88 Days to Live

Dinner at the Palladio, Ritz Carlton, Shanghai

2011-02-23T21:49:00.005+10:30

And here it is. The last dinner I had during my epic 100 day adventure in China, Taiwan and Japan. This restaurant is said to be the best Italian experience outside of Italy. And I concur. My dad and I met our lovely friend Camellia, a manager at the Ritz Carlton for a dining experience not to forget. I had deep fried seafood for the appetizer, black ink pasta with lobster meat for the main and Tiramisu with chocolate gelati for dessert. I wasn't going to choose the Tiramisu because I always choose it, but Fabrizio the charismatic restaurant manager described it to me in his Italian accent and I was sold! They really make an effort to do things different at the Palladio. Let me paint a picture for you.. first it came out as a glossy chocolate ball with gold flakes on top. Hot creamy liquid is then poured on the ball, and it melts (as seen not so glamorously in the photo) and the gelati is revealed sitting atop the Tiramisu. It was perfect. My best Italian dining experience to date.

More shots from Jing An, Shanghai

2011-02-23T21:47:00.003+10:30

Taking a stroll on the streets of Jing An after a delectable Italian meal is simply fabulous.

Chinese Mafia Meeting, Wencheng County

2011-02-23T21:35:00.001+10:30

I feared for my life taking this photo, so please enjoy.

Piano Bar, Shanghai

2011-02-23T21:25:00.002+10:30

What makes this place so cool is it's hidden really well. No signage and so hard to find, even when given directions. Inside was a chilled out lounge atmosphere with Karaoke set. What bar in Asia would be complete without one?

Beijing Opera

2011-02-23T21:22:00.002+10:30

Street graffiti in 上海

2011-02-23T21:19:00.002+10:30

Shanghai World Financial Centre

2011-02-23T21:09:00.004+10:30

The highest observation deck in the world at 474m. To me, it was so high that I didn't even fear walking on the glass floors. You sort of lose that fear of heights when it gets so high, like being in an airplane. A very cool building though, designed by the Japs, so everything is top notch.

Jing An Temple

2011-02-23T21:03:00.003+10:30

Jing An Temple Metro Station, Shanghai

2011-02-23T21:00:00.001+10:30

Pho 26 on Wujiang Road, Shanghai

2011-02-23T20:55:00.002+10:30

Dinner with my chums from Jiao Tong University. I had the AAAA Kobe beef with a watermelon juice.

Nanjing West Road, Shanghai

2011-02-23T20:53:00.002+10:30

Mystery heritage building, Shanghai

2011-02-23T20:50:00.001+10:30

Soho Bar and Phebe Club, Shanghai

2011-02-23T20:44:00.002+10:30

Getting slizzard during my final weekend in Shanghai.

My Chinese puppy

2011-02-23T20:38:00.002+10:30

Tian Zi Fang, Shanghai

2011-02-23T20:28:00.002+10:30

Narrow paved alleyways filled with cafes and restaurants. I loved this place.

Teddy Restaurant, Shanghai

2011-02-23T20:16:00.006+10:30

I saw this place advertised on Channel Young on T.V one day, so I noted the address and headed over as soon as I got the chance. It's also quite popular with the celebrities from Hong Kong. I think I might have seen one or two when I went :P

Karaoke, Shanghai

2011-02-22T04:49:00.002+10:30

Wenzhou, China

2011-02-22T04:46:00.001+10:30

Hangzhou Bay Bridge

2011-02-22T04:27:00.004+10:30

The longest sea bridge in the world!

Chinese New Year, Dian Shan Lake, Shanghai

2011-02-22T04:24:00.001+10:30

Finally I got to experience the festivities of Chinese New Year. There were so many fire works everywhere I looked, and not just for 20 minutes. The Spring Festival lasts over two weeks, so it sounds like a war zone the entire duration.

