Skyfall (2012, Movie)

I still have never thought Craig was a good choice for Bond, and I don't buy into the new 'human realistic' Bond. It was hard to squeeze out any remorse for a character who so callously and casually sent others to their death. I also found the current story lines dull, confusing, and long.

Sacramento Trip

People always say there pretty much is not much of much to do in Sacramento! I took the opportunity when IAI (International Association of Identification) California Regional Conference was held there. Tagged along with Wu-Liang, this city was quite, pretty, great HOT weather, and relaxed me. It was all nature around me... humming birds, April bugs, hawks, and I even crossed paths with a turkey while I crossed the street one day.

27 April 2013

LAX, McDonalds, South West Air, Double Tree Hotel

Parked at Hilton, LAX as usual and the shuttle took forever to come. Luckily, we pre-check-in South West Airline already and saved us lots of time. Filled up our stomachs with McDonalds’ Filet-O-Fish. Boy, it is expensive at the airport.

Double Tree Hotel is about 12 miles from the airport and there are plenty of restaurants and shopping (near a mall) in the general vicinity. Our room was very spacious and clean. They usually greet the guests with warm chocolate cookies. Yummy.

28 April, 2013

Southern Railroad Excursion Train ride, Joe’s Crab Shack, Railroad Museum, Thai Cottage Restaurant

Excursion train ride was just ok. We spent a fortune (just kidding) to sit in the ‘Luxury Car’ to receive water and snack. The ride itself was about 30 minutes along the Sacramento River.

The museum is very well equipped with old train relics, engines, etc. There are vintage train cars you can look in to, engines from different eras and lines, a reproduction of an old telegraph station, a produce car, an engine you can actually get into and sit in the seat, a mail car, a dining car with kitchen and examples of various china and place-settings. The vintage sleeper car that actually moves as though it is traveling, including sounds.  

29 April, 2013

State Capitol, Kru Sushi, Sutter’s Fort Historic Park, Great Wall Mongolian BBQ

The tour guide gave us a great tour! We got to see the interior of the capitol, plus we saw all of the past California state governors’ self portrait paintings except Arnold Schwarzenegger's. We enjoyed the tour and always learned something new about the people and culture of California. The California State Capitol houses the Bicameral State Legislature, offices of the Executive Branch, a pretty Rotunda area, interesting historical displays, and 70s-era office suites. The California Senate Chamber seats its 40 members in a large chamber room decorated in red, which is a reference to the British House of Lords (also the upper house of a bicameral legislature). The Latin phrase "Senatoris est civitatis libertatem tueri" [It is the duty of a Senator to protect the liberty of the people] lines the cornice. A portrait of George Washington and the State Seal hangs above. The California Assembly Chamber is located at the opposite end of the building. Its green tones are based on those of the British House of Commons (the lower house).  Along the cornice appears a quotation from Abraham Lincoln in Latin: "Legislatorum est justas leges condere (It is the duty of legislators to pass just laws). We also walked under the Rotunda, viewed the historic Governor's Office Suites, and wandered the ornate hallways outside the Legislative Chambers. It's all fascinating stuff and definitely worth a visit and for an intriguing civics experience.

Sutter’s Fort was a great place to soak up the sun. Begun in 1839 by builder John Sutter, the fort was a 19th century agricultural and trade colony and the first non-Native American community in central California.  It's famous for its association with the Gold Rush and the Donner Party. Took a walk through the well-maintained grounds here and experienced a well preserved piece of history, brought to life again thanks to our state park system.

30 April, 2013

Arden Fair Mall

Since I got a free day of my own, just decided to take a stroll to the mall across the street from our hotel. It has a nice atmosphere and you don't get lost. There is a food court and food isn’t great though. I’m not a regular shopper and accidentally stepped into a trap of Orogold store and bought myself a so-called ‘deep peeling’ product to lighted up my sun spots, hopefully. Sigh!

1 May 2013

American River Forest, Aerospace Museum of California

Actually, it is a Bike Trail we decided to hit on such a great day. And what a long long long trail! Other than that we saw so many people biking this trail, it is also great to have long nice runs/walks as well. It’s great for nature loving people and we enjoyed nice cool breeze along the river bank. Relaxing morning!

Oh this museum was exceptionally awesome. With AAA discount, it was fairly cheap entrance fee and plenty of stuff to look at, inside and out. I loved learning the history of the airplanes and the videos they had of the Coast Guard. Everyone was so helpful and had so much information to provide and the pride they showed just talking to us. You can even learn how to fly virtually with the simulator.  I would easily recommend this as a cheapish, fun afternoon. We easily burned 2 hours but could have easily stretched it if climbing into one of those flight simulators.

2 May 2013

McDonalds, Governor’s Mansion, Zen Sushi, Horn Blower, Leland Stanford Mansion State Historic Park, Elephant Bar and Grill

It’s the worst breakfast ever, such tiny Mc Muffin, at McDonalds. What can you say, we are not regular fans!

Governor’s mansion is a beautiful Victorian Gothic mansion and full of history. We took the guided tour to learn a lot about the architecture and some California politics. Governor Ronald (and Nancy) Reagan were the last to live there. It wasn't to their tastes and they moved elsewhere, leaving it in 1967 to become a museum.  The furnishings and the carpets are well preserved. 

