NuBe - Be Nu, Be Bold

16 Years Later I Was Back on the Slope

2009-12-29T11:20:00.000-08:00

Approximately 16 years ago, I tried a skiing for the first time on a school field trip. The experience lacked proper instructions resulted in a lot of time on the ground. 16 years later, I decided to give skiing a try again during our weekend trip to Sun Peaks with a group of friends. After all, I live in Vancouver now. Not being able to ski or snowboard just doesn't seem right and might get me kicked out of the city.

The day started with two instructors and 10 other fellow ski NuBes. The Level I lesson started with the very basic of how to put on and take off your skis. There are no right or left ski. Apparently they are identical! We were told to keep our ski boots somewhat loose on our feet since tight boots can cut off blood flow into your feet and make your feet really cold. Greg learnt this lesson the hard way.

The we moved onto a bit of slope to learn how to slow down and eventually come to a stop. This was where I became frustrated with the instructor who was very focused on 3 other students. I wasn't getting any tips on what I was doing right or wrong. I kept turning right as I slipped down the hill. This instructor was either not watching or talking to someone else. When she did eventually notice I was running into poles, she said to me: you are learning to turn already and that is excellent. But I had no idea why I was turning and wasn't learning how to slow down or stop properly. At this point, I was completely not impressed with skiing and thought I was just awful at this.

After struggling with the tiny slop, I couldn't believe we were ready for an actual green slope. Canadian ski resort has a system to identify the difficulty of every slope.

- means it is for beginners
- means it is for intermediate skiers or snowboarders
- means it is for experienced skiers or snowboarders (more difficult the slope more black diamonds)

The idea behind the shapes is if the weather condition is not great and you can't see colour, at least you will be able to identify the slope by the shape.

We took the pole lift up to the green slope named Gentle Giant. I like dthe gentle part, but not too sure about the giant part. Once we were on top, we practiced more slowing down and stopping. I still wasn't getting the hang of it. I kept turning to the right which my not so helpful instructor told me was because I was putting more weight on my left foot than my right. Finally, my uncontrollable skis crushed right into the other instructor. He was not impressed. But at least I got his attention that I wasn't getting nowhere. He was much more helpful. My problem was I wasn't lean forward enough to force equal weight distribution on my two feet.

We went on the Gentle Giant one more time and I was much more comfortable. The morning lesson ended with no more bailing. A quick lunch, we were ready for level II! Level II was all about turning. We had a very perky instructor for the afternoon. She was actually very good and made sure she gave very individual pointers to everyone in the group. Turning on a slope is very counter intuitive movement. One has to put more weight on right foot to turn left and vice versa. This concept really took some time to get use to. But just like everything, practice makes perfect. At the end of the day, I managed to squeeze 4 more runs on the Gentle Giant. I did bail a few more times too. I am still haven't found the perfect balance while doing turns. But it was a fun just trying to!

Photography Walkabout Tour Part 1 - Downtown Night Tour

2009-11-30T16:09:00.000-08:00

Being an avid traveler, it was only natural that I took an interest in photography in order to capture and share the memories of far away lands. For years I was content with the good old fashioned point-and-shoot but after my recent adventure overseas I was heavily inspired to take the next step up to a DSLR camera. Luckily I had a birthday coming up and an amazing wife who knew the perfect gift, my very own Canon EOS Rebel T1i.

Graduating from point-and-shoot to DSLR isn’t the easiest of transitions as suddenly I needed to learn about white-balance, aperture, ISO, shutter speed, and many other features I never considered before. We decided to seek help in the form of a Photography Walkabout Tour. This is a great first-step for NuBe’s jumping into the DSLR world as it’s relatively economical and a great learning experience as they teach you all about how your camera works and things to take into consideration when taking photos.

Our first walking tour would be a night walk around downtown Vancouver. It was raining a little bit which instantly made us concerned about whether we would even be going forward with the tour. Our guide assured us that weather shouldn’t be a deterrent when photographing as it actually has the potential to make shots even more interesting shots so I wrapped a plastic bag around my camera and ventured out. He showed us that puddles, especially at night-time, created opportunities to take reflective photos and play with lighting to make for more creative pictures.

That beginning was just a matter of getting used to our cameras, and what better way to do that then just to take a bunch of pictures at different settings. We started off outside the Vancouver Art Gallery playing with our ISO setting. ISO essentially is how sensitive the camera is to light, the higher the ISO number the more possible it is to shoot in low light situations. This takes getting used to because while you are able to brighten as ISO gets higher it also begins to add grain and noise to the photo.

Next we moved onto an outdoor skating rink where we would start learning about White Balance. This is a bit of a complex concept that involves grasping the concept of light having a range of colours that go from cool to warm. Without breaking out my Physics textbook, the NuBe approach to this is to tweak the White Balance setting until the photo doesn’t look too blue or too orange in your viewfinder. There are a number of auto settings based on the conditions you are in (tungsten, daylight, cloudy, etc) and some manual settings which take a bit of getting used to.

From here our group moved onto a small courtyard near the Vancouver Law Courts where we practiced our creative composition. There was an interesting sculpture that we were challenged to take photos of from all different angles. The advice here was to “shoot the hell out of it”, trying as many different perspectives as possible. It really helped break the habit of taking the shots head on and really getting into some more unique and interesting compositions. It was a very good learning experience.

Our last lesson of the night was learning about Shutter Speed and Aperture which both combine to form exposure of a photo. Exposure is the amount of light (controlled by aperture) that is captured over a specified amount of time (controlled by the shutter speed). Once you have a correct exposure you can make adjustments with the shutter speed and aperture to give effects to a photo. By increasing the shutter speed and decreasing the aperture you are now able to ‘freeze’ fast action shots. Going the other direction of decreasing shutter speed and increasing aperture gives you a deeper depth of field. A small aperture may blur out the background however a high aperture will have everything in focus. For low lighting a long shutter speed can make for some terrific pictures however tripods start to become a very good idea to avoid blur caused by shake. On the other hand, intentional blur of fast moving items can make for a very neat effect.

We ended the night here with plans to pick-up on another walking tour in a few weeks, next time during the day taking a trip through historic and gritty Gastown area!

Stand Up Virgin No More!!

2009-11-04T22:47:00.000-08:00

October 27th I finally did it! As Faye mentioned below, we've been talking about me doing a stand up routine for the past 2 years or so. I was supposed to be at a Def Leppard concert but it got canceled and when Yuk Yuk's called me on Sunday the week before, I thought, "it's now or never" and I accepted the date. I had 5 mins to make people laugh...

That night I put pen to paper and ended up developing so much more material than I had collected over the past two years. It started becoming difficult to pick what I wanted to talk about. I spent the week trying to work things out. When it got to the Monday night before my performance I had a friend come over to review my material and time my act. There was so much I had to cut out! When we slashed through everything I ended up with something I was confident about. I went to bed anxious and woke up the next day full of nerves. I spent the day running through my material until it was time to head over to Yuk Yuks.

Funnily enough once I got to the green room backstage my nerves started to calm down. I went on third and I could hear my friends laughing in the audience. Then it was my turn.

I've got to say, I have some of the best friends in the world. It was so good to hear them cheer me on as I took the stage. I started with my first joke - and whadya know.. PEOPLE LAUGHED!!! (Thanks Akhil!!) It was awesome!! I couldn't believe it! So - i carried on, and except for the red light that I became increasingly conscious about which was throwing my timing off, I pretty much said everything I really wanted to say.

My biggest laugh came when I referenced a joke the MC made about small dogs when I was talking about my small dog. (He said they're like swiffers, and I said my dog was not a swiffer... you should have been there if you weren't :P ) I learned a lot from this first experience - about myself, nerves, and getting started. Unfortunately we couldn't record this performance - but I am considering giving this another shot.

So, stay tuned and come out the next time I'm up - I'm looking to do this at least one more time before the end of the year.

Try Something New Generator!

2009-10-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

Summer has come and gone... New season means new adventures, my fellow NuBes! As I was browsing through new things to do for the fall on Google, I came across this neat little website. It is the Try Something New Generator.

http://www.trysomethingnew.com/

I picked "Travel" as my category for the random generator to suggest what I should try. "Learn some German" came up. So "etwas Neues ausprobieren" people!

It is not a very fancy website, but still very fun. I got a kick out of their "DoneThat" Stats page.

http://www.trysomethingnew.com/stats.php

It is interesting how the top 8 things people has marked off as "DoneThat" involves eating. I like it!
Please leave a comment if you actually did something the website gave you to do.