Pane e Vino, Shanghai

2011-02-22T04:11:00.002+10:30

The best thin crust pizza I've ever had. This place was the real deal too. Italian owner and flour from Italy.

Shanghai Zoo

2011-02-22T04:10:00.001+10:30

Our final night in Tokyo

2011-02-18T01:25:00.001+10:30

DIY BBQ

2011-02-18T01:20:00.001+10:30

Suntory Premium Malts, a very delectable beer.

Udon Noodles, Asakusa Tokyo

2011-02-18T01:15:00.000+10:30

Australia v Japan - Asian Cup Final, Tokyo

2011-02-18T01:09:00.001+10:30

Craving Virtua Tennis

2011-02-18T00:58:00.004+10:30

Phu and I were craving a Virtua Tennis battle, so when we finally found the only machine in the arcade, one side of the machine was taken (boy on the right side). Phu decided to beat him in a challenge so I could have a go so us mates could battle. Before we knew it, we were both smashed. Lesson learnt.

Gold Fish Cafe, Tokyo

2011-02-18T00:47:00.001+10:30

Tokyo Fish Market

2011-02-18T00:42:00.000+10:30

I Love Aburi Seto

2011-02-17T23:45:00.003+10:30

Notice how I ate half the bottom left one and then remembered to take a photo haha.

Hakuba

2011-02-17T19:31:00.001+10:30

Hakuba House

2011-02-17T19:27:00.001+10:30

Hakuba, Nagano

2011-02-17T19:19:00.002+10:30

Boarding, Hakuba

2011-02-17T19:16:00.002+10:30

Train ride to Nagano

2011-02-17T19:10:00.002+10:30

The little things, Japan

2011-02-17T19:05:00.003+10:30

One can't help but appreciate the subtle differences in Japan like this not so little light post.

Final night in Osaka

2011-02-17T19:00:00.002+10:30

Drinking delicious peach beers with our hostel owner Masa.

Expensive meal, Kobe

2011-02-17T18:41:00.003+10:30

The Glico Man, Osaka

2011-02-17T18:38:00.000+10:30

Okonomiyaki, Osaka

2011-02-17T18:31:00.002+10:30

Happy Cock, Fukuoka

2011-02-11T01:06:00.002+10:30

3000yen entry and all you can drink! This was the most packed club I've ever been in. I personally enjoyed being tightly wedged among sweaty Japs.

all you can drink, Fukuoka

2011-02-11T01:04:00.003+10:30

Plum wine... tastes just like apple juice... and it'll get ya drunk!

Sushi Train, Fukuoka

2011-02-09T23:18:00.003+10:30

This was my best sushi experience. The place had minimal customers so when we sat down, the chefs were basically all ours. Recommendations and funny comments the whole time. Aburi Salmon would have been epic if the Samurai Master eased up a bit on the salt. Otherwise a fantastic experience thanks to the affable staff.
Actually, this is a great example of Fukuoka people. They're totally different to the big city folk you find in Tokyo. The key difference is, the people of Fukuoka make it obvious they like foreigners and give you that 'warm welcome' feeling everybody loves so much. A truly great city.

Best Ramen on Earth, Fukuoka, Japan

2011-02-09T20:25:00.003+10:30

The beer was also the best beer on earth.

Dinner with Phu's Japanese family, Fukuoka

2011-02-09T20:18:00.002+10:30

We met up with our friend Phu in Fukuoka who has been here for 4 months studying Japanese. He introduced us to his affable host family and we had delicious Japanese barbecue together.

Ramen pit stop, Fukuoka

2011-02-09T20:14:00.003+10:30

Shinkansen

2011-02-09T19:52:00.003+10:30

Every time we move from one city to another, we wake up sparing no time for breakfast and rush to the train station. Only then do we buy bento (lunch box) and enjoy it on the bullet train followed by a mid morning siesta.

