are in Sunnybank, Brisbane). We were amazed at all the cool looking restaurants, bars and pubs. So we walked around to suss out the places we wanted to go first. Alot of the bars and restaurants had like a minimum spend i.e. a bar stool was 300RMB (50AUD), a small table in a bad area was 500RMB (100AUD), a decent-sized table was 800RMB (160AUD) and a lounge with a table was 3000RMB (500AUD). We ended up going to Luna. It was really nice but the price was what you would have ended up paying in Australia. We shared a Tapas Combination Platter for 2 (fresh salmon, hummus, spicy tomato dip, tzatziki dip, mushroom epamanades, morrocan lamb skewers, grilled tomato, meatballs...yuum).
Calista with her Berry Caprioska
Me with my Luna Legacy- [Wearing- YSL Rouge Volupte No 19 Lipstick + Dior Kiss clear Lipgloss (gift from Annie) + a totally cute Japanese fashion-y dress I got from the markets for 50rmb).
We also visited the Davidoff Bar and Godiva Chocolates :).
Day 2:
We woke up refreshed and ready for a big day. The plan was to conquer the Feng Xiang Fake Markets. And conquer it we did!!
I ended up buying an genuine leather, high-grade, black, Balenciaga City Bag (I have loved these since i was in Grade 10, six years ago- Weekender, City, Motorcyle, I love them all ).
A black Thomas Wylde Clutch/Bag. (another item that has been on my lust list for liike eeeeeever). In case you don't know me, I have a morbid fascination with Skulls.
and a SEVEN cap
Calista bought a lot of stuff (with my help at haggling of course =P) and ended up walking away with a pair of Christian Loubautin Heels for 380RMB- the original asking price was 800RMB. I am so jeaaaaaalous. Totally thinking about getting myself some shoes ;).
NOTE: I try and be an advocate for buying genuine goods but I find it's just way too easy to be sucked in by the fake markets in Asia (good/decent fake market that is =p). Maybe one day I'll be able to afford the real luxury of having everything, completely genuine, but until then, while I'm still a poor uni student I guess I'm happy to mix real things with fake things. I really could go on for ages about the real vs fake debate, as there is a constant war waging inside my head+heart over it. I definitely have mixed feelings.
Anyways, we are just resting up before heading out for another night and who knows where we will end up. (P.S Calista is passed out fast asleep in bed next to me at the moment because she is weak and unused to the "9am to close + with no lunch" shopping that I tend to do in Asia.)
It's Shanghai, there's a Cartier on every street (we found 2 massive stores opposite each other on one particular street), THIS is the REAL city that never sleeps. I love it dearly.
xox
Oh I also obtained some make-up on the way back:
Benefit Moonbeam and Benefit High Beam- I just cant help myself when I am on holidays.
And three MAC Lipsticks
Blankety: Nude-Pink is love
Lovelorn: yet another pink lipstick....lol
Vegas Volt: coral is soooo good for summer. I can't wait to wear this tonight
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Travel Essentials- Beauty
Although I packed a tonne of make-up and beauty products I have found that in Asia I am tending to go for the completely "bare-faced" look. At the moment, it is just so incredibly, unbearably hot here in China, so in order to avoid clogging my pores, any sort of foundation/powder is completely avoided.
In Australia, I tended to wear some make-up if I were to leave the house: eyeliner was a must!
In Asia however, (maybe because I am constantly travelling and waking up at the crack of dawn) the only constants in my beauty routine are skin-care related:
Face:
- Chanel (Precision) Mousse Exfoliante Purete - Cleanser
- Chanel (precision) Lotion Purete- Toner
- Clinique Super City-Block SPF30+ (Day)- for some reason I am not loving this as much as everyone else seems to. It actually feels rather oily on my face? The sales assistant was telling me how it can be used as a base as well. I think I'd much rather prefer an actual base. BUT i am still using it religiously as I do not want to prematurely age/get sunspots/skin cancer. Hopefully I can find something better in HK.
OR
- Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion (at night)- Again, not finding this to be that special. I think I will go back to Shu Uemura or try something else (Dior according to Annie + Alyssa) once I use this bottle up.
- blotting paper (v. important!) - I'm just using some Japanese brand one that C gave me.