Try Something Crazy with some Laughter

2009-10-01T11:24:00.000-07:00

Most people may think the new thing you want to try is just plain crazy and sometimes that determines whether you follow through. Knowing Johainah for the past 3 years, she is always up to something crazy! While most people has issue just speaking in front of a crowd, Joh always wanted to give stand up comedy a try. Although I like to think I am a supportive friend, sometimes I even question if it is a good idea to encourage something this crazy!

Last Christmas I brought Joh a pen recorder for her to carry around to record her funny ideas. Joh did a great job as the Master of Ceremony at Greg and I's wedding this past summer. So after a couple of years of preparation and working up the courage, Joh finally booked herself in at Vancouver Yuk Yuk Comedy Club on Oct 27 to make her big stand up debut. I can't wait to see her on the stage and cheer her on with laughter (not sure if it is going to be at her or with her yet :P)

If you are interested in checking out and support Johainah's big YUK YUK's debut, please RSVP her e.

Good Bye China, Hello Home Sweet Home.

2009-09-20T18:03:00.000-07:00

We returned to Shanghai at dusk. Everyone went to bed right away.

We only had 1.5 days left in China, so we had to do more shopping, eating and going to Internet cafes. During our times in China, we had no access to Facebook or Blogspot. These two sites and many other sites likes CNN were blocked due to recent troubles in XinJiang and Tibet. This definitely made us feel cut off from the western world. Amongst the glitz and glamour of a booming China, this reminded us we were after all still in a communist country.

Aside from shopping, Shanghai is also known for its crazy and wild night life. We met up with our friend Amanda who recently returned to China for work. She took us to this club in JingAn District called MUSE. The club had great music and we lived it up! Table service, Grey Goose and cranberry for the ballers. Our server stood by our table the entire time we were there. Yes, we had a dedicated server who was always there whenever we needed him! He didn't look like he loved his job though. Every hour for about 20 minutes, a couple of really scantily dressed (in thong!) go go dancers danced on spot lighted platforms. Hard to imagine we were in communist China! What a country full of contradictions.

(video of live music performance at MUSE, then we got yelled at by the security for video taping)

We are really going to miss China. As we headed home sweet home, we are going to miss traveling around to different countries and experiencing new cultures.

Huangshan (Part 2): Beyond Yellow Mountain

2009-09-17T12:22:00.000-07:00

The next morning we awoke at 4am to begin our trek to a choice lookout where we would be watching the sun come out. It was pitch dark and we were guided by only two headlights that members of our group had. It would be over a 1 hour hike up winding paths before we would reach out lookout. Our guide had arrived late for picking us up so by the time we reached our destination it was already fairly packed full of other tourists waiting for the sun to peak out. Just as our luck would have it, another cloudy day. It shouldn’t really be a surprise to us as we were told the clouds form on these mountains over 200 days of the year. It was still a nice start to the day, so no complaining on our part.

Following a nice simple breakfast we would begin our trek back to the tram where we would view numerous more famous rock formations, cliffs, and trees. Often while walking along the path we’d come across some people who had paid to be carried around the mountain in sedan chairs by two porters. I suspect there may have been some buyer’s remorse as a few of the people looked a bit embarrassed by the indulgence. There’s something about having two men carrying you up a large flight of stairs on a mountain top and through a crowd of tourists that just seems a bit over the top (unless it’s really necessary of course).

After a couple more hours of wandering around the mountain top we finally reached the tram and headed down. From here we would be heading to a local village. We weren’t really sure what to expect here, but we were pleasantly surprised by what we discovered when we arrived at Hongcun Village. Hongcun Village has a history of over 900 years and has been passed down for generations throughout the Wang Clan. It was famous for having a number of scenes for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon filmed here. As we arrived through the gates we came upon a picturesque small lake with a stone arched bridge going across the center, we learned this was the opening scene from the movie. Along the bank were numerous young painter students set up all along the bank practicing their talents. The village is said to resemble that of a buffalo with two 600 year old trees representing horns, a lake as its belly, and even irrigation streams are its intestines. We’ve really come to appreciate the imagination of the Chinese culture. The tour was fantastic and made for some great history lessons and amazing pictures.

It was a long couple days, so we were really looking forward to this evening which we had arranged to spend at the local hot springs spa. As high as our expectations were for this place, they didn’t come near touching what we actually encountered. The entrance fee was equivalent to approximately $20 CAD. Inside this spa was an infinity pool, over different kinds of hot springs, complementary fruits and snacks, free internet service, and even late night live entertainment. We must have stayed there for about seven hours just relaxing and getting out every need looked after. The highlight for me was the Garra rufa fish or as more commonly known as the Doctor Fish. They are these tiny fish swimming around in a giant spring that when you climb in they would come up and begin to eat the dead skin off your body. It’s a little weird at first, but once you get accustomed it begins to feel like a little massage and your skin is left feeling incredibly smooth.

The next morning we would be heading back to Shanghai, but not before a detour for a river cruise along Xin'anjiang River. The river looked like a mirror, completely reflecting all of the hills and villages we encountered along the way. We were treated to a couple stops where we would tour the local villages. In the last stop we were even treated to a show from local performers what included singing, dancing, and acting. Even our boat guide was pulled up on stage to sing a duet with the show host as well as newlyweds Faye and Greg to perform a traditional Chinese wedding ceremony. It was a slow day so we were the only people in the audience but that only made for a more enjoyable and personal experience. Following the show we would head back on the boat as we sail back towards our van an onwards back to Shanghai. What a great excursion

Huangshan (Part 1): The Peaks of Yellow Mountain

2009-09-16T23:53:00.000-07:00

While we knew we wanted to see experience the history of Beijing and the glamour that is Shanghai, we had decided we wanted to visit someplace a little off the beaten path that is a little less travelled by the typical foreign tourist. After a lot of research and recommendations we had decided that Huangshan (or Yellow Mountain) would be that place. Yellow Mountain is about 5 hours outside of Shanghai so we booked a tour guide through a travel agency that would drive us and take us around. We’d be taking a 3 day tour that would include a hike up Yellow Mountain spending a night at the top and then another night in a local town around the area. None of us really knew a lot about the area other then it was a major inspiration for a large amount of Chinese artists.

We were picked up very early in the morning in a private mini-van that would be taking us on our trek to Yellow Mountain. It was eight of us plus driver (and luggage) so we ended up crammed into this van and the suspension was pretty poor which made for a fairly bumpy and uncomfortable trip. When we arrived we were met by our guide who gave us our instructions for the day. We were told to pack just for overnight and leave the rest in the car since it would be a long hike. We had the option to either take a 3 hour trek up the mountain followed by another 3 hrs once we got to the top or we could take a tram up to the top and just do the extra 3 hrs from there. Faye was pretty keen on taking the hike all the way up but after learning we’d likely miss a great sunset photo opportunity we decided back on the tram option. As we ascended up I think we made the right choice, the trek looked treacherous with a lot of ups and downs all the way up. I didn’t see anybody on any trails so I suspect this is a rarely chosen option. The view going up was absolutely breath-taking.

Our guide had taught us about the four wonders of Yellow Mountain as we headed up the 30 minute tram ride to the top. The first is the pine trees that grow out of the rocks. They seem like they have no reason existing on these mountains, but seeds fell into the crevices and they would grow, often with a crooked and downward angle growing branches only on one side. The second are the grotesque rock formations. These rocks have sparked the imaginations of visitors over the years, many of them being given names to represent shapes they form such as animals, people, birds, and even a cell phone. The third wonder is the Sea of Clouds which are very common and forever changing. The last wonder is the Huangshan Hot Springs which are free from sulphur and contains many trace elements beneficial to health.

The hike around the top of the mountain was fairly laid back. There are plenty of trails etched around throughout the mountain top and even a few hotels and homes. The scenery was absolutely breathtaking and unlike any sight I had ever seen in my life. The jagged rocks spotted with trees made it very clear why so many artists were drawn here. Throughout our hike around the top of the mountain our guide pointed out some of the more famous scenes, describing all the different images each shape is thought to represent.

Throughout the top of the mountain we saw locks locked up along fence rails as we saw throughout Russia. A few of us decided to partake this time and bought and signed a lock with our significant others, locked it to a rail, and tossed the key off the mountain. It was starting to get darker so we needed to keep the pace up for the next bit in order to check into our lodging and make it to our sunset lookout.

We’d be staying in a 2nd class room, which meant 4 bunk beds rather than 30 people all crammed in a room. Good enough for us. After a quick check-in we headed off another 20 minutes up the mountain where we’d catch our sunset. Everything was looking good, but as sunset drew near clouds started to form in so we got a fairly blocked sunset. Oh well, tomorrow morning we’re up at 4am to try to catch a sunrise.