Tokyo Subway

2011-02-09T19:45:00.002+10:30

Subways are often packed. The second photo is 5am Sunday morning. Everyone falling asleep and probably intoxicated.

Temple in Asakusa, Tokyo

2011-02-09T19:41:00.001+10:30

Sumo

2011-02-09T19:22:00.004+10:30

8 hours of sumo is too much sumo! This place was empty when we arrived in the morning (on our vintage bicyles, which we parked illegally), but by 3pm the place was packed. In the end, the underdog won so everyone threw their seat cushions into the ring, a tradition.

Mos Burger

2011-02-09T19:07:00.003+10:30

The best damn burger I've ever eaten. A tribute to Mos Def (American actor and rapper). Or he just owns the place.

Tokyo Sky Tree

2011-02-09T18:56:00.006+10:30

My vacation has now brought me to Japan where I met up with my cus and friends from Adelaide for 2 weeks of 'getting up to no good' as Sam eloquently put it.
It took about 3 hours to fly from Shanghai to Tokyo, which was our first of many cities to explore.
Backpacker style living, in hostels and lots of site seeing. I did intend to post pics as I uploaded them on my macbook, but I just couldn't be bothered. Here they all are. Enjoy!

The tower in the pic was visible from my hostel so I thought it was close enough to ride to on my rented vintage bicycle with my buddies Sam and Hong. But it's visible from pretty much anywhere in Tokyo so it took ages to reach it, but it was worth the effort.

Le Saleya, Shanghai

2011-01-16T01:39:00.004+10:30

Lots of foreigners in this intimate place. French cuisine. Decent food.
Address: 570 Changle Road, Jingan

Everything is better with Doraemon

2011-01-16T01:25:00.002+10:30

In the lead up to my holiday in Japan, it would only be wise to eat Doraemon candy! Sadly this candy was made in China and was nowhere near as cool as I expected it to be so the anticipation continues...

My new favourite hang out spot

2011-01-09T06:15:00.002+10:30

So much delicious food and cafe's with WiFi that doesn't work. Need I say more? I dunno.. Google it.

What are the odds??

2011-01-09T06:07:00.006+10:30

It's such a wonderful feeling when things in life just happen to go your way. Earlier today, I was out shopping to buy my sister a dress and myself some hand cream (dry skin due to the consumption of Roaccutane), when I came across both stores I intended to visit, right next to each other!!
That's my shopping list on my newly acquired iPad as proof. What a great day.
Ironically Zara won't stock the dress for another month until their sale period ends.

Tokyo Banana

2011-01-09T06:02:00.000+10:30

POCKYYYYYY~~

2011-01-09T05:58:00.003+10:30

The greatest snack of all time.. best enjoyed while watching episodes of The Big Bang Theory.

Best gift ever

2011-01-09T05:55:00.003+10:30

Ayooo my dad has some good mates in Shanghai.
I met this man and hardly spoke to him... due to linguistic barriers, and this is what I got. OHH YEAHH

Jinmao Tower, Lujiazui Shanghai

2011-01-09T05:53:00.002+10:30

Everybody loves a foot massage

2011-01-09T05:48:00.005+10:30

Before anyone hurls insults at me, as Johnny Drama said "a massage should be totally non-sexual, and I need the power of a man's hands during a massage" ... or something like that.

Peace Hotel

2010-12-31T18:46:00.002+10:30

My dad was meant to go to this event. But he was out of town. So I sat in his chair instead and marveled at the beauty of this iconic hotel.

Dinner at Peace Hotel

2010-12-31T18:40:00.002+10:30

Black Pearl Milk Tea?

2010-12-21T01:57:00.000+10:30

Delicious!

Monkey Bar, Shanghai

2010-12-20T18:43:00.005+10:30

A one minute walk from Wara Wara lead my friend Ciao and I to a cosy bar in an alley, reminiscent of Botanic Bar in Adelaide. There were no signs out front, just a black door. No passers by will stumble upon this place. You even have to knock on the door for security to let you in. Very cool!