Sacramento River’s 1- hour Cruise was kind of terrible and boring. It just traveled down the river and back. The Sacramento Delta is not as interesting as the Mississippi, but Sacramento is lucky to be at the juncture of two rivers: the American River and the Sacramento River. Being "River City", it takes advantage of the natural lay of the land - or the WATERWAYS, as the case may be - to let local residents experience the beauty of a riverboat cruise.    

A Must see for history buffs! The Stanford mansion is a wonderful piece of Sacramento and state history. A former Governor and Sacramento business man Leland Stanford originally built for his family. Besides home to Leland Stanford, it’s been long used as a home for children by the Catholic Church; many furnishings were preserved by the church. All the carpets and window dressings were faithfully reproduced. This is much more interesting, attractive and larger than the Governor’s Mansion. We were glad to stumble upon it.

I’ve got to mention the excellent crème brulee at Elephant Grill. Definitely, we’ll come back again.

3 May 2013

Elephant Bar and Grill, Noble Vegetarian

It’s another relaxing and lazy day for me. Practiced Tai-Chi in the garden, read newspaper by the pool side, even hooked up iPad via hotel’s Wi-Fi.

4 May 2013

Coco’s, Crocker Art Museum, Crepeville, SMF, South West Air, LAX, Home

Finally, we had a decent breakfast at Coco’s, plus the real coffee instead of hotel room’s coffee machine brewed coffee.

One hundred twenty-six years after Margaret Crocker, widow of railroad magnate E. B. Crocker, established the first art museum west of the Mississippi, a new, $100-million addition and renovation has tripled the museum's space. The Classic/Contemporary addition by the architectural firm that did the renovation of Manhattan's Guggenheim has propelled the museum back into the ranks of major metropolitan art museums. They have great collection of California art, Impressionist and modern. We had a wonderful docent who was willing to spend 2.5 hours just for two of us.

With this newest terminal B that opened up in SMF airport, you have to take a monorail to get to the actual departure gates.  Inside, the ceilings are sky high with tons of space all around and a gigantic red rabbit monument as a centerpiece. The entire airport is very clean and well maintained and the bathrooms all seemed well stocked. Of course, they do provide Wi-Fi!

Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012, Movie)

This movie stretches a simplistic story-line on for far too long, and it isn't that funny. Ice Age 4: Continental Drift just wasn't that good when compared to the others.

Argo (2012, Movie)

Based on true events and packed with stars, "Argo" is a political thriller about a life-or-death operation intended to rescue six Americans in Iran. On November 4, 1979, as the Iranian revolution reached its height, militants storm the U.S. embassy in Tehran, taking 52 Americans hostage. In the middle of the crisis, six Americans steal away and find security in the home of the Canadian ambassador. However, knowing it is only a matter of time before they are found, and the fact that they will likely be killed, a CIA specialist named Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) comes up with a plan to get them out. 

Great directing, great acting, great screenplay and suspense. Ben Affleck proved his directing skills with this one.

My Orchid at home

USS Iowa Tour

The USS Iowa is the oldest running navy ship around that has survived multiple war times. We spent about two and half hours roaming the ship and seeing all its glory. There is so much history on this boat. 

The USS Iowa has been here for about 8 months now, and is a pretty cool part of a day trip to San Pedro. The ship was in mothballs up in Northern CA for many, many years before they decided to tow it down here for renovation and tours. Even today they are still putting on the finishing touches.  The Tour Alpha is self guided, but there are many people along the way to answer questions and help us out. 

Our lunch was spent at the Seafood Market Restaurant inside Port O'Call Village, San Pedro. Good quality food and sea breeze really made our day.

聖地牙哥一日遊 (北一女校友會所辦的春遊活動)

Our first stop was Little Italy Mercato in the morning. The best part is the amount of free samples the vendors give away.  I walked out of there with a full stomach. For example, Zeb's Bitchin' Sauce is one of the best.  They have a very good selection of locally grown and organic produce. There are also a ton of fresh fruit stands and flowers. Each corner usually has some type of live music too.  It's very lively and full of people walking their dogs. This is probably the best way to spend our Saturday morning. A few people asked me about what Cherimoya is, but it's at the pricey end of $5 per pound though.


We dined at Harbor House in Seaport Village with a bay view。My meal was 'Soup and salad', simple enough. The sour bread was not even served with butter. Of course, servers were overwhelmed with us 100 plus guests and not to be bothered too much. I believe you're just paying for the view.  Plain and simple.  An oceanfront restaurant in the middle a popular seaside destination, it's going to cost you. 

It was a busy Saturday at Balboa Park. The buildings were amazing to see. This is a beautiful park with all kinds of museums and fun activities to do, along with beautiful gardens to see. However, due to limited time, we only strolled over rose and desert gardens. 

On our way back, we stopped by La Jolla shores and Carlsbad flower fields shortly. Seals really stink. I was told this is such a great place to learn how to surf because the south end of the beach has a small wave and as you move north, up the beach towards the pier and Scripps the waves get bigger. No wonder we saw lots of surfers and plenty of lifeguards on duty.

The Flower Fields was absolutely stunning. The flowers were so colorful and attractive, simply fantastic. You can see a giant America Flag view from highway. The driver took us on Armada street behind the fields, and got a great shot of the fields, the mall, the ocean and the sunset without paying the admission fee. Smart, hm?

It was a tiring and fun day. Still, the grouching driver at the end of the trip really ruined our mood. Sigh.