Tomorrow ... local villages and hot springs!

ShangHai Knights

2009-09-13T23:51:00.000-07:00

A few days back at dinner, we talked about how we are glad there is only one more train ride left on our trip. We ate our words hard when we hopped on the train from Beijing to Shanghai. It was like we had stepped into a space ship. Everything was white and really clean! Our bedding didn't smell musky and didn't itch to the touch. Every bunk had a TV with remote panel and headsets. We even had a hot water jug and garbage can. The washroom not only was open all the time, but also not the size of a tiny closet and didn't smell like pee. We didn't want to leave the train when we arrived in Shanghai in the morning.

Faye's cousin Sophia picked us up and took us to the hotel. Sophia had to go back to work and Faye had to play tour guide for the afternoon. After a short rest, we hopped on the metro and headed to the famous Shanghai Bund.

We walked through Nanjing Road to get to the Bund. Nanjing Road is like Robson St in Vancouver, but 20 times bigger with 50 times more people. As soon as we stepped onto the road, we were bombarded with "bag? t-shirt? belt? Gucci? LV?". Much like some shops in certain malls in Vancouver, these street hustlers have "secret" backrooms (or more like another world!) to showcase their wide variety of very well made designer fakes that bedazzles any tourist looking for a deal.

To our disappointment, when we reached the Bund, the area was all blocked off due to World Expo 2010 construction. We couldn't see anything other than the top of the Pearl through the dust. The Bund stretches one mile along the bank of the Huangpu River. Back in the day, this area was an international settlement which explained the various very European or Westernized architectural styles. Across the river is the PuDong Business District which provides the best skylines at night. After a very Shanghai dinner, we checked out the night scene from the PuDong and HuangPu River.

The next day was more shopping and food. We went to where we can do both: ChengHuang or City God Temple. It not only refers to the large temple complex, but also the traditional district of commerce in the city, surrounding the temple. There are over a hundred stores and shops in this area, and most of these store buildings are nearly a century old. The shops had every imaginable souvenir you can think of there from magnets, chopsticks, combs to personalized dough figurine. But no shot glasses to the disappointment of one of our travel mates. Lunch consisted of very yummy Dim Sum dishes. Faye's cousin suggested we give a seafood a try for dinner. Oh boy, are we glad they suggested that!

We arrived at the seafood street called TongBei Street (PuDong District). The whole street was nothing but seafood restaurants. Everything about this place was an instant sensory overload. The smell, sound and bright neon lights was China at its best. Buckets of live seafood are on display outside of the restaurants which you can just point and order your dinner. You can even get snakes! The restaurant we picked was called MangLingGe (满灵阁大宝海鲜排档). But due to overcrowding, we were seated almost right on the street next to our future dinner. When cars drove by us, couple of us had to get up to let it through. Faye's cousin ordered us drunken shrimp (yes, the shrimps were uncooked, but soaked in cooking wine and spice), clams, raw clams, snails, oysters, sea mushrooms, fish and so much more. All of us agreed that was the best meal we had in China. But that wasn't just a meal, it was an experience, the quintessential China experience. By the way, the bill came to 55o RMB (which is approx 90 CAD) that included dinner for 8, about 6 liters of beer and a bunch of soft drinks.

Tomorrow we wake up early for our trip to Yellow Mountain!

Beijing Part Deux

2009-09-11T20:04:00.000-07:00

Day 3 in Beijing, we split into two groups. One group went to the Summer Palace and the other group went to the Old Summer Palace also known as Yuan Ming Yuan ("Gardens of Perfect Brightness"). Summer Palace is the most famous because it is the best preserved imperial garden. It is modelled to resemble Southern China scenery. Old Summer Palace was a bigger garden. However, most of it was burn to the ground in the 1860 during the Second Opium War by the British and French. The Palace is now a massive park with many man made ponds, bridges and of course, ruins and less tourists. Most of the ruins were in one area. It was very surprising to see a lot of European influenced structure once stood the ground here. Since it was an imperial garden built exclusively for the emperor, not very many people have seen the original glory of the garden. Now stone columns and archways laid broken and scattered. It is a true pity.

We had our second Peking Duck of the trip for lunch along with 10 or 15 other dishes. To walk off the lunch we had to do some much needed shopping at HongQiao and XiuShui Market! Shopping in China is an art form. It required one to be charming, tactful, strong and knowing regardless what happens you got ripped off. If a vendor gave you a price, you were to offer back at 20% of the vender's price. Then work your way back up a bit at most to 30%. After awhile, it became a fun game for everyone. When everyone met up after a few hours, we not only compare the goods we got, we compared tactics used and the final price we negotiated. Check out the panda hat we got for 20 RMB (=2.50 CAD)

On the way back from the XiuShui Market, we stopped by The Place, home to the 250 meter x 30 meter LED screen. It is just 3 meters shorter than the largest LED screen in the World which is located in Vegas. The thing cost $32 million, is 80 feet above the ground, and actually 5 separate screens combined.

We were tired of walking around. Hence, next day which was also our last day in Beijing, we decided to take a Hutong tour via rickshaw! Hutong is narrow alley ways that form SiHeyYuan or courtyard which family or families live in. Hutong is disappearing fast as Beijing becomes more modernised everyday. Many think they are unique to Beijing. They are pretty common around China and just called different names. The tour gave us a glimpse into how ordinary Beijinger lived. But we couldn't help feeling we were intruding.

We still had a lot of time to kill before our train ride to Shanghai. Faye's cousin decided to take us to another park called BeiHai Park. This one is an imperial garden too. How many gardens does one emperor need? The literal translation of the park name is Northern Sea park. From the back of the park , you can see the corresponding Central Southern Seas park which is the complex of buildings that houses China's paramount leaders. There is a dramastic contrast between the two parks. One full of tourists and the other one is empty with many guards surrounding the grounds.

In case of bad traffic, we arrived at the Beijing Train Station really early. What was there to do, but do more exploring of the neighbourhood. Beijing was great since no matter where you go in the city, there was something around to see! No wonder Faye's cousin was so proud of his city. We walked around the old city wall. We walked by a dog park and spotted a line of colourful stars in the sky. We didn't know what to make of them until we walked a little further down the road. It was a LED light kite! We stopped and spoke to the middle aged man who made and was flying the kite. He used cell phone batteries to power the LED lights that changed flashing patterns with a click of a tiny controller. The lights ensemble were glued onto a piece of small cardboard. It was the coolest thing ever!

Not wanting to leave Beijing, we made it onto the train to Shanghai 10 minutes before departure time.

Great Wall and Food - Beijing, China

2009-09-10T14:06:00.000-07:00

It was an early start and we were back on the train heading to Beijing. Again, it was about a 30hour train ride with another crazy border crossing. We arrived at the Mongolian border at about 730pm and departed for China around 10pm. Around 1030pm we arrived at the China border. Immigration and customs bordered and took our paperwork. We also had temperature scans to see whether we were sick. Faye has a really bad cold - fortunately no fever. After they got our paperwork, the train is moved into a "garage" where the wheels are changed. The train rails are different widths from Mongolia to China - the Chinese being closer together. We stayed on the train as the compartments were lifted up and then replaced on new wheels. The procedure was very efficiently executed but a little unbelievable. The workers had hard hats but no other safety equipment - including no steel toe boots. In fact, one worker sat on his hat while the train was being lowered onto the new wheels! We finished the wheel changing process at about 1130pm and then had a stop from midnight to 1am. We went to bed at that point.

The following day we arrived in Beijing at about 2pm and were greeted by Faye's cousin at the station. He had hired a van and driver for our 4 days in Beijing. We went to the hotel, showered and waited for the arrival of two new members Sandy and Florent! Dinner was a feast of Peking Duck - very yummy. There was so much food! Another favorite dish and specialty of the restaurant was Pears - fried batter in the shape of pears with red bean filling. So good! After dinner, we headed out to see the Olympic venues by night - the Bird's Nest and Watercube all lit up in the rain.

The next morning, we started our day at the Temple of Heaven and Earth. The temple is where the emperor gave thanks and prayed to the Heaven. Faye's cousin played tour guide since he called himself an "Old Beijing", someone who knew everything about Beijing. He doesn't speak any English but Sandy also speaks Mandarin and translated for us. The temple area/park was huge and filled with seniors doing TaiChi and other morning exercises. Walking around the park for 3 + hours worked up an appetite. Lunch was another feast. This time the special dish was noodles. A highlight of this meal was the fried bananas and fried cream puffs. We then headed off to see the Forbidden City - the home of last several Emperors. It was amazing how much space one man needs (plus his many concubines and servants). On route we went through Tiananmen Square, the world's largest square. The square was packed full of people. We were told the square is always crawling with undercover cops. You are under constant surveillance, but probably one of the safest place in the country.