Wara Wara, Shanghai

2010-12-20T18:35:00.002+10:30

Great value Japanese food if you're super hungry. The menus is huge! And I finally had my first taste of hot sake.
Address: 30 Donghu Lu, Luwan

Wara Wara, Shanghai

2010-12-20T18:27:00.002+10:30

Snowing in Shanghai

2010-12-20T18:24:00.002+10:30

Shanghai

2010-12-20T18:22:00.002+10:30

Taipei 101

2010-12-18T17:20:00.001+10:30

Pity I didn't visit Taipei. I will be back in 2011 :)

Karaoke - Oscar Star end of year dinner

2010-12-18T17:13:00.000+10:30

Temple in 草屯 Taiwan

2010-12-18T17:09:00.001+10:30

Taiwanese celebrities

2010-12-18T17:03:00.001+10:30

Night market - Taichung, Taiwan

2010-12-18T17:00:00.001+10:30

Chartres Garden

2010-02-28T23:23:00.005+10:30

Absolutely no doubt, this was the best night during the best week of my life. My buddy Jia Jun invited dad and I to Chartres. We ate great food (finest lamb I've tried cooked exactly how I wanted it), made greater friends, and it all ended with the greatest memories. This was my final week in Shanghai.

THE most hospitable man in China

2010-02-28T23:14:00.002+10:30

Sin Nightclub

2010-02-22T01:47:00.004+10:30

The first club I've been to that is in a skyscraper. Atmosphere is pretty good like the view, but the bar staff are completely incoherent. I guess that's why I'm not a huge fan of clubs with the super loud music and all. And that's my Shanghainese friend Li Zhang.

My favourite girls

2010-02-22T01:42:00.001+10:30

Shanghai Tang Cafe

2010-02-22T01:36:00.003+10:30

I was lucky to attend the opening of this beautiful place in Xintiandi. Downstairs there's a cafe, on level 2 there is a restaurant and on the top level, a bar. And the bar was where I was. Crowd here is very chic so wear your shiniest shoes!

House of Blues & Jazz

2010-02-22T00:47:00.006+10:30

I have great memories of this place. I met up with my friend Jenny and had some vodka mixers. Jenny introduced me to her friend Ciao who met up with us here and we listened to live blues for a while. The place gets really busy after 11, so get in early if you want to sit down and order snacks. Afterward we headed to a house party, which was my first house party in Shanghai. Was in an apartment hosted by a group of French guys. Totally random. I ended up going back to house of blues on Sunday night because it was pretty good (in the words of Larry David).

Make a wish at Lujiazui

2010-02-22T00:29:00.003+10:30

I honestly thought Pudong would be boring after reading lots of reviews on it. But I was amazed at how much I enjoyed myself there. It is very Western and the streets are clean with lots of high buildings, but it isn't boring. Yeah okay it doesn't have traditional culture around every corner like across the Huangpu River, but it is definitely work checking out. I went to the riverside and purchased a red hot air balloon, which I have no idea what it's called. Anyway, I made a wish and let it go in the air. One thing that was kind of annoying was the several beggers who constantly follow you and ruin the moment. Oh well, can't have it all.

Fascination with tall buildings

2010-02-15T09:05:00.002+10:30

Office workers

2010-02-15T09:01:00.002+10:30

Pampered pooches

2010-02-15T08:36:00.005+10:30

This dog was hopping around showing off, but was too scared to be patted by strangers. Would hide behind the owner every time someone reached for it.
But so many Shanghainese have a dog running around in their apartments. Someone in my building even had a fully grown male German Shepherd, which barely fit in the elevator. Unbelievable.

Passing the time Shanghainese style

2010-02-15T08:31:00.003+10:30

Elderly Couple

2010-02-15T08:17:00.004+10:30

Traditional Shanghai is filled with simple and beautiful things like this elderly couple. They were just hanging out on the side of the street enjoying the crisp morning air. I was lucky enough to explore on foot the backstreets of Waitan district to see Shanghai's 'other side' and best of all it cost nothing.