Hair:
- Klorane Dry Shampoo (i've tried Batiste and Toni & Guy as well but they dont seem as good as Klorane)
- Moroccanoil- the REAL one. Thanks to E for recommending it to me. It's amazing. Keeps my hair nice and soft.
Occasionally if im going out for a nice dinner I will use:
- Majorlica Majorica Pressed Powder in No 2 (love the compact)- this is to combat the shine.
- K-Palette Real-Lasting Liquid Eyeliner (Waterproof)- i got this in Japan because it was ranked number 1 eyeliner in RankingRanQueen and I loved it so much I went back and bought 4 more. Unfortunately I'm onto my last one TT....hopefully SaSa will stock them in HK. (i'll post you one E, promise!)
- MAC Sheertone Blush in Peaches
- YSL Touche Eclat No 2
Current Lipstick that I'm using the most: MAC Speed-dial
I really need to get a new mascara----the Shu Uemura one I have is on it's last leg. I have been avoiding using it at all since it's the only one i packed. Can only use it when i go clubbing =P.
I am planning to get some eyelash extensions with C when she gets to Shanghai. Can't wait!
Anyways, just want to say that wearing no make-up is greaaaat. I get to sleep in for an extra 10 minutes everyday. I never have to worry about any of my make-up wearing off and ending up in the wrong place. But it's obviously bad for photos as I seem to look so much shinier/blotchy/lifeless in photos if I dont have any make-up on. So i've been avoiding the camera as much as possible =P. Also, it seems in Asia, a great deal of girls wear zero make-up so I feel fine without it.
In Australia however, it seemed that everyone at least wore some make-up so I couldn't not....peer pressure?
xxxxxx
In Australia, I tended to wear some make-up if I were to leave the house: eyeliner was a must!
In Asia however, (maybe because I am constantly travelling and waking up at the crack of dawn) the only constants in my beauty routine are skin-care related:
Face:
- Chanel (Precision) Mousse Exfoliante Purete - Cleanser
- Chanel (precision) Lotion Purete- Toner
- Clinique Super City-Block SPF30+ (Day)- for some reason I am not loving this as much as everyone else seems to. It actually feels rather oily on my face? The sales assistant was telling me how it can be used as a base as well. I think I'd much rather prefer an actual base. BUT i am still using it religiously as I do not want to prematurely age/get sunspots/skin cancer. Hopefully I can find something better in HK.
OR
- Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion (at night)- Again, not finding this to be that special. I think I will go back to Shu Uemura or try something else (Dior according to Annie + Alyssa) once I use this bottle up.
- blotting paper (v. important!) - I'm just using some Japanese brand one that C gave me.
Hair:
- Klorane Dry Shampoo (i've tried Batiste and Toni & Guy as well but they dont seem as good as Klorane)
- Moroccanoil- the REAL one. Thanks to E for recommending it to me. It's amazing. Keeps my hair nice and soft.
Occasionally if im going out for a nice dinner I will use:
- Majorlica Majorica Pressed Powder in No 2 (love the compact)- this is to combat the shine.
- K-Palette Real-Lasting Liquid Eyeliner (Waterproof)- i got this in Japan because it was ranked number 1 eyeliner in RankingRanQueen and I loved it so much I went back and bought 4 more. Unfortunately I'm onto my last one TT....hopefully SaSa will stock them in HK. (i'll post you one E, promise!)
- MAC Sheertone Blush in Peaches
- YSL Touche Eclat No 2
Current Lipstick that I'm using the most: MAC Speed-dial
I really need to get a new mascara----the Shu Uemura one I have is on it's last leg. I have been avoiding using it at all since it's the only one i packed. Can only use it when i go clubbing =P.
I am planning to get some eyelash extensions with C when she gets to Shanghai. Can't wait!
Anyways, just want to say that wearing no make-up is greaaaat. I get to sleep in for an extra 10 minutes everyday. I never have to worry about any of my make-up wearing off and ending up in the wrong place. But it's obviously bad for photos as I seem to look so much shinier/blotchy/lifeless in photos if I dont have any make-up on. So i've been avoiding the camera as much as possible =P. Also, it seems in Asia, a great deal of girls wear zero make-up so I feel fine without it.
In Australia however, it seemed that everyone at least wore some make-up so I couldn't not....peer pressure?
xxxxxx
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