After the Forbidden City, we climbed the Jing Hill behind it for a full view of the Forbidden City.

Day 2 in Beijing was all about the Great Wall. We went to one of the less known locations of the wall called MuTianYu. We spent about 3 hours on the Wall. We headed back down by a much faster way - by LUGGING. They have a "luge" or giant slide to the bottom. Great fun but of course no helmets. Faye's cousin tried to show us something different every meal. So we had to fish for our own lunch! The restaurant was known for its fish dishes and the fish they serve are rised in spring water. The patio of the restaurant was on top of the fish ponds. Only Michelle was close to catching anything, so we just asked the waiter to net us a few fish for lunch.

Upon our return to the city we went for another round of massages!

No Man's Land

2009-09-05T14:05:00.000-07:00

Our trek to Mongolia started with a 30 + hour train trip - didn't seem too bad after the 53 hours from the train ride before. Of course, the customs insanity tried our patience and made it seem like 53 hours. We left Irkutsk at 10pm at night. We arrived at what we thought was the Mongolian border at about noon. It was in fact NOT the border. We sat on the train for about an hour and 45 min (with the bathrooms locked!) and then moved for about 20min. We were then told that we could get off the train and to be back at about 4pm for immigration and customs officials. Of course, we have no idea why the immigration and customs officials were not around earlier - there were no other trains there so we have no idea what they were doing!

We got off and explored the area around the train station - it had a few trinket shops and some food. We had brought food with us and had a picnic outside. At 4pm we got back on the train. It was a hot day and the train was very hot since it was not moving. Our window opened slightly providing a little relief. We sat there for about an hour before the immigration and customs officials showed up. They took our passports away and then we had to sit on the train. It took them about an hour and a half to process all the paperwork. The train started back up at around 7pm. During this time there the bathrooms were again locked. The customs search was VERY superficial. We put our bags on our bunks and that was about it.

We were then out of Russia and in no man's land. Our train stewards refused to open the toilets as we moved into Mongolia. Fortunately, the compartment in front of us were open! There is a one hour time difference between Russia and Mongolia so it became 6pm again. In Mongolia the immigration and customs process was repeated again. We were told it would take about an hour and it took closer to 2 hours. Our train connected to another train headed into Mongolia which departed at 9pm.

So in total our immigration and customs "experience" took approximately 10hours - NEVER again will I complain about crossing into the US to go shopping. We arrived early the next morning in Ulaan Batuur at 7am. We went directly to the bank to change money and then to the hotel for showers and breakfasts. Unfortunately, there was not much hot water in the showers. After getting ready we headed out to a ger camp for an overnight adventure.

A ger tent is the traditional "home" of the nomadic Mongolians. They set it up and dismantle it and move with their herds approximately 4 times a year. The camp we went to is for tourists and no family resided there - although there were families in the area with various herds - cows, sheep, goats, horses. The camp is not just for foreigners. Many Mongolians from the city will venture out the camps for weekends away. We were there on Thurs and had the place pretty much to ourselves. We went on a 2hr horseback ride around the valley and mountain near our camp. It was very beautiful. After the horseback ride, we had an archery lesson and went on a little hike in the area and learned more about Mongolia and the traditional way of life.

Mongolia was also very cheap. We bought some stuff on our way out of town - water, pop and wetwipes totaled 1400 - $1USD. The 2 hour horse back ride was 10,000 - approximately $8USD. The food at the camp was better than I had expected. No one got sick from the food, although I was careful with the meat. It tastes quite different because it is slaughtered differently and the blood is not drained out of it.

The next day was an early start - we headed back to UB and directly to the temple for a chanting ceremony. Our guide was very informative and it was very interesting. After that we headed for lunch and then to the Winter Palace of the Emperor, which is essentially a museum. We headed back to the hotel to freshen up at about 4pm and then departed for a cultural show. We saw throat singing, traditional dance, folk songs, traditional instruments and extortionists. After the show we went to dinner for Mongolian BBQ. Oddly enough, the Mongolian Grill in Vancouver has better decor than the place we went to. The food was good - at least the stuff you could choose to have cooked for you. Some of the prepared dishes were odd and some of the deserts were a little scary. We finished dinner early and headed for Karaoke for 30min while we waited for our guide to return. We were pretty sure we scared the locals with our terrible rendition of Barbie Girl, Under the Sea and Like a Virgin.

Our guide finally came back before we were kicked out of the K-bar and we went for groceries and souvenirs quickly before heading to bed. China here we come!!

Lake Baikal Serenity

2009-09-02T21:50:00.000-07:00

After another 2 day long stretch on the train we finally arrived in Irkutsk where we were met by our guide in order to head directly to Lake Baikal. According to our handy "The Lonely Planet: Trans-Mongolian Express" guidebook, Lake Baikal is located in Eastern Siberia and is the biggest and deepest freshwater lake in the world. As we arrive, it's late at night so we can barely appreciate the vastness of the lake as we drive by. We would be spending the night one of the most charming and coziest Bed & Breakfast homes I’ve ever seen. There was a full meal waiting for us as we arrived which included a fairly oily vegetable soup, potatoe salad, some cheese, and some cookies. It was delicious, but the oily soup left some of the group feeling not so great the next day.

The night brought us the nicest sleep we would have on the entire trip, well deserved after the fast pace of the journey through Moscow and St.Petersburg and the number of nights on the not overly comfortable train bunks. The only thing better then the sleep was the scene we would awaken to the next morning. Crawling out to our balcony we laid witness to a beautiful valley that spilled out into a the pristine Lake Baikal at the end of it. Being the city dweller we all were, you can’t help but appreciate the calming silence with the exception of two dogs having a barking war from opposite ends of the valley. It was the kind of day you just never really wanted to get started, but breakfast was waiting.

Following breakfast we decided to go exploring the local communities. Wandering down towards the lake were a number of old charming homes in a wide variety of colours with highly decorative shutters. It wasn’t uncommon to see goats grazing in somebodies front yard or cows wandering around the hillside. As we arrive seaside we can see the lake spreading out forever. We had heard that the lake water is completely drinkable without any further filtration due to a species of sponge in the lake that is able to clean the water. We witnessed many people dunking buckets at the end of a long rope into the water to take back for their home water.

Our guide the day before recommended a hilltop lookout the next community over so we ventured out on a 5km hike to find it. It was a nice hike and we came across many quirky sites along the way (stuffed bear, Mongolian mannequin, pink castle) that turned the day into a free-for-all for taking goofy photos. We struggled a bit with finding the path up to the hilltop but Jeff’s intuition and a little luck managed to get us there. We were given an option of hiking up or taking a ski-lift, but after the 5km hike we opted for the latter. Wandering down a path we found the lookout which was surrounded by scraps of cloth tied down to trees, poles, and handrails. We weren’t sure of the significance of this other than people marking their presence at the spot. We had been mocking Johainah’s wearing of a pink turtleneck on a warm day like today so Jeff had the idea of removing the turtleneck from the sweater so we could leave our mark as well. Joh being the good sport she was donated the piece of her sweater and we all signed and tied to an empty spot on the pole. We may have gotten a little carried away afterwards as we went onto to modify her sweater further by ripping the sleeves off as well. Made for a great picture though as we posed her next to another stuffed bear at the ski-lift going down. Good times.

The afternoon our group split between those that wanted to go further sight-seeing in the towns and those that wanted to get some chill time on the patio back at the B&B with some Russian beer. It was a great afternoon for both groups. The night before we had made arrangements to head to a Banya after dinner. A Banya is basically a Russian steam sauna that consists of three rooms: an entrance room, a washing room, and a steam room. We arrived in the entrance room to remove our outer clothing into our swimsuits and have some warm tea. We then moved into the washing room which was already fairly hot and consisted of a shower and some benches. We spent a great deal of time in here as the steam room itself was incredibly hot and could only be tolerated for about 3-5 mins before you needed to come out. They had these dried birch branches with leaves soaking in water which we were able to smack against each other. Actually felt kind of good, more like a back scratch and helped cool you down. It’s actually common following a stretch in the steam room that people would either run outside and take a dip in the lake or else roll around in the snow. There was no snow and the lake was ½ km away so neither would be included in our Banya experience.

The next day we would be heading back to Irkutsk but first we’d be hitting a Wood Museum which was along our route back. When they dammed the Angara for hydroelectric power they saved some of the old wooden buildings and made a fascinating open air architectural museum which was a re-creation of the typical houses and villages from the early Evenks (similar to the North American Indians) through to the Buryats from Mongolia and the Russians during the 1800’s - 1900’s.

We’d only have a number of hours in Irkutsk before heading out on our next leg of the Trans-Mongolian so it would turn into an opportunity to catch up on email and stock up on supplies. Faye had grown fond of the Russian string-cheese so being our last day in Russia we ventured out on a task to find some for her as well as some vodka for Greg to make the long stretches of time through customs at the Mongolian border a little more tolerable.

Next stop .. Mongolia!

Greeting from Central Russia

2009-08-31T23:51:00.000-07:00

Since we left Moscow we spent one night on a train to Ekaterinburg. This was the first leg of our Transsiberian adventure. After settling into our cabins and getting used to the confined space we decided to be a bit adventurous and look for the dinning car which we found about 4 carriages down the train. Nothing entertaining was going on so we walked back to our cabins, likely causing a stir along the way with our loud and excited chatter. We all settled down to one of many naps we would be taking. After waking up, Jeff, Greg, and Johainah decided to go back to the dining car to play some cards and have a beer. That was where we met some of our first local friends and initiated the night with our first shots of Russian vodka on the train. With a mixture of sign language, using Jeff's Iphone russian translator, and the basic english words the locals knew, we had our own party going. Since weren't allowed to drink the vodka we brought with us in the dining car, and the vodka on the train left much to be desired, we quickly moved the party back to our carriage and hung out by the door. We polished off the second bottle along with the orange juice chaser and decided it was time to pack off to bed before things got too friendly.

The next evening we arrived in Ekaterinburg. Ekaterinburg is mainly a university town and lies close to the Euro/Asia border. We spent the next day on a guided walking tour of the city where we saw the Church on Blood, where Tsar Nicholas' family (4 daughters, 1 son, mother and father) was assassinated/murdered. We visited the local parliment, and went to a stone museum of a private collector. In the afternoon we took a trip out to visit border.

The next morning we prepped for the next leg of our journey, two nights on the train to Irkutsk, Siberia. The two day journey from Ekburg was quite an experience. We boarded the train and settled in. A little more experienced and a little more comfortable, we were ready for the next two days. Jeff and Joh had two cabin mates who had already been on the train for two days and had another 5 days to go. They even had a plant in the cabin to provide some greenery and watch something grow! With only two days ahead of us, there was not much to complain about. We passed the time chatting, looking out the window, reading, listening to music, playing Uno and A$$hole, and napping. It felt like a real vacation of rest and relaxation was starting.The first evening on board Greg, Faye, Michelle, and Joh spent the better half in the dinning car competing at Uno. Towards the end of our match we were invited to join a small russian feast of smoked salmon with onion, borcsht, and pie which was to be eaten only after taking shots of Vodka. This time however, we were joined by the second captain of the train, a military officer who had a good living at 1000 dollars/rubles (???) a month and an Afgan Russian man who just had a baby. Russians were very friendly people, especially after some vodka, they all of sudden spoke more English and the universal language of hand gesturing. We closed the dinning cart and made it back to our cabin just before two in the morning.The next day moring, barely awake we received knocks on our cabin. It was the Russian guys from the night before. They came ready with another fresh bottle of Vodka and were ready to party at 0815 in the morning. We now can offically say Russians are crazy! We however, did turn them down…We spent the rest of the day doing the usual, napping, reading, cards, and such, and the next morning looked forward to disembarking later that day and get to some much needed showers. By this time we were all smelling pretty ripe.With the eagerness to get off, we almost did so at the wrong station but Joh's cabin mates stopped us. At the correct stop we got off, met our guide and started our journey toward a resort town on Lake Baikal in Siberia. To be continued….

NuBes' Days in Moscow, Russia

2009-08-24T23:40:00.000-07:00

We completed our overnight train to Moscow arriving extremely early in the morning. After checking into our hotel and a consult with a tour representative we decided to maximize our free day by running into the Red Square district and having a look around. Red Square was bustling with activity from people walking around with blow horns blaring what i imagine was solicitation for tours, to a group walking around with old USSR flags having a demonstration, to a guy in a Homer Simpson costume offering photo opportunities for money. We lucked into an opportunity to visit Lenin's mausoleum during one of the few blocks of time it was open. I have to say he looked pretty plastic but nevertheless it was quite a cool experience to be able to actually see a historically significant person. St.Basil's Cathedral was absolutely picturesque! We were told that the inside was nothing special so we got a few pictures and bolted.

Next stop was to visit Sculpture Park which was filled with various artists sculptures. Faye was excited about visiting this because she remembers seeing it on the Amazing Race. It actually had a few heads of Stalin and Lenin that were torn off of statues torn down after the fall of communism. I enjoyed it, some of the work was pretty neat.

The evening of our first night was saved for a visit to the Moscow Ballet to witness Swan Lake. After 4 long days of sight seeing, some left over jet lag, and the fact that it was . .well .. ballet, more then a few of us spent a portion of this catching up on some much needed shuteye. Well, at least i can say i experienced it but i don't know if there is going to be a lot of visits to the ballet in my future.

The second day we went on a guided tour of the Kremlin. The Kremlin is a fortress in the center of Moscow and is currently used as the official residence for the Russian President. We saw many different churches, historical buildings, and got a tonne of background on The Kremlin. The highlight was certainly the armory which now serves as a museum housing many different jewels, artifacts, weapons, clothing, and even carriages. Stunning!!

The rest of the day was spent wandering down Arbat Road where we had the opportunity to shop for souveniers and artwork followed by some shopping for snacks for tomorrows train and an early turn in. Tomorrow is the start of 30 hours on the train enroute to Ekaterinburg.

NuBes in St. Petersburg, Russia

2009-08-23T12:46:00.001-07:00

St. Petersburg is a beautiful city with a Western Europe feel. Very little of Russia’s communism past lives here. We started our day with a quick walking tour with our guide Mike (a St. Petersburg native with a strong English and Australia accent!)

In four hours we were educated in numerous interesting facts from a brief history about the city to where to buy good Georgian smoked cheese. The city is

surrounded by canals and connected many little bridges which all but one go up at 1:20AM to 05:00AM often strand people from their destination. They say if you see a bridge go up, it is suppose to bring you good luck. Unfortunately, the gang was way to tired to get up in the middle of the night to catch a glimpse of this fine attraction. Instead, we started with the vast Hermitage where we caught many masterpiece artworks. The gang particularly loved going through the abstract art gallery, we all took turns sitting crossed legged in the middle of the rooms and

tried to guess what the artists were painting. We were not very good, but managed get a few right and even did our own interpretation on one we really liked.

The next day we hit the Peter and Paul Fortress. Located by the Neva River, the fortress can be spotted from miles away largely because the gold tipped Peter and Paul Cathed

ral located within the grounds. By the time Peter the Great finished build

ing this grand fortress, the war it was meant for was over. It was never used again as a fortress, but later become a political prison. After the fortress, the gang wanted to a view from the top, so we headed over the St. Issac's Cathedral. Merely 262 steps, we were up high and enjoyed a panoramic view of the city. After walking around for hours, a rel

ax boating cruise was totally in order. We hopped on a boat cruise up and down the canals. Perhaps the cruise was a little too relaxing, half of the gang who were still very jetlegged fell asleep to the gentle rocking motion of the boat in no time! For those who stayed

awake saw the city full of bright coloured castles and palaces. The boat guide explained St. Petersburg is only sunny about 30 days out of year, so the bright colours were used on the palaces to make the place less gloomy.

After the nap in the boat, it was time for us the hit the town! We headed down to an alternative bar just two blocks down from our hotel hoping we can catch a local band. But by the time we arrived, the band was done and gone. We sat for a drink (or two, three...) anyways and chatted up the locals. Despite the stereotype, Russians were very friendly people. They were even funny! Joke of the day: A St. Petersburgerians asks another St. Petersburgerians what he did last summer, he replied "I was working that day..."

Our third day, we had an early morning despite the late night at the local bar. Tired, but excited to visit the Church of Spilled Blood, very gory name (Alexander II was assassinated here) for a colourful church modelled after the St. Basil in Moscow. The interior of this church was incredible! After a quick stroll at the flea market across from the church which included an encounter with a baby bear that someone kept as a pet, we hopped on the hydrofoil toward the gulf of Finland. More napping on the hydrofoil... then we arrived at the Peterhof which is described as the Versailles of Russia. Its grounds were massive with over 140 water fountains! All this for one dude named Peter the Great. Since it was a gorgeous and warm day, the gang took some time to sunbathed on the grass area overlooking the Gulf of Finland before catching the hydrofoil back to St. Petersburg.

Our short stay in St. Petersburg ended with us catching our first train ride on this trip! Moscow here we come!

NuBe gang's first day in Mother Russia

2009-08-20T09:31:00.000-07:00

It's now been the end of a long day and betwee jet lag, 5 hours at the Hertmitage museum, walking the lenthg of Nevsky, the main road here, talk about sensory overload and lack of ability to construct cherent centecnes.. i mean sentences.. now that we're learning the russian alphabet, sorry if it's interferring with our english. (wow.. that was a long sentence)

Day One of our four week journey started with a bang! After our two hour flight from Frankfurt, we got off the plane to be picked up by two russian guys who drove us to our hotel (with no visible front lobby). The hotel is in the City Center, as we were corrected by our driver, it's not downtown. Our driver wasn't able to tell us what was going on the next day and after a playing charades with the lady in the lobby, we figured we'd be better off to figure it out the next morning at breakfast.

We spent the evening walking around and found a little bar that can only be described as Russian kitch at its best. We dined on our first borsch and straganoff while listening to cheesy 80's music (that johainah enjoyed) played/karaoked by a one man band sitting next to a stripper pole. Despite the jet lag and strange lone dancing bar star (also a patron though) we enjoyed every minute of it.

After dinner the gang walked back and hit the pillow pretty hard.
It's been a while since either of us have traveled anywhere new. It's a great feeling. New air, new people, and new sites. Day's are longer here, it's about 10pm before the sun goes down. It's also a little chilly. Getting to know the streets has been an adventure on its own but fortunately no one has gotten thoroughly lost. Russian can be a challenging language, especially since at first it looks like english until you get to the backward Rs.
We've got the rest of our stay in St. Petersburg all planned out with a boat tour, church visits and more walking around. So, stay tuned for more to come! Paka for now!

What’s SUP doc?

2009-08-09T19:05:00.000-07:00

When the idea came up to try Stand-Up Paddling (SUP), my initial reaction was “that looks pretty hard, this might take some skill”. But not one to be deterred, we opted as a group to give it a shot. It looked pretty cool and I’m not one to be upstaged by Jennifer Aniston and Matthew McConaughey who are out there rocking the SUP scene.

So one sunny Saturday morning we got a nice little NuBe group together and headed out to Deep Cove for some intro SUP lessons and some time out on the water. We were met by our Australian instructor Adam who immediately took us through the basics. Truth is, Stand-up Paddling is actually pretty simple to get started. Keep your legs shoulder length apart, bend the knees, grab the end of the paddle and keep the top arm straight as the blade enters the pulling towards the hip. First time out you’ll want to find some flat water as once you start getting some waves the experience becomes exponentially more challenging. I found that out quickly, I was feeling pretty cocky once I started paddling around the cove like a pro however once we got a little bit out into the more open water and the tiniest waves appeared, i found myself a lot more conscious about trying to keep my balance. But then that’s where it becomes a bit more of a workout, which for a lot of people is part of the appeal.

When you first get on the board you’ll find balancing to be pretty simple. Getting some speed definitely helps and allows you to use the oar as part of your balancing trick. Turning adds a bit more of a challenge, but not significantly. For those looking for more of a challenge you can position your feet one in front and one in back which makes balancing more difficult but gives you more of a core workout and allows you some more impressive turning options.

Stand-up paddling is a great way to spend a few hours. It’s very relaxing and as easy or challenging as you choose to make it. We got some great sun and Faye even got to see a baby seal with mother. Both of us took a couple dunks in the water due to losing our balance, but on a sunny day like that was it felt so refreshing. If you get an opportunity, definitely give Stand-Up Paddling a try!

Be Nu, Be Proud - My First Pride Parade

2009-08-05T22:45:00.000-07:00

Before moving to Vancouver, I lived in a mid size city called Windsor. The city is famous for being across the water from Detroit, the motor city. Needless to say, Windsor is a blue collar town too. Not to say, it has no charm, after all it is the strip club capital of Canada. I love Vancouver, because it is everything Windsor isn’t. When I arrived here, I couldn’t wait to start enjoying the mountains, ocean, weather and most of all, I finally live in a city that has a Chinese New Year and Pride parade!

I was able to cross “attended Chinese New Year Parade” off my to-do list during my first year in the city. I anxiously waited for the summer to attend my first Pride Parade. Why do I look forward to the Pride Parade so much? For the same reason that I wanted to see the Chinese New Year Parade. It is a chance to witness the celebration of diversity and culture. I love watching people parading around the city in colourful outfits and showing off how proud of who they are! It is the most loving and festive feeling.

Unfortunately, I seem to be always out of town during Pride week in Vancouver and missed it year after year. But this was the year!!! I was determined to finally see the parade with my own eyes!

This past weekend, Mom and I headed down Davie Street towards English Bay right before the parade started. The streets were packed with people, dogs and children (I guess they are people too :P). Parade was a bit of slow start, but by the time the dyke on bike (btw, that is what they call themselves, I am not being rude!) came around, the crowd was going wild over them. It seemed like the entire community came out to cheer on the gays. From policemen, firemen, teachers, media to First Nations, everyone was looking fabulous and shaking their booties! This was Ma’s first time too. She couldn’t believe how beautiful some of the transgender ladies were and super impressed how they can walk in 4 inch heels better than she could.

I was extremely proud to see military presence at the parade. But I would have loved to see a much bigger turnout like the RCMP. They had a platoon marching! Btw, they looked very hot in their red uniform. Last year in Toronto, for the first time, members of Canada's Armed Forces represented the military in Pride parade.

My NuBe Pride Parade experience definitely lived up to the hype. Tolerance and love was no longer just felt, it was heard and seemed all over Vancouver and it was sweet and exciting. I am no longer a Pride Parade virgin! Hurrahhh!

University

2009-08-02T14:04:00.000-07:00

My mom is in town visiting and I've come to realize that we do one of two things since I don't see her all the time anymore. Either we reminisce about the past or try out new stuff.

Today's blog is about reminiscing the past. One of the discussions I had with mom was about my university days, and how I was more open in university to give something a go than I was in school. I don't know if it was the freedom I had or the opportunities being readily available, but I had a great time and always found myself busy. My parents gave me the freedom to do what ever I wanted and encouraged me to be a part of everything (except partying that involved drinking). For some reason though, I just wasn't that into it in school. I think it might have been because I would be directly under their criticism or maybe it was my way of rebelling.

University was a great time to start new things and get more involved. I started rowing, joined astronomy club (geeky I know - but it was fun!), scuba diving club, pep band and some academic clubs as well. Now that I'm in the outside world fending for myself where other priorities take place, I'm happy to have the memories of University to look back on for things I did.

What I guess I'm trying to say (other than stay in school :) ) is, I realize how important it is to take opportunities as they become available - not to be lazy or keep putting things off. I am absolutely guilty of this sometimes - but it's something I'm trying to work on.

There's stuff going on outside today and we've been home all morning. So mom and I are going to head out - which is what my next blog will be about - the new stuff my mom and I did!

Shake what your mama gave you!

2009-07-26T13:01:00.001-07:00

Salsa is a dance for Salsa music created by Spanish-speaking people from the Caribbean. The name "Salsa" is the Spanish word for sauce, connoting (in American Spanish) a spicy flavor and trust me it is a spicy dance. Yet of all the partner dances, it is probably the easiest to get into. It is a street dance after all!

Three years ago, I got into it because a friend asked me to join her and her co-workers and I have always been interested in partner dancing. We started the beginner lessons at a downtown Vancouver studio called The Urban Beat Dance Co. The dance company offered from leve 1 (beginner) to level 4. We paid $85 for 8 lessons back then. It was a really reasonable priced activity!

Before the class I made sure I was wearing comfortable shoes and clothes. No special salsa clothes were needed for beginner dancers. Just as long as you can move in them. Jeans (not too tight!) and t-shirt were good enough.

I showed up to the first class with 60 or so other men and women in the studio. I thought to myself "Oh no, I can't believe I just wasted my $85 on learning dancing in a sardine can." The instructors ensured us right away that they were professionals and not too worry about the class size. The ladies were asked to form a large circle and the guys were asked to form another circle outside of ours. The instructors taught us the steps in the middle of the circles. The inner/ladies' circles turned in clockwise direction about every 5 minutes. We had opportunities to dance with about 7 to 8 different guys by the end of the lesson. In some cases, I was really glad I wasn't stuck with that guy smelled like an ash tray or the sweat bucket guy for no more than 5 minutes.

The basic basic salsa steps were pretty simple. All the steps were variations of the basics and were repeated throughout the class. But I didn't feel the repeativeness. The 1 hour class flew by! I wished we did less dancing by the beat of the instructors counting and more dancing to the music. But having a solid foot work foundation was very important, more music came as I went on to level 2 and 3. I also switched instructor for level 3. I thought that was a great way to open my eyes to new moves and styles.

If you love very rhythmic music and love to shake, salsa was very easy to get into!

NuBe's First Event - Stand Up Paddling

2009-07-25T11:14:00.000-07:00

NuBe is hosting our first event! Come out to Deep Cove and do some stand up paddling on August 1, 2009! All the cool kids are doin' it!

The lesson is 4 person per group.
Cost: $40 per person
Time: it is an 1.5 hour lesson

Please RSVP by Wednesday 29th July 3:00PM.

For more information or RSVP: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=134819147500

That's a Wrap! Take it to editing...

2009-07-19T17:11:00.000-07:00

Since i was a teenaged kid i had taken an interest in video. Growing up in a small town me and my friends would make goofy home videos with my dads video camera just to pass the time. Many years later following my first trip to England and Paris in 2000 I had decided that if i was going to continue my dream of traveling that i wanted to invest in a digital camcorder in order to capture the adventure to share with others and keep the memories for years to come. After a couple trips away with my new camcorder i realized that i ended up with tonnes of hours of video (and not all of it was especially interesting). I started looking into video editing software so i could create some highlights of my trips put to music.

The first software i began using was Pinnacle Studio 8 which was very user friendly. It was very easy cutting and editing content in order to minimize down the clips to only the best. It allows you to add in music as a seperate track which you can lock in so that cutting the video doesn't take out your music. Transitions were a snap with an entire extensive library of fades, effects, drop-windows and so on. Looking back at the the first video i made following a trip to China in 2003 I can see now how carried carried away i get with a lot of the effects. Over the years i've come to appreciate the less-is-more approach to video but at the time it was fun to have my seen overlooking the forbidden city transform into a paper-airplane and fly off into the next scene. Even better, if you really just want a cool music video and don't want to invest the time and energy into it then it even has a one click music video create function that will do all of the work for you based on a song you pick and a style. I've used this a couple times but still prefer the creativity of building my own.

This past prior to my trip to SouthEast Asia the old camcorder was starting to show a little wear and tear so I decided it was time to upgrade to a High Definition camera. Despite many options available now for cameras with built in hard drives and DVD writing i decided to stick with Mini DV as it still produces higher quality video. Unfortunately moving to HD meant additional investment in a more powerful computer with a better video card and more memory. It also meant finding better video software since Pinnacle Studio seemed to have some challenges dealing with the HD format. After some serious investigation i ended up landing on CyberLink PowerDirector. I find it's not quiet as easy to use as the Studio but for the love of HD i was willing to make the sacrifice. I absolutely love the HD quality of my videos and the effects are still pretty cool in PowerProducer. They're not as flashy as Studio but i find the cleaness of the effects a lot more professional looking. Take a look at my finished SE Asia video here:

29 Days to Trans-Mongolia Train Adventure

2009-07-19T16:22:00.000-07:00

The NuBe gang is going on a Trans-Mongolia Train trip in 29 days for the first time! Become a blog follower today and follow the gang along this exciting adventure!

For lovers of travel and lovers of railways alike this is an incredible adventure through vast and dramatic landscapes. Travelling across the breadth of Russia, Mongolia and China on board the Trans Mongolian or Trans Siberian railways is a must. For sheer distance, intrigue and on completion, the tremendous sense of personal satisfaction, no other train journey comes anywhere near it.

Points of destination: St. Petersburg, Moscow, Ekaterinburg, Lake Baikal, UB and Beijing.

Taking Chances

2009-07-19T15:40:00.000-07:00

Have you ever made fun of someone for doing something, then given it a try and found that you enjoy doing it too? Or is it just me - weird like that? When I first started the MBA program I met a friend who played ultimate frisbee. When he told me, my first reaction was, "What? Isn't that a PE game for middle schoolers?". I thought it was pretty funny that he was still playing ultimate in grad school. However, when it came time to sign up a team for intramural activities with the university and he asked if I wanted to join, especially since they needed girls, I thought, what the hell - at least it will get me out doors and running around. Lo and behold - I really enjoyed my first game and have been playing for the last 3 years!

What kept me coming back? Firstly I'd have to say the team. It was a good group of people. We built a camaraderie. Secondly - it was a lot more fun than what I remembered it to be. I had a blast - maybe it was a bright sunny day, someone actually threw to me, I got some real coaching, i don't know - What ever it was, I ate my words!

(The picture is of my first ultimate team at BC Stadium after winning the UBC intramural championships in winter 2006)

I want to be a NuBe, but...

2009-07-08T22:08:00.000-07:00

So.... you have always wanted to try that one new thing you saw on TV or read in a magazine, but for whatever reason you have put it off! You have no time? You have no money? or you are simply too scared?

"I am too busy with work" or "I have no spare time". We have all said these words as an excuse to not to get off our butts and do something. I don't need to comment more on this because it has been talked to death and we all know what to do. So get a calendar and get organized!

There are so many new activities that are very low cost such as hiking (all you need is a pair of shoes) or cooking at home (go to your local produce store for fresh ingredients). Many activities such as kayaking or skiing maybe something expensive to start, but many businesses offer discount coupons to tourists in hotel lobbies. These coupons are not off limits to you! One of my favorite things I started doing is actually totally free - volunteering! Last year Johainah talked me into volunteering for Theatre Under the Stars, an outdoor theatre group. We worked as ushers, program sellers and baristas couple of times a week. Most of the work was before the show and during the intermission. The rest of time we got to watch the show, drink hot chocolate and meet new people. We had a great time!

If you are scared starting something new on your own, find a buddy! Someone in your circle of friends might be starting something you might be interested in. Keep your ears open at parties for conversation that starts with "I have always wanted to try...". Don't be afraid to get onto someone else's band wagon. A friend asked if I was interested in going to a salsa class with a few of her co-workers. I said yes, of course! The friend completed the beginner class and I went onto level 3 advance salsa. I joined the Navy Reserve because a high friend said he wanted to attend a recruiting session. He never did sign up though! Finally, don’t scare yourself off by setting yourself an ambitious goal. One step at a time, just try it at least once should be your only goal or set goals that is realistic to your lifestyle.

Now you have no more excuses (if you come up one, let me know and I will write another blog about it :P)! This summer I could like to challenge myself and you to try something new small or big every two weeks.

Be NuBe, Be Bold!

Kayaking 101

2009-07-05T14:17:00.000-07:00

What better way to spend a hot summer holiday then on the water? This past Wednesday was Canada Day so we agreed it would be the perfect day to try some kayaking. This is a first for me and Joh although Faye got to do some kayaking over a year ago while in Vietnam (lucky little thing). We headed out to Rocky Point Kayak in Port Moody, BC where we were able to get 2 hours in a double kayak for $42. If you are able to find nice calm waters like we were then kayaking is a great first-timer activity because you can pretty much hit the ground running with very little prep. It took about two minutes of instructions before we were pushed out into the water and motoring along.

There’s really not a lot to learning how to kayaking in calm conditions. There’s setting up some foot straps which the person in the back position uses to steer the kayak. There was some minimal safety equipment including a bilge pump for emptying water and a rope in case you need a tow. The last thing is some basic instructions on pulling the rudder in and out of the water in case you end up in shallow water. For us, going to a place called “Rocky Point”, this one came in quiet useful as we ended up in a lot of areas where rocks jutted up unexpectedly so we paid a lot of caution with our rudder. Last thing anybody wants is to pay for a new rudder due to carelessness!

Kayaking is an absolute blast. You can either take it easy and just casually float around and enjoy the sunshine or you can really push it into a serious upper body workout. We did a combination of both, sometimes we were pushing it just to race the other boat or try to get some exercise out of it but there were also plenty of times when we were floating around checking out the seals sun-tanning on a bunch of logs or enjoying a mid-day floating picnic. The bilge pump also makes for an excellent water assault weapon to an unexpecting Joh. What can I say? Deep down I’m still that immature little boy! Needless to say she got absolutely soaked. The downside of this is she ended up trying to retaliate by splashing me with her paddle which ended up having part of it floating away. Took about a half hour search before we finally found it, good thing all the equipment floated.

So here’s a few kayaking tips for beginners:

Safety first! Always have a life jacket and mandatory safety equipment
Paddling: The key here is try to get comfortable in your seat and make most of the movement from your torso. Each paddle stroke is a pull with your downward stroke while your push the paddle away from you with your upward arm, this helps maximize the power of the stroke and distributes the stroke. Don’t lean too far as it will only put strain on your arms and neck. As you change sides the paddle shaft should comfortably rotate to line up your knuckles with the upward blade - sweeping the water to the end of the kayak. Once you get comfortable you’ll end up with a very natural rhythmic flow.
Turning – this is primarily done with use of the rudder. Push the leg strap forward on the side of the kayak you wish to turn. To assist the turn, paddle on the side of the kayak opposite of the direction you wish to turn. You can also paddle backwards on the side of the kayak you wish to turn.
Finally, always bring some water with you. Heat exhaustion and dehydration is a serious threat when out on the water for long hours in the sun. Sunscreen is also a very good idea.

Highly recommend kayaking if you’re looking for something new and easy and love the water as much as I do. It’s made me want to improve so I can eventually get out there and try some ocean kayaking!!

Safety First - A NuBe MUST!

2009-07-04T14:05:00.000-07:00

Whenever trying something new, please remember safety first and safety equipments are not toys!

The first time I tried roller blading, I didn't wear any protection. I fell my ass twice and my tailbone was in pain for weeks! I decided to invest in some wrist, elbow and knee guards (they didn't make a butt guard). After a few tries at roller blading, I thought I was OK on my own and worst, I thought I was too cool for protections! I went blading only in my wrist guard. Needless to say, I lost my balance and scrap my elbow (see right)! It really hurt like a mother f**ker! I had to use two x-large band-aid for my bloody elbow. I also lost two nails. *sigh* You are never too cool for protection!

Safety equipment is for emergencies. Not meant to be a toy. On Canada day, the gang decided to give kayaking a try. I have done it before, but Johainah and Greg had not. We went to Rocky Point in Port Moody. The kayaking rental company provided us with a paddle, life jacket, tow rope and waterpump with each kayak. Greg thought was fun to start a "water war" with Johainah's kayak using the water pump! Johainah retaliated with her paddle. Moments later, Johainah was soaked and was with only had half of her paddle. We went into a panic looking for the missing paddle part. We contemplated about the story we were going to tell the rental people: "the paddle just went floating away while we were chatting and there was no goofying around at all". We wondered how much the paddle was going to set us back... Just when we were ablout to give up and head back to shore, I spotted the white paddle part bobbying up and down in the water. Actually, the whole thing including goofying around the water pump was really fun... but safety equipment is fun to play with until you loose it.

(if you look a little closer, you will see Johainah's paddle floating away in the back...)

Becoming a Roller Blading NuBe - First Launch

2009-06-28T17:30:00.000-07:00

Our gang of roller blading NuBes picked a late Sunday afternoon to practice our moves next to Coopers Dog Park. People say the first few steps of a new journey are the hardest (I know, it is cheesy, but is it appropriate!). After I had put my blades on, I was surprised that I could stand up without falling to one side. Not to mention, I was all of sudden 5 inches taller! Then I started moving towards the fence. I felt utterly ridiculous! I was a life size weeble wobble! Good thing I had friends around me that looked equally silly.

We started rolling a little bit. I was really unsure about my technique. I was just moving whichever way the blades were making me move without falling. There were another couple in the same area. The man was teaching his wife how to roller blade too. After watching us struggle a bit, the man decided to give us a few tips. He said many push their blades from side to side to get the traction to move forward. However, the "correction" way was to place one foot in front almost like the navigating foot, the other foot is the pushing foot which should be behind and slightly at an angle.

We tried his way and found it really hard! I was really not sure if his tips were more helpful or more hmmm... not... helpful? I started thinking about it and tried to do it "correctly". However, the more I thought about it the more wobbly I became. I am the type of person if I want to learn something I want to learn it well and learn it correctly. If I don't, it is not worth learning!

I looked Cris and Greg who were both doing well and blading faster! I was very frustrated and didn't understand why I was getting worse. Then Johainah said "Just do whatever you were doing before!" She was absolutely right! Why was I putting so much pressure on myself when this was suppose to be fun!? I wasn't going to be the next roller blading Olympian. I just needed to learn how to move my ass on 8 wheels without falling over. (Remember that Friends episode which Rachel didn't want to go for a run with Phoebe because she was running like a cat in heat.)

For rest of the afternoon we bladed back and forth and really starting to find our balance. Now we just need to learn to stop!

Becoming a Roller Blading NuBe - The Prep

2009-06-26T17:38:00.000-07:00

Summer is beautiful here in Vancouver. We are blessed with a really dry spring and early summer so far. Greg and I wanted to get into shape without having to go to the gym everyday. So like always Johainah talked us into joining her for some roller blading. Along the way, we also recruited Cris to join our little roller blading trop! As from Johainah, we were all very very very green at this.

We had to get some good gear to start. We got our blades during a road trip to Seattle at a stored called Big 5 Sporting Goods (Bellingham). Lucky us that most blades were on sale and that made Faye very happy! 20 minutes, I came out with a pair of red hot wheels for about 60 bucks. In Vancouver, new blades from most major sporting goods stores range from 120 to 200 CAD. Later days, we also had to get protection. Cris went to Canadian Tire and got those Coopers protection gear for around 30 CAD which included wrist guard, knee and elbow pads. Not too mention, they were very stylish and very bad ass looking! Yes, I have protection gear envy. Johainah and I ended up getting a set of powder blues from Sports Chek for about the same price.

Now we were suited up, we had to find a good spot to practice for our roller derby future ahead.

We found a great spot to practice next to the Coopers Dog Park. This spot is great because it is a long stretch of flat paved small road with low traffic. The best part is it has fences around it (don't know how long the fences are going to be there for). The fence is great to hold onto if you are feeling shaky as you first put on the blades. There are also benches around if you get tired.

The second spot we found that was great is also not too far from Coopers Dog Park. A block north, is the BC Place parking lot which is empty during most weekends. The lot is great for NuBe bladers because again it is flat and paved. But no fence to act as your safety net.

So far roller blading is a good thing to start doing in the summer, because it is not a big investment and easy to start!

My first Hot Yoga Experience!

2009-06-23T21:27:00.000-07:00

Sunday, June 7, 2009

I went to my first bikram's hot yoga class this morning with a good friend of mine. I've been wanting to go but never got around to it. Well, I finally did and it was fantastic. Although really sweaty - we were the first class of the day so the room didn't smell like i've heard it could! After class i felt on top of the world. I signed up for the beginners week special and will be going every morning.

I went to West Coast Yoga in Yaletown. They have a special for beginners where the first week is $15. On the way there, Yaletown Yoga on Homer is advertising your first 2 weeks at $30 and I believe this includes mats! That's a good deal. West Coast Yoga charges $2 a mat unless you sign up for a monthly rental.

Tuesday, June 23

So it's been about 2 weeks since I started Yoga and I've been going most mornings. (I had to miss a few because I was out of town). I ended up staying with West Coast Yoga because their morning timing suits me well. Since I'm partially doing this for weight loss as well as find that I'm going to need to supplement it with a more rigorous workout. Why can't we just lose weight from sweating? I'd be in such good shape if we could! Life isn't that easy I guess - who am I kidding?

I started because my body felt stiff, my back would get sore from just sitting, and I wanted to strengthen my muscles with low impact. In the last two weeks I already feel more nimble. Doing this in the morning keeps me feeling good all day long and my back doesn't hurt as much any more. My feet hurt sometimes during some of the standing balancing poses, but over the past two weeks, I do feel them getting stronger and I'm able to hold a pose longer or take it further. It's fun to face the challenge and see the progress.

I'm also really enjoying the routine of my life now. It keeps me from staying up all night watching tv or YouTube surfing! Instead, I'm in bed with a good book falling asleep and getting the rest my body needs during the week.

Since I find it hard to keep myself motivated sometimes, I have an accountability buddy. We keep each other in check - and the two times I've had to miss out I felt guilty about since I'm actually doing this for me. :) my new mantra "my body's my temple"!

Oops! well it's already past bedtime! early for the young I know - but I feel so much more alive - and I don't fall asleep at work!
Good night for now :)

Welcome to NUBE!

2009-06-19T11:28:00.000-07:00

Welcome to NuBe! Our motto is Be Nu, Be Bold! Become a NuBe today!

What is a NuBe? A NuBe is someone who is not afraid to always want to try something NEW. Always wanna try kayaking? Salsa dancing? Sushi/Raw fish? This blog is dedicated to the NuBe-ness in all of us! Greg, Johainah and myself will be posting our NuBe experience along with tips, pictures and video. Happying NuBe-ing!

Don't forget to also join us out on Facebook .