Traditional Shanghai

2010-02-15T08:00:00.003+10:30

Shanghai Museum

2010-02-15T07:46:00.004+10:30

The driver

2010-02-11T05:16:00.005+10:30

No. 88 Bar

2010-02-11T04:56:00.003+10:30

Don't let the pics fool you, this place situated in Jing'an district was packed. Music was loud and the drinks strong, just the way I love it.

Traffic, Shanghai

2010-02-11T04:51:00.002+10:30

Taobao Market, Shanghai

2010-02-08T01:42:00.005+10:30

Although it has no relation to Taobao online market (China's biggest online store, pretty much like ebay), there is so much fun to be had at this chaotic place. Faux branded clothing and accessories and so much more are available. I didn't particularly need anything, but I went because I missed the joy of hard bargaining. I left with a "I Love China" shirt and a handful of DVDs. Let the good times roll.

Expo

2010-02-08T01:24:00.003+10:30

As Expo is being held in Shanghai this year from May until October, it was only fitting that I got some snaps with the mascot Haibao.

Yet another watering hole

2010-02-08T01:17:00.003+10:30

No Thanks

2010-02-08T00:51:00.002+10:30

So one day I was really hungry around lunch time while hanging out in dads office. His colleagues sometimes order a packed lunch, so I agreed to get one expecting a sandwich. When it arrived, it looked uncannily similar to the packed food I scoffed down on the train when I was in Shanghai 2 years ago. That was, of course, the meal I had a few hours before I became unbelievably sick. It was definitely one of the hardest experiences of my life, lugging a 20kg suitcase around Hong Kong on my way to the airport on no sleep as I was up all night extricating every bit of fluid from my body. Thus, I kindly refused this meal, which I'm sure was a decent feed.

The Famous Chef

2010-02-08T00:24:00.002+10:30

Actually I have no idea who he is. This was during a quick lunch on Hongqiao Road in an interesting restaurant. I just saw a great number of photos on the wall so I called him out to have mine taken. Will I send him a copy? Maybe.

Hot pot

2010-02-07T18:12:00.003+10:30

789 Nanjing Lu Bar, Shanghai

2010-02-07T17:46:00.003+10:30

Here's a bar that I would recommend to anyone. Great atmosphere, music at a level so you can talk with your friends, and a 360 degree view of Shanghai. The drinks menu is comprehensive and prices are at a level equivalent to Australian prices. Still, there is no cover charge and the staff are great. I met a guy here from the Gold Coast who has been DJ'ing in Shanghai for about 10 months. He told me he couldn't speak Chinese and was getting along just dandy.
I had such a great time I made sure I went back, which I enjoyed just as much as the first.

Xujiahui, Shanghai

2010-02-07T17:32:00.002+10:30

This is one of Shanghai's biggest shopping districts. It has 6 shopping malls and 3 supermarkets. It's most famous for electronic products though. Saint Ignatius Cathedral is also located here but I did not get a chance to check it out.

Sheshan International Golf Club

2010-02-06T21:35:00.006+10:30

I was lucky enough to visit Sheshan Golf Club located just outside Shanghai. Tiger Woods played here just before winning in Melbourne at the end of 2009, which was just before the whole cheating on his wife scandal.
Anyway, the day was foggy and raining so a quick round of golf was out of the question. My fathers boss's friend invited us there for the day to see his house, inside a gated community, which was located next to the 8th hole and nothing short of unbelievable and to have lunch at La Scala restaurant in the country club. Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the house, nor the club. Just one bad photo of the clubs side entrance. Lunch was amazing, an eight course fine Italian meal. Was a good change from the usual Chinese food, which does not keep me full for long. I was stuffed and satisfied for many